PORTLAND, Ore. (BRAIN) — Velo Cult, the Portland retailer and popular gathering place for the local cycling community, is closing to focus on online sales of its own branded products and soft goods.
Owner Sky Boyer opened Velo Cult in San Diego in 2006. In 2012, he moved the business to a 10,000-square-foot location in Portland that served as a retail and service shop, bar and event space. Velo Cult sells its own hand-built frame, soft goods and other branded products in addition to carrying such brands as Surly, Linus, Marin and Masi.
In a release this week, Velo Cult stated that it was "opting to sidestep the difficulty of traditional brick and mortar in favor of focusing on online sales and brand building."
Boyer said, "We've hosted weddings, funerals, concerts, poetry slams, musical jam sessions, parties to celebrate all occasions, and even got recognition on CNN, Travel Channel, and in numerous magazines. With this big space we ran into problems with the bar in regards to the city. In the end, the requirements from the city to keep the bar going are too great for a business like ours to take on. We don't own the building, so the expense for upgrades and the change to the layout does not make sense."
Velo Cult will throw a goodbye party on Saturday, July 28, starting at 6 p.m., and will begin liquidating merchandise, displays and other store items on Aug. 1.
