VELOQUE research: cyclists and luxury references studied for the brand

Chapter 01 · Research

Knowing to
Redefine

The objective was to assess the viability of the niche and identify what makes a luxury brand, what cyclists expect, and how they expect to purchase and interact.

VELOQUE overview

Research Toolkit

Tools & Platforms

Six platforms carried the research, from long-form market deep-dives to the survey instruments that produced the persona clusters.

Gemini Deep Research

Market deep-dives

Long-form research runs across luxury and cycling market data, growth reports, and competitor landscapes.

Claude Cowork

Collaborative synthesis

Working sessions to cluster findings, pressure-test hypotheses, and turn raw notes into research takeaways.

Claude Code · AI agent team

Agentic analysis & documentation

A multi-agent pipeline structured interview transcripts, survey data, and competitive research, cross-referencing everything into one corpus.

Figma

Research synthesis

Empathy maps, persona boards, and the FigJam user-flow diagrams that structured every research session.

Typeform

Screeners & surveys

Long-form questionnaires for cyclist personas: riding habits, spend patterns, and brand perception.

Google Forms

Quick-turn surveys

Lightweight polls distributed through cycling groups for fast, broad signal on early hypotheses.

Market Analysis

The Rising of Luxury and Cycling Markets

Two markets on parallel growth curves, and an intersection between them that no house has claimed.

We identified a strategic opportunity at the intersection of the luxury market and cycling through deep research in ChatGPT and NotebookLM. The overall luxury market grew from roughly €1.0 trillion in 2014 to €1.5 trillion in 2023 (Bain–Altagamma), while the global bicycle market grew from about $26 billion to $62 billion in the same period — including a +42% surge in 2020, when luxury dipped and cycling boomed. Two growth curves that reveal how cycling is evolving from a sport to a symbol of status, style, and well-being.

Sources: Bain–Altagamma luxury index and global bicycle market data, 2014 to 2023

7.5% Annual luxury market growth
8.1% Annual cycling market growth
0 True luxury cycling maisons

Market Research

Two growing markets, one unserved intersection

Both the luxury and cycling sectors are on parallel growth trajectories. The overlap, a luxury brand built specifically for cyclists, remains an open white space with no dominant player.

Luxury market (trillion €) Bicycle market (billion $)
2014 2017 2020 · Covid 2023
0 Overall luxury market, 2023 (Bain–Altagamma)
0% Bicycle market surge in 2020 alone
0 True luxury cycling maisons

Competitive Landscape

The Absence of Luxury and Good UX

Six premium cycling brands, audited side by side on design, value, community, luxury perception and comfort.

We analysed the leading brands in the sector: MAAP, Pas Normal Studios, Assos, Q36.5, Rapha, and Rubber N' Road NYC. While they stand out for their visual identity, their websites are confusing and display too many options, leading to user frustration.

"I don't understand the difference between one jersey and another," said in a moderate usability test.

The common failure pattern across all competitors: aesthetic ambition without UX rigour. Premium pricing paired with confusing information architecture destroys the luxury experience before the product is even seen.

What makes a curated web experience

During research we mapped the elements that turn a website into a curated experience, closer to a product than a sales floor. Three reference categories from outside cycling shaped our standard.

Reference I

Apple

A premium-tech web that performs as a product experience, not a sales pipeline. Many users feel that even reaching checkout is hard, and that resistance is part of the desirability. The buying process is memorable, individualised per product, and offers deep customisation along the way.

Reference II

Louis Vuitton + traditional luxury

Built on Shopify. Online sales aren't the core: the site reads as brand presence and catalogue. Strains under high product volume and deep internal navigation. Monumental UI: white background, soft white-to-grey gradients, no border-radius. Gucci, Hermès and other heritage houses follow the same pattern, varying only by inventory size.

Reference III

Automotive & Performance Luxury

Luxury automotive brands invest in individual model storytelling, much shorter ranges and significantly higher price tiers. Each product earns its own narrative, a benchmark for VELOQUE's per-garment editorial pages.

Cycling brands with a perception of luxury

Within cycling, the brands carrying any luxury perception are MAAP, Pas Normal Studios, Pinarello (frames), Assos, Rapha and Q36.5. Below, the four most relevant to our positioning, broken down one by one. MAAP and Pas Normal both run on customised Shopify templates, which already secures a baseline UI quality, but each still surfaces friction.

Brand 01
Design
Quality-for-Price
Community
Luxury Perception
Comfort
  • 01

    Spectacular aesthetics undermined by complex navigation and sensorial overload.

  • 02

    Strong community and flagship presence, but volume and heavy discounting erode luxury perception.

