Etailer Wiggle is planning to expand its physical presence by opening two workshop concessions in Homebase stores this year.

The cycling and tri-sports business, owned by private equity group Bridgepoint, launched the third of its Wiggle Workshops in Cambridge last month, following openings in St Albans and Milton Keynes.  

Two more are planned for the UK “later this year”, but a spokesman declined to give the locations of the potential new sites.

Wiggle’s retail development director Heather Powell said: “We are currently actively assessing other sites in cycle hot spots that might be suitable for this concept that provides an on-the-ground manifestation of the Wiggle brand.” 

The competition around cycling retail is set to grow fiercer with Evans’ new owner private equity firm ECI looking to invest heavily in the group and Halfords now under a new chief executive.

The Wiggle workshops, which are the first time the retailer has had a physical presence, offer bike service and repair, click and collect and return services. When Bridgpoint acquired Wiggle four years ago, the firm’s then chief executive Humphrey Cobbold said “large-scale” destination stores were planned. However, these have so far failed to materialise.

Wiggle last month lauched a new multi-media ad campaign in the UK and Australia under the banner ‘How We Roll’, including a TV ad.

In its last full-year, the retailer reported a 19% jump in underlying EBITDA to ÂŁ16.4m, as sales grew by 19% to ÂŁ168m.

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