INTRODUCTION:
Focus Bikes is a bicycle manufacturing company in Germany. The company manufactures racing, sports, road and mountain bikes. It was established in the year 1992 by the famous German cyclist Mike Kluge.
HISTORY OF FOCUS BIKES:
In 1992, Mike Kluge founded the firm Focus Bikes. He himself was World Champion in cyclocross (a kind of bicycle race) three times. He kept the company name Focus, as he wanted it to be the focal point in the development of bicycles, especially racing and sport varieties.
In 1993, the firm teamed up with the bicycle manufacturer Derby Cycle Work in order to improve the quality and production of its bicycles. In the same year, founder Mike Kluge became the German national champion and also the world runner-up in cyclocross. Hero rode a Focus bike in the championship.
In the year 1994, six varieties of mountain bikes were produced. All were produced with both price and performance in mind. This “value for money” aspect of their bike production was one of the main reasons behind the massive success of their bikes.
In 1995, the company expanded its production. They also expanded to touring and road bikes in addition to mountain bikes. Founder Mike Kluge also became the manager of the first German professional mountain bike team.
In 1996, Mike Kluge participated in the Atlanta Olympic Games on a Focus Bike model. His bike model was called the Focus Raven.
In 1998, Jorg Arenz, brand manager for Focus Bikes, won the German cyclocross championship on a bike made in-house.
In 2003, Jorg Arenz assumes the product management. They also increased the number of bikes in their racing lineup in the same year.
In 2005, Hanka Kupfernagel became the Cyclocross World Champion while racing a Focus Bike. The bike used in the race was called the Focus Mares Team Bike.
In 2006 the first bicycles with carbon fiber frames were produced. This bike quickly became very popular with touring professionals and recreational riders. Due to the carbon frames these were lighter and easier and smoother to ride.
In the year 2007, Kupfernagel also became world champion in the individual time trial while participating in the Road Bicycle World Championships.
In the year 2008, the production of the Time-Trail range of Focus bikes was done in conjunction with the collaboration of Andreas Walser, who specialized in time-train research and testing. Focus Bikes launched the fastest series of Time Trail bikes. Athletes riding Focus Bikes won four titles during the 2008 German Cyclocross Championships. The four titles were: one in the junior category, one in the women’s category, one in the 23 and under category and one in the elite category. The time trial series was also expanded to the triathlon segment in the same year.
In the year 2009, Focus Bikes partnered with the European racing team Team Milram. This sponsorship deal meant that team riders must ride Focus bikes while taking part in major races around the world. In the same year, the company started a Europe-wide advertising campaign on the Eurosport television channel. In the same year, the company also established subsidiaries in the United States, thus directly entering the North American markets. Their sponsorship of the US-based Jelly Belly Cycling Team was announced to increase their exposure in the United States.
In the year 2010, the firm introduced many new designs. Focus Bikes increases its sponsorships. Two other Italian teams from the European continent, namely Team van Vilet and Team Net App, also started riding Focus Bikes in races. Focus Bikes also entered a World Cup team. They sponsored Mountain Bike teams like Team MIG (Made In Germany) and an Italian amateur team, Team Focus Italia. The firm became an official partner of the 2010 Tour de Suisse.
In the year 2011, it also started sponsoring the Russian road racing team “Team Katusha”. She also continues her sponsorship with Team Jelly Belly and Womens Team Vanderkitten. He also introduced several new ranges of Focus Bikes Project bikes with plans for massive expansion in 2012.
So Focus Bikes has grown from a small company started by a former racing champion to a huge bike company with subsidiaries and sponsorships all over the world. In recent years, the company has increased both the production and the variety of the bicycle range and is gradually becoming one of the world’s leading bicycle manufacturers, especially for racing.