SCOTT Sports Africa has appointed Knipe Racing as it’s Western Cape Technical Centre in support of the SCOTT Dealer Network. The appointment will improve efficiency of customer support in the province, which has seen a large increase in the sale of SCOTT bicycles.
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Based in Durbanville, close to Tygerberg Mountain Bike Club, a 7000-member strong mountain bike community, Knipe Racing is an established bicycle workshop, specialising in suspension, wheels and advanced technical solutions.
“We are pleased to announce that Knipe Racing is the second SCOTT Sports Technical Centre in South Africa. The goal is to ensure a faster turnaround time on technical issues so that riders can get back on their bikes with a solution,” said Joggie Prinsloo, Brand Manager at SCOTT Sports Africa.
“It’s important to know that our existing SCOTT dealer network throughout the country will still manage regular maintenance and warranties on SCOTT bicycles. The addition of Knipe Racing simply streamlines the process for more advanced technical issues that may arise for Western Cape customers,” he said.
Until now, the only SCOTT Sports South African Technical Centre has been at SCOTT Sports Africa’s Johannesburg office.
“Knipe Racing will have a small retail component with SCOTT bicycles, helmets and shoes, Maxxis tyres and Syncros accessories. But the primary focus will be technical support. Since SCOTT Sports has created proprietary technology, especially with the integrated design of our full suspension mountain bikes, it’s necessary to have more available advanced technical support.
“It costs both money and time to send advanced technical jobs to Johannesburg. But adding Knipe Racing as a second SCOTT Sports Technical Centre, we will streamline the process for our Western Cape market, which with the majority of our sales, is our biggest SCOTT bicycles region,” added Prinsloo.
The most popular SCOTT model in South Africa is the Spark full-suspension Cross-Country and Marathon bike. It features the most advanced integrated technology including an internal rear shock, TwinLoc remote suspension control and internal cockpit cabling. The SCOTT eBike range is growing and selling well in the Western Cape. Knipe Racing will also be able to attend to any SCOTT eBike-related issues that might arise.
“In the past few years bicycle technology has advanced to the point where first-tier brands need to invest in increasing after-sales support. More and more South Africans are investing in SCOTT’s premium product and we want to ensure they have peace of mind. We know how important riding is and adding Knipe Racing to SCOTT Sports Africa’s network means any problems that may arise can be addressed more swiftly, minimising the downtime of any SCOTT bike owner,” remarked Prinsloo.
“Knipe Racing has been the official technical centre of several major brands in South Africa over the past few years. They have put their trust in us to deliver after-sales technical back-up for their customers, including allowing us to buy service componentry, pivot kits and proprietary parts. It requires a high level of trust,” said Louis Bresler Knipe of Knipe Racing.
“We are thrilled that SCOTT Sports Africa has put its trust in Knipe Racing to fulfil this role for what is one of the top-selling brands in South Africa. It’s been a lengthy process as they needed to vet our work and service to ensure we achieved their expected standards.
“They have tested us with some of their new technology, both with regular bikes and eBikes and we have been successful. Joggie and Mark from SCOTT Sports have been very helpful and we are excited to be an official SCOTT Technical Centre,” added Knipe.
SCOTTS Sports Africa (Pty) Ltd is a subsidiary of SCOTT Sports, a global a leader in the development, manufacturing, sales and marketing of high end performance products intended for cycling, mountain biking, winter sports, motor sports, running and outdoor. Innovation, technology and design are the essence of the Scott products.
