GROWTH OF BROMPTON

An interview with Mark Smedley, Brompton Bicycles Asia Pacific Managing Director

- SADAT OSMAN

Mark Smedley, over the last 20 years, has led the sales of premium and exclusive lifestyle brands across multi-channel environments. During his time with Brompton, he’s had the pleasure of developing a truly diverse and international sales team spanning the globe.

His focus has now turned to leading Brompton’s development across Asia, where some of the world’s greatest cities and urban environments exist. NXT caught up with Mark - to find out more about the growth of Brompton and his ambitions.

Brompton has gained a reputation for its high-quality folding bikes. How did the company get started in this market, and what have been some of the keys to your success?

Brompton bicycles were imported and sold in APAC markets through appointed distributors and their network of authorised dealers which specialise in bicycle sales. We took over the importation of Brompton bicycles in some of the APAC markets since 2017 and we opened our first Southeast Asia’s flagship retail store – Brompton Junction in Singapore in June 2019. Being hand-built in The UK, the high-quality of Brompton bicycle is an important factor that makes the bicycle popular. Most people stay in apartments in cities and its compact folding size makes it convenient to store at homes, it is easy to bring it anywhere with you, even on public transport.