Strictly Bicycles

As an industry leader in the CBD industry, Floyd’s of Leadville plays an important role as an educator. We love to share what we’ve been up to as we expand our brand and operations, but we also love to hear from you, our retail partners. We rely on you to help educate consumers, promote Floyd’s and share the #relaxandrecover lifestyle with your customers. For us to be successful, we want you to be successful as well. With that in mind, we are excited to launch our retailer profile series where we connect with Floyd’s of Leadville CBD retailers around the country. We want to hear what you’re up to and offer a platform to share ideas and feedback. From cycling and running shop to yoga studios, grocery stores and everything in between, we’re all in this together.

This week we sit down with Joanna Gutierrez of Strictly Bicycles Inc in Fort Lee, New Jersey as she talks shop and prepares for the holiday season.

Thanks so much for joining this week Joanna and kicking off our retailer profile series. Could you give us a little bit of your background- how long has the shop been around?

We opened the store in 1994, so this February it will be twenty-six years. My husband, Nelson, became a cycling enthusiast at the ripe old age of thirteen. His passion for bikes helped him get the solid background on innovative products. As soon as we opened the store, we found out we were having a child, who’s now twenty-five. We started with a very small store and eventually saved enough to purchase the property we are now occupying. We’ve had to make hard decisions on products, staff and everything associated with making this store thrive. It’s been a struggle, but a satisfying one at the end of the road. We are now opening another store in NYC – Hudson Yards. Expansion was never in our minds, as we are crazy busy with just one location. We are also launching our online store to make things a little more interesting.

That’s great to hear how much you’re growing, we can relate. When and why did you first start carrying Floyd’s of Leadville? 

Floyd stopped by our store on one of his rides. We spoke with him about his idea of launching a CBD product we could sell at the store. Nelson thought it was an excellent idea, but we were not sure of the product. This was the first time we had heard of commercial CBD. After getting a full disclosure and information on the benefits of CBD, Nelson and the staff were given samples. We were all amazed on how we felt after using it for a couple of days. We spend a lot of hours on our feet, especially in the Spring, Summer and Fall. Our only “rest” comes in the winter, but we’re usually really busy too. Our joints hurt after a long day and the CBD helped all of us. That is the reason we became advocates and started carrying Floyd’s CBD products.

We’re so glad we’ve been able to help. There’s nothing better than first hand experience to sell a product. How have customers responded? Do you see them purchasing more for the holidays?

Our customers love the product. There are even several who make sure we have their specific dosage in stock before they even finish the products they have at home. We have also gotten non-cycling customers, who just found out that we carry the product and drive over to purchase. Right now, we have not seen any increase or decrease in purchases for the holidays. But I’m sure if we can get the Stage 17 CBD coffee, we will see an increase in  holiday shoppers.

We need to get you some coffee then! It’s been extremely popular and we ship the beans right out of the roaster so it’s been selling out quickly. The good news is that we’re dialing up our roasting frequency so we can meet the demand. Other than product availability, what are the most common questions you get? How do you help inform customers about CBD?

The most common questions comes from customers who have a job that requires drug testing. They fear that CBD will come back as a positive substance in their bloodstream. We explain that there are a variety of CBD products available and we educate them on the differences between Isolate and Full Spectrum and/or refer them to the Floyd’s of Leadville website to get some of the answers. If they still have questions, we suggest they contact their medical practitioner or send a message to Floyd’s directly.

That’s what we’re here for! We love to guide customers to the products that will suit their needs.  Is there anything else we as a brand we can do to help educate consumers about our products or CBD in general?

Advertising to the non-cycling community is a great idea. I’m sure there may be complications with this as big pharma does not want anyone going after their market. But, the CBD products work without the risk of addiction as we have seen with opioids.

After the first initial selling phase, how do you keep successfully moving product?

The initial phase was superb, although we did have the help of Floyd and Andre from the sales team. We sell tons of the product, so we maintain stock at all times. Since our staff uses the product and sees the results, they are the best advocates and sellers of the product. We continually recommend Floyd’s to new customers and we still have the original customers who are loyal to the brand.

That’s great to hear. What are your most popular CBD products? Why do you think that is?

Within the cycling community the most popular products are the Recovery Protein and Hydration Fuel. The single serving bags are for those who are riding or heading to the end of their ride, and the large bags are purchased by the same cycling group to take home or with them during race season. It’s hard for them to take too much while on their bikes, even though we did purchase some backpacks for that purpose; and they worked out pretty good! The gummies are usually purchased by the riders while at the store. They say that they like to eat them midride to help with cramping. I’m not sure that is a use for it, but I know they relax and are not as uptight when they come in! The Tinctures and SoftGels are purchased by runners, triathletes and the general population. One of the triathletes said she likes to take it at night before bedtime because it helps her joints. Her husband is also a triathlete and feels the same way. Customers also say that it helps them relax so they can sleep.

What’s your favorite FOL product and if we could create something totally new what would you like to see?

Nelson and I use the Full Spectrum Tincture. Nelson is always running around and his mind is always busy. The tincture helps him relax and takes away the joint pain that he feels at night. I just don’t sleep. I take it right after dinner and about an hour later, I feel relaxed enough to get a little sleep.

I would love to see CBD that helps with sleeping problems. Sleeping pills are so addictive and I’m sure has some neurological implications. Just to sit and hear people over the age of twenty-five talk, their main concern is that they are not getting enough sleep. This has made the big pharmaceuticals super rich by getting people hooked on sleeping pills.

CBD Coffee! I know you guys are already on this, but it’s always sold out. Besides sleep, my next best thing is coffee 😊

Thanks so much for talking with us Joanna, it’s been great to hear what’s working well for you and your customers. A Floyd’s PM line is certainly something to consider, and we promise we’re working to meet the coffee demand! We wish you the best this holiday season and congrats on the expansion.

Would you like to be featured in our Floyd’s Retailer Series or have a story you’d like to share?
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