Riding on biking in new business line

Potential Fortune Helmet wearing office and university going bicyclists are no longer an odd scene in Dhaka.  Slowly but surely, the bicycle is making the way back into the list of transport for the urban commuters. The extent of the rise in popularity of cycling as a mode of transport Dhaka varies between sources. BDCyclists, a group that has played a key role in this transformation, is now gaining momentum and getting more cyclists every day. This cyclist culture is extremely popular all over the world. Copenhagen is world famous for its biking culture and now officially the first Bike City in the World. It was also voted the 'Best city for cyclists'. A steadily growing number of cities around the world are eager to become cities of bicycles, as part of an overall strategy on sustainable development and the desire to become green cities. But the major influencing factors in Dhaka are not exactly eco-friendliness and development. In the city of Dhaka, it is quite simple to convince someone to take up cycling. It is perceived as a cheaper, and often quicker, alternative to public transport or the car. Any bicyclist sharing the story of their commute usually states these things. For instance, my office in Banani is 3KM from my home in Niketan. On a car it takes 30-45 minutes, and on my bicycle it just takes 10 minutes. Even with such a short commuting distance, I have saved 5 hours every week which I have managed to put into good use or just caught a few minutes of extra sleep in the morning. Inspired by this simple promise of more time in people's lives, cycling is in rapid growth in the streets of the capital along with other areas of the country.  Though in a city like Dhaka, in roads it feels like a war-zone. It seems like the traffic, pedestrians, potholes and every element is designed to trip you or break you. But the indomitable spirit of BDcyclists has not only overcome this challenge but also initiated a boom in businesses centering the bi-cycles.
This boom has started to create new businesses and economic ventures. It began with cycle shops. Just 2 years ago, there was only one shop in Chittagong who brought around 10-20 decent cycles in a year. Cheap Chinese bicycles ruled the market and tended to fall apart every chance they got. There were only two good bikes that people could go for. First is the Hero Ranger Max which is still a favourite among cyclists for their durability and never ending performance. The second is the traditional Phoenix lookalikes from Atlas and other brands. Anyone who wanted a mountain bike or a good road bike would have to bring it from abroad. Exactly at that time, one shop in Bongshal, called Lion Cycle, began bringing in bikes from Trek. And the new cyclists almost literally jumped on them. Overwhelmed with the response they soon started bringing in other brands. In recent times they have opened a new outlet in Dhanmondi. Following their footsteps of success, stores such as G.S. Impex, Master Cycle and others have started bringing bikes from world renowned brands and are opening shops in different parts of Dhaka.
Interestingly, even before this cycling revolution began, Bangladesh was the 7th largest bicycle exporter in the world. The Meghna Group was the leading manufacturer. They soon realized that this local trend is going to stay for long .  In 2012, Meghna group decided to focus inwards and opened up CycleLife Exclusive, a premium bicycle store. Immediately they were selling more than they had planned to produce. They have already opened up a new shop in Dhanmondi along with their old one in Tejgaon. Rumor says that might even start a new factory just to cater to local demands. While bicycle sellers are thriving, small entrepreneurs are opening up new cycle related businesses, Several shops from Bangshal along with other shops spread around the city is now selling bicycle accessories, cleaning services and repair services. It is usual for an industry to pull up the supporting industries with itself. Exactly this is happening in Bangladesh. Not just those, even a lot of online based pages have opened up to cater to the need of cyclists with safety gears, lights, spare parts and other accessories. These businesses are now increasing every month. In Mohammadpur Tajmahal Road, the first BDC Cycle Bazaar took place. Cellbazaar took care of all the organising cost. BDCyclists is now planning to hold the live Bazaar of second hand cycles and accessories on the first Friday of every month.
 However, along with the obvious businesses associated to cycles, some young entrepreneurs are setting up completely new business ideas based on bicycles.  The first to come around were bike messengers. Inspired by Premium Rush, three groups are now working to provide Bike Messenger Services in Dhaka. They have now opened up corporate delivery services for online shops as well. For the shops it makes perfect sense as they get to deliver products to the customers for a low delivery charge in a much shorter time. If you need to take something from one corner to the other corner in Dhaka in an hour or two, call a Bike Messenger. Hopefully in near future we will also see renowned concepts like bi-cycle sharing.  This can be a service in which bicycles are made available for shared use to individuals for transportation. But as of now various niche businesses are highly relying on cycles for delivery like Khanahero and Hungry Naki. Both of them are food delivery services and both have cyclists on payroll who ensure a super fast delivery while the food is warm. And these are only the beginnings of the new economy that is growing around cycling. We are set to see more innovation, more creativity and above everything else, more business surrounding cycling in the coming days. When will you join the fun? Happy Cycling.
The writer is Associate Director of the Asiatic Events Ltd.
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