01 Viel Holz und warmes Ambiente • The wooden interior gives a warm ambience 02 Zum Hauptgeschäft wurde noch ein Holzhaus als Showroom angebaut und durch eine Holzbrücke verbunden. • An additional wooden showroom house has been constructed. The link between the buildings is a wooden bridge, what else. 03 Das Ahornblatt ist Markenzeichen des Shops. Die Assoziation mit Kanada ist kein Zufall. Frank ist Kanada Fan und für Mountainbiker ohnehin ein Traumland. • The maple leaf is part of the shop logo. Not by accident. Frank is Canada fan. 04 So kennt man Showrooms auch von Edelautomarken. Man hat auch Platz um um die Bikes herum zu gehen. • The spacious showroom allows to walk around the bikes. 05 Mittendrin ein dreckiges Rad vom Chef. Bei aller Schönheit der Bikes, sie sind 05 06 07 We are visiting Radsport Kimmerle in Gärtringen in the district of Böblingen, in the Greater Stuttgart area, where the heart of the German automotive industry is based. I n 2000, Frank Kimmerle took over his grandfather’s traditional bike shop that was founded in 1949. He turned his back on the automotive industry and led the cycling house Kimmerle into its 3rd generation. As an avid mountain biker it was clear to him that his main range will consist of all terrain bikes and that it will only offer the finest brands. In 2012 he finally came to NICOLAI and in the first season became a premium dealer. Although it’s taken almost half a century for NICOLAI to find their way to Radsport Kimmerle NICOLAI products couldn’t have asked for a better home. The rustic shop made predominantly of wood with its Canadian cottage flair, at the time already anticipated the postmodern outdoor trend. Who would have thought in 1949 that one would find joy cycling on muddy unpaved roads. Or who would have thought that a bicycle that you ride through the dirt would cost as much as a small car. In 2014 everything is possible, for example a business can operate with selling high-priced mountain bikes. You won’t find a row of bikes on sale in the showroom. No, the owner’s dirty Helius AC stands in the middle of the showroom and invites customers to take a test ride. Frank drives and tests the products himself, which he then explains in the sales pitch. “Quality, not quantity” is all too often just a cliché, but with Frank Kimmerle it’s priority. He enjoys complex products and their often- demanding customers. You rarely find bargain hunters with him, but rather people who will travel from far away to take their extravagant wishes directly to Frank and let him personally build up their bikes. This is how premium shopping functions beyond the Distance Selling Act and the best price guarantee. For someone who daydreams about products from Külftal and wanted to take a trip to Canada should just go right away to Gärtringen in Schwabenland. swabian Canada