Brompton has finally done it; they’ve hand-built one million folding bicycles, and this special serial number is touring the world. This millionth bike is not just your regular Brompton, but it’s designed after the brand’s original model, the “Mark One”, which has a red frame, silver parts and a Brooks C17 saddle that pays homage to the style used back in 1975 (when the first Brompton was made). If you hurry, you can see it in person from 19 to 23 July at Funan Mall’s Atrium, after which it’ll continue on its world tour with Tokyo as its next destination.
Above: The special one millionth brompton bike that’s doing its world tour.
As part of Brompton’s One Millionth event, Brompton Singapore will be retailing a limited edition “Archive Edition” bike, also inspired by the Mark One’s design, and in three historical colours: Baby Pink, Arctic Blue and Apple Green. There is a fourth colourway in a two-tone Apple Green with Arctic Blue that’s exclusive to APAC. These four Archive Edition bikes are crafted with a steel frame, three hub gears, dynamo lights powered by the rider’s movement, and a silver rear rack for carrying cargo.
Above: Brompton Archive Edition in Baby Pink, Arctic Blue, Apple Green and the two-tone Apple Green with Arctic Blue that’s exclusive to APAC.
Brompton bikes are really fun to ride. I’ve been zipping around in my Matcha Green C-line and I can’t imagine life without it. Bromptons are unabashedly city bikes; they are light, compact, and can fold to fit into the boot of a car or carry onto a plane. In Singapore, cycling paths aren’t that common, but bicycles are a convenient mode of transportation and gaining in popularity — especially with the generations that value a simpler way of life and going green. And it’s with this community in mind that Brompton has grand plans for our city.
I spoke with Mark Smedley, Brompton Asia Pacific’s Managing Director on the future and hopes of Brompton in Singapore.
Above: Mark Smedley, Asia-Pacific Managing Director at Brompton Bicycle.
Mark Smedley: “Singapore is a great market, a great country to be. When I first came here, it was actually on the back of the pandemic. I came out here in January 2021 the moment the travel corridors opened, and I was blown away by how many bicycles are out and about. I was thrilled to see how many cyclists there were.
What we need to do is to help the government produce more Park Connectors so it truly becomes connected across the island. We made contact with LTA on this and what we’d like to do is to find the voice of the government and use our position in Brompton to help build the profile of cycling. So it’s early days for us. But yes, it’s one of the things that we need to be doing all day as a brand around the world. It’s using that position of strength for that voice.
So Brompton’s not an aggressive sales company; it’s about getting everything right. If we can provide a delightful experience and look after our customers, that will determine how many bikes itself are our voice advocacy piece. We hope that we can get more people thinking about cycling as either a mode of transport, which I don’t see the same here as compared to the West. Partly because of the weather, and that’s partly why the electric bike is such a great tool because you can use it in this environment without getting yourself overheated while you’re cycling.
And the expansion plan in Singapore is about connecting with the community and really integrating ourselves within the community.”
Above: Brompton junction at funan.
In Singapore for Brompton’s One Millionth event, Peter Yuskauskas, the Head of Brompton’s Global Community shares with me the significance of the one millionth bike.
Above:Â Peter Yuskauskas, Head of global community brompton bicycle.
Peter Yuskauskas: “So it seems on the surface like we’re celebrating that we made our one millionth bike. But actually, the one millionth Brompton is a representation of one million people who have started this journey on Brompton, and it’s not just about getting on a bike to ride from place to place, because people don’t always just ride a bike to ride a bike. They actually really want to live a more interesting life.
And so the one millionth Brompton is this sort of collection of stories and that’s why it’s so important that it’s travelling from city to city around the world, starting from our home in London, travelling all the way to Asia, then eventually back around North America, and back home to London; gathering the energy and all the stories of these Brompton arms.
Because what’s more exciting to say, I went for a bike ride today and I did 35 kilometres at 40 kilometres an hour and here’s my stats. For some people, this is good, and many people in the bike world think that way, right? That biking is all about performance and exercise. But we believe that biking should give you access to a more interesting lifestyle. Your bike should be a connector between you and many different other things. And what’s incredible about Brompton owners is that they’re so interesting. They all had to make this decision to buy a bike that looks a little funny; it costs a little bit more. But what it actually allows them to do is all of these interesting special things like put it in the back of their car and go out to the countryside and go camping, or take it on a plane and travel to a different city and meet a whole bunch of people for like a personal introduction to a new city.
So, again, the one millionth Brompton is about all of the stories of the last one million Brompton owners, and this sort of hope and expectation of all of the joy and freedom that we can create for one million owners going forward.”
To discover more about BROMPTON and to get your own, visit Brompton Junction Store at 107 North Bridge Rd, #01-26 Funan.
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