Mclain Cycle & Fitness

What Mclain Cycle & Fitness does

Mclain Cycle & Fitness was an independent, brick-and-mortar specialty retailer of bicycles, e-bikes, fitness equipment, cycling apparel, and outdoor recreation gear, headquartered at 2786 Garfield Rd. N. in Traverse City, Michigan. Founded in 1974 by Bob McClain (co-founder) and Kristina McLain (co-owner), the company served consumers across Northern Michigan including Traverse City, Acme, Williamsburg, Elk Rapids, Kingsley, and Suttons Bay. Its core product lines spanned road, mountain, recreational, commuter, kids, BMX, and specialty bicycles (including folding, recumbent, fat tire, and indoor trainer categories), alongside helmets, apparel, drivetrain parts, car racks, snowboards, skis, ski and snowboard boots, bindings, goggles, and protective gear.

The company operated an omni-channel distribution model anchored on a single physical storefront supplemented by an e-commerce presence, phone sales, and social channels (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn), plus an email newsletter and an expert-advice blog. Revenue was generated through three streams: one-time retail sales of bikes, e-bikes, ski/snowboard equipment, apparel, accessories, and car racks; professional repair and service revenue including tune-ups, flat repairs, wheel, brake, drivetrain, and suspension service, plus ski/snowboard tuning and binding mounting; and a seasonal Kids' Ski & Snowboard Leasing Program (November through March) producing subscription-style recurring rental revenue. Customer relationships were reinforced through complimentary 90-day safety checks, free binding installation and waxing with new ski/snowboard purchases, and curated local trail recommendations.

Per the available source data, Mclain Cycle & Fitness has ceased operations and its former Traverse City retail location is now occupied by ERIK'S Bike Board & Ski, a multi-state Midwest bike, ski, and snowboard retail chain. No successor entity, restructuring plan, or ownership transition details are provided in the sources.

Name

Mclain Cycle & Fitness

Legal name

McLain Cycle and Fitness

Website

https://mclaincycle.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Closed

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Mclain Cycle & Fitness was an independent specialty retailer in Traverse City, Michigan, selling bikes, e-bikes, ski and snowboard equipment, apparel, and accessories, and offering repair services and a seasonal kids' ski/snowboard leasing program to Northern Michigan consumers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Bicycle and Winter Sports Retail

NAICS

Sporting Goods Retailers (45911), Recreational Goods Rental (532284)

akta.pro primary industry

Cycling & Bike Retail (Sales, Service & Accessories) (CRAMABAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Bike Service, Repair & Maintenance Shops (CRAMAHAH), Bike Apparel, Helmets & Protective Gear Retail (CRAMAHAC), E-Bike Retail (CRAMAHAE)

Keywords

• Bicycle retail
• Bike repair services
• Winter sports equipment
• Cycling apparel
• Equipment leasing

Headquarters

HQ city

Traverse City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Retail Sales: Revenue generated from direct sales of bikes, e-bikes, skiing and snowboarding equipment, apparel, accessories, and car racks to consumers visiting the retail store.
2. Repair and Service: Revenue from bike repair services including tune-ups, flat tire repairs, wheel services, brake services, drivetrain service, suspension service, and same-day repairs. Also includes ski and snowboard tuning and repair services.
3. Equipment Leasing: Kids' Ski & Snowboard Leasing Program offered November through March, providing rental revenue for seasonal equipment use by growing riders.

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Mclain Cycle & Fitness operated a brick-and-mortar retail store in Traverse City, MI selling bikes, e-bikes, ski and snowboard equipment, cycling apparel, accessories, and car racks to individual consumers. The store also offered in-house bike repair and maintenance services (tune-ups, flat repairs, wheel, brake, drivetrain, and suspension service) plus ski/snowboard tuning, binding mounting, and a seasonal Kids' Ski & Snowboard Leasing Program.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bicycles and E-Bikes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Recent moves1 record

Direct peers

• ERIK'S Bike Board & Ski: Midwest multi-state bike, ski and snowboard retail chain that took over McLain's former Garfield Rd. N. Traverse City storefront. Operates the same combined bike + winter-sports retail, service and accessory model across MN, WI, MI, IL, KS, SD, IA, AZ and MO, making it the most direct comparability reference.
• Wheel & Sprocket: Family-owned Midwest bike retail chain with multiple Wisconsin locations offering bike sales, service, rentals and accessories. Closely mirrors McLain's local-bike-shop-plus-service DNA but at greater scale, making it a strong direct peer for an independent bike retailer in the Upper Midwest.
• Mike's Bikes: Multi-location independent bicycle retailer across California with full-service shops selling road, mountain, commuter and e-bikes plus repair and fitting services. Comparable operating model to McLain (retail + service), just at a meaningfully larger footprint.
• Landry's Bicycles: New England multi-store bicycle retailer offering road, mountain, family and e-bikes with on-site service departments. Closely matches McLain's combination of premium bike retail, in-house repair and accessories.
• Jenson USA: Direct-to-consumer bike and parts retailer with deep mountain, road and e-bike assortment plus outlet pricing. Competes with McLain on the same product categories but via a national e-commerce model rather than a local storefront.
• Competitive Cyclist: Premium online retailer of road, mountain and gravel bikes, parts, apparel and accessories. Adjacent competitor to McLain for the higher-end of McLain's road, mountain and e-bike assortment, though purely e-commerce with no service counter.
• Christy Sports: Multi-state ski, snowboard and bike retailer with strong presence in Colorado, Utah, Michigan and other mountain/tourism markets. Closely matches McLain's combined ski-snowboard-and-bike retail plus service model, particularly the seasonal winter half of the assortment.

Broad incumbents

• REI Co-op: Large U.S. outdoor co-operative retailer with extensive bike, ski and snowboard assortments plus in-store service departments. Overlaps with McLain on category mix and service, but operates at far greater scale and breadth as a broad outdoor incumbent rather than a cycling specialist.
• Trek Bicycle Stores: Manufacturer-branded retail concept stores selling Trek bikes, apparel and accessories with in-house service. Comparable to McLain's retail-plus-service offering but anchored by an OEM brand and broader footprint than a single independent shop.

Emerging players

• The Pro's Closet: Online marketplace for certified pre-owned bikes, components and gear with a trade-in / consignment model. Partially overlaps with McLain's bike sales and accessory categories via a different (used / refurbished) go-to-market.

Market position

Strengths3 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/mclaincycles
• Facebookfacebook.com/mclaincycle

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Mclain Cycle & Fitness