DUARTE, California — January 9, 2006 — Since the end of August, Dahon folders have made no less than six major mainstream media appearances, including the Today Show, The New York Times (three times), Good Day New York and Fox Five News (both on Fox’s N.Y. affiliate), the LA Newspaper Group (comprising eight local L.A. newspapers), and The Globe and Mail (Canada’s leading national newspaper). Spirit, the in-flight magazine of Southwest Airlines, will feature the Dahon Speed Pro in their December issue.
Dahon reports large sales increases in trendy urban centers, such as New York City and the Bay Area. Savvy retailers tuned in to this surging wave are reaping rich rewards. Once considered niche, “special order” items, top retailers are now moving more than 200 Dahon bikes annually from single locations.
So what’s going on?
“For the past few decades the bicycle has been primarily a recreational product in the U.S.,” comments Josh Hon, Dahon’s Vice President of Marketing. “But over the last couple of years we’ve seen a strong move towards the bicycle as a transportation product. Increasing numbers of people are using bikes for urban transport, and for that application it doesn’t get any better than the folding bicycle. This, coupled with the current trendiness of cycling, seems to be the main driving force behind our current U.S. sales explosion.”
Dahon, once a brand with a tame image, pops up regularly these days in cutting-edge publications like I.D., The Village Voice, Metropolis, Surface, The Fader and The Advocate.
“A lot of credit goes to Dahon’s design team, along with the recent mega-trend toward downsized personal gadgetry, such as I-Pods. And it sure doesn’t hurt that gas prices have gone through the roof,” adds Dahon California’s General Manager, Pete Molé.
Mr. Molé says there is more media exposure in store, with Dahon bikes slated to appear in several high-visibility gift guides during the upcoming holiday season. “The p.r. thing feeds on itself,” says Mr. Molé. “The more press we get, the more the phone seems to ring.”