Inter-category navigation is complex, and several UI choices create friction (confirmed in our user surveys). Dropdowns showing tag clouds of product names confuse users; product categorisation reads as ambiguous. Aesthetically MAAP is spectacular, but the lack of white space leads to sensorial overload for some users. A recently introduced sitemap section on the home page has been very well received.

Brand perception (interviews + surveys): premium, avant-garde design, strong community focus, with flagship stores in major capitals. Some users find it overpriced for the quality and comfort delivered, asking for more refined details and better durability. Loses luxury perception due to the wide range, production volume, and end-of-season heavy discounts, which point at a clear demand-management problem. Packaging is perceived as generic but well designed (logo shipping bags, vivid colours). Designed and manufactured in Australia.

Brand 02
Design
Quality-for-Price
Community
Luxury Perception
Comfort
  • 01

    Scandinavian minimalism reads as mid-tier luxury, but dense imagery causes cognitive overload.

  • 02

    Highest pricing in the category without matching innovation, value sits in the brand itself.

Navigation is even more complex. Cognitive overload sets in, with large amounts of imagery and graphic elements layered to build storytelling but distracting from the product itself. The catalogue is too large and stays online too long. Aesthetic is a Scandinavian / Danish minimalism that aligns with mid-tier luxury but never reaches the very top. Pops of vivid colour, bold lettering and the logo are the only standout graphic elements.

Pricing is the highest of the cycling field, without justifying it on real innovation or technical quality, positioning the brand as aspirational, with value residing largely in the brand itself. The site struggles to communicate optimal use per garment and how to combine pieces into versatile outfits. The brand polarises: perceived as posh or pretentious by some, deeply desired by others. Notable upside: gravel and influencer sponsorship campaigns fuel a clear storytelling thread visible across home, landings and social.

Brand 03
Design
Quality-for-Price
Community
Luxury Perception
Comfort
  • 01

    Premium-technological positioning: Q36.5 on innovation, Assos on comfort, both praised on value.

  • 02

    Visual design and online experience have fallen behind, capped further by WordPress/WooCommerce.

Both sit as premium-technological, not aspirational. Q36.5 leans on innovation; Assos leans on comfort. Many of our interviewees praised the value but felt the visual design has fallen behind. Neither delivers a memorable online experience. Both are built on WordPress with plugins and WooCommerce, which limits how far the digital craft can go.

Every premium cycling brand has invested in visual identity. Almost none in digital craft. The opportunity for VELOQUE is structural, not just aesthetic.

From this research we extracted the takeaways, covering opportunities, decisions to copy, and decisions to avoid, then translated them directly into the UI principles you'll see in the next chapter.

Competitor Analysis

Strong visual identities, weak UX execution

Every established player in the premium cycling apparel space has invested in visual brand identity while underinvesting in digital experience. The opportunity is not just aesthetic, it is structural.

Competitor brand analysis: MAAP, Pas Normal Studios, Assos, Q36.5, Rapha, Rubber N' Road

The six premium cycling brands audited during the competitive review

Strategic Opportunity

A Great Opportunity

Scarcity, exclusivity and belonging, priced as a system rather than a catalogue.

VELOQUE's strategy is based on scarcity, exclusivity, and belonging. Inspired by luxury and streetwear brands, it seeks to generate desire and loyalty through limited drops, aspirational pricing, and an exclusive community.

Our research also revealed the importance of a subscription system, one of the greatest opportunities identified to foster loyalty and generate recurring revenue. This model allows users to receive seasonal kits for a monthly fee, strengthening their connection to the brand and ensuring a continuous and personalised experience.

The financial model projects gross margins of 40–75% per product sold, based on actual costs analysed. The strategy broadens the focus to include experiences, accessories, and lifestyle, consolidating VELOQUE as a complete and sustainable luxury ecosystem.

Modelled from the real production costs analysed during research

40–75% Projected gross margin per product
3 Pillars carrying the strategy
I

Scarcity

Limited numbered drops that sell out and do not return. Scarcity is enforced by design, not manufactured through artificial launch windows, creating genuine secondary market value and anticipation for future drops.

II

Exclusivity

Access before release gated through club membership. The blockchain closet authenticates ownership and enables verified resale, so exclusivity extends beyond the point of purchase into the garment's lifetime.

III

Belonging

Club rides, athlete collaborations, and member-only content create identity attachment that transcends the garment. Belonging is the durable value that survives the wash cycle.

Preview · Strategy mechanics

Scarcity you can verify. Exclusivity you belong to.

Two mechanics carry the strategy out of the pitch and into something a member can hold, check and keep.

Every piece is numbered and registered on a blockchain. An NFC chip in the garment carries the token tied to that exact piece, so provenance is provable, copies do not pass, and resale value survives the first owner. No other cycling brand does this: their garments leave no residual value behind.

