Rush Sports has been appointed the exclusive distributor of Santa Cruz Bicycles for Southern Africa from 1 January 2017.
From left: Tom Larter, Global Sales Director, Mark Anolik, International Sales, Tim Lukko, International Sales Manager and Andre van Aarde, Managing Director Rush Sports at the Santa Cruz headquarters in California this week.
Santa Cruz Bicycles joins a growing list of global A-grade brands working with Rush Sports. Earlier in 2016, Rush Sports became an official distributor of Maxxis tyres in South Africa. Last month, Rush Sports announced that global mountain bike racing legend, Greg Minnaar, had been appointed a director of the company.
The first shipment of Santa Cruz Bicycles ready to ship to Rush Sports for distribution in South Africa.
The association with Minnaar, who races for the Santa Cruz Syndicate, will see Rush Sports leverage Minnaar’s influence, both in terms of building the brand among consumers and current and potential Santa Cruz retailers.
“Rush Sports is very pleased to be appointed the exclusive distributors of Santa Cruz Bicycles in Southern Africa. Santa Cruz is without a doubt the leading core mountain bike brand in the world, which aligns perfectly with the segment that we know, understand and cater for,” said Andre van Aarde, Managing Director of Rush Sports.
From left: South Africans Greg Minnaar, Gary Perkin and Andre van Aarde at the Santa Cruz headquarters in Santa Cruz California this week. The trio will play key roles in the Rush Sports distribution of Santa Cruz Bicycles in South Africa.
“Through a network of 20 Independent Bicycle Dealers, working in conjunction with Rush Sports, we will offer high-end mountain bikers an unmatched service to build custom-configured complete bikes, along with offering the full range of standard frame, bike and soft goods from Santa Cruz”.
“I am thankful to Joe Graney, Tom Larter and the team at Santa Cruz for the trust they have put in the Rush Sports team, along with Brandon Els and Greg Minnaar for having the vision and foresight, not only to make Santa Cruz a reality, but to help support, guide and mentor me to position Rush Sports as a serious contender within the Southern African market. Santa Cruz is a great choice and brand for mountain bikers in South Africa, and Rush Sports is the perfect partner to bring them to market,” added Van Aarde.
Inside the Santa Cruz headquarters in California.
“We are incredibly excited to be working with Rush Sports. South Africa is a key market for Santa Cruz and we are very pleased to have found the right partner to support our brand and work with our retailers. From day one, Andre and his team impressed us with their level of energy, connection to the market and the level of service they deliver to retailers and riders. We look forward to a great 2017,” said Tom Larter Global Sales Director for Santa Cruz Bicycles.
To see the full Santa Cruz range available in South Africa, visit www.rushsports.co.za.
, I cant afford a Stigmata also this year!
I am sure you know them.... look like this...
I'm really hoping that with this more focused foray into the marathon crazy S.A market, there are plans to release an XC/Marathon oriented, steeper geometried full suss bike to rival the likes of the S-Works Epics etc. After the Tallboy 3 went a bit slacker now, I'm left wondering what to buy after my TB2, which I've done my best to get to be as sharp and "twitchy" as my Highball...