  1. N° 001 · Jersey

  2. N° 027 · Bib

  3. N° 048 · Jacket

  4. N° 063 · Cap

TOKEN 0x9F4C…A21 · Registered

Each garment is a numbered record in the chain: the NFC chip on the piece reads its token, the ledger holds the history of every owner

  • Member, not buyer

    The subscription is entry to the club. The relationship begins before the first garment arrives.

  • What it includes

    Access to the community, a set of garments every year with nothing paid per piece, and every drop first.

  • What it changes

    Value sits in the group, not in the SKU. The maison sells belonging and exclusivity, not product.

User research

Defining the Clients

To clearly define our users, the team (Jorge, the manufacturer, and I) conducted an empathy mapping exercise. This allowed us to categorise our audience into four distinct personas, each with different motivations, purchasing behaviours, and pain points.

The research behind these personas combined four methods. We ran 100+ interviews of 30 minutes each, structured around four recurring topics: online purchase experience, brand experience and perception, and garment fit, features and design. We complemented this with shadowing sessions inside cyclist groups, cycling cafés, and cycling shops, observing real behaviour rather than self-reported preference. In parallel, 50+ surveys covered the same four topics at scale. Every response was then categorised into behavioural clusters, which is how we arrived at the four personas below.

Fieldwork run by the founding team across cyclist groups, cafés and shops

100+ 30-minute interviews
4 Recurring research topics
50+ Surveys, same topics at scale

Four Cyclist Personas

Four audiences, one brand.

Each persona maps to a distinct set of needs, motivations, and online purchasing behaviours. Understanding these differences shaped every UX and product decision.

Enthusiasts persona reference: a young cyclist lifting his sunglasses, wearing a bold graphic-print short-sleeve jersey and white bib shorts
Persona 01

Enthusiasts

16–24 years

Javier Torres / Alex Reed. Young cyclists with a racing profile. They seek a bold yet functional streetwear style, dream of luxury but don't yet have much purchasing power.

Motivations: Competition · Social approval · Belonging · Visibility

Pain Points Difficulty understanding sizing, product value, materials, and product differences. Need real-life examples to feel confident. Behavioural Details Drawn to bright colours, slim-fitting technical garments and skinsuits. Favour a fast-paced, visual shopping experience with influencer and lifestyle content, and need real-life references to feel confident before buying.
Progressives persona reference: a cyclist in a full white aerodynamic skinsuit and aero helmet, tucked low over a time-trial bike
Persona 02

Progressives

25–35 years

Luis Ortega / Daniel Cooper. Young workers who view cycling as a lifestyle. Obsessed with extreme performance, aerodynamic garments, and a refined neo-old-money aesthetic.

Motivations: Self-improvement · Adventure · Performance · Refined aesthetic

Pain Points Frustration with unclear descriptions, confusing sizing, excess of options, and difficulty visualising differences between product lines. Online Purchasing Motivation Seek a fluid digital experience with a strong sense of connection to the product. Prefer modern, minimalist design that reads as both luxury and performance, and want customisation with visual consistency across the range.
Engaged persona reference: four cyclists in matching navy and stone gravel kit riding a gravel road above a mountain lake
Persona 03

Engaged

36–50 years

Carlos Méndez / Michael Harris. Experienced cyclists with high purchasing power. Gravel and gran fondo style, prefer regular fit, modernised old-money style and minimalism.

Motivations: Comfort · Distinction · Community · Premium events

Pain Points Excessive checkout steps, lack of visual coherence, poorly explained materials. Reject silicone. Prefer mid-sleeved garments with discreet style. Online Purchase Motivation Value clarity, personalised attention, and a secure purchase process. Respond to websites that convey trust and premium service over speed.
The Sages persona reference: a silver-haired veteran cyclist in a striped long-sleeve jersey riding a gravel road through winter woodland
Persona 04

The Sages

51+ years

José Antonio Ruiz / William Bennett / Ricardo Gómez / George Campbell. Veteran riders from 51 upward, baby boomers and older: the largest cyclist population and the one with the highest purchasing power. Almost no cycling brand speaks to them, which makes them VELOQUE’s clearest opportunity.

Motivations: Active ageing · Elegance · Tradition · Comfort · Heritage · Artisanship

Pain Points Complicated websites, excessive technical information, unclear payment steps, and no guidance for choosing a garment that balances comfort and elegance. Accessible information and visual decision guides are usually missing, and direct contact is hard to find. Behavioural Details Rides of 2–4.5 hours. Regular or loose cuts, visible seams, heritage detailing and wide classic lines above performance. They read cycling as pleasure, health and a connection to their own history rather than as competition. Online Purchase Motivation Prefer simple navigation, a short checkout and large, clear text over feature-heavy interactions. Want product recommendations tailored to their riding style and climate, and value human interaction more than speed or self-service.