Ashland Bike Company moves to former Cleveland Ave. Market; steps into footwear offerings

ASHLAND — Ashland Bike Company recently moved out of downtown to operate under a new-but-familiar roof, with aspirations to expand its footwear selections. 

Ashland’s cycling retail and service shop moved to the former Cleveland Avenue Market building on Jan. 7, about a year after the locally operated grocer shuttered.

The renovated 6,800 square-foot building offers Ashland Bike Company, founded in 2017 and acquired by Fin Feather Fur in 2024, more space to grow.

The store will now employ five full-time staffers, including two bike mechanics, and continue to hire part-time help through warmer months.

Tony Bunt, the bike shop’s founder and current service manager, said Ashland Bike Company will continue to offer “pro-level service” and a bevy of cycling brands. 

The store currently carries Trek, Denago, Cannondale and Intense brands of bicycles in road, mountain, hybrid, BMX and e-bike categories.

Bunt said the store recently began offering Trek and Retrospec children’s bikes, and has a selection of used bikes available, too.

Ashland Bike Company is one of three local acquisitions made by Fin Feather Fur in 2024. Others included MVD Sports — a sportswear apparel printing shop — and Modern Home Supply in Loudonville. 

The newly renovated store now offers a separate service counter and cash register. At the service end, the shop now features four work stations with a bike-service stand that can lift heavier e-bikes, a category of bicycles that is experiencing rapid growth globally and in Ashland. 

Bunt said the shop sold 118 e-bikes in 2024, up from 25 the year prior. From 2017 to 2023, the shop sold a total of 62 e-bikes. 

“That’s huge growth,” he said. “That market is exploding.”  

Grand View Research, a market research and consulting company, estimates the e-bike’s market size to grow by 10.3% over the next five years. The company attributed the growth to factors such as government incentives and technological advances in batteries.

Stepping into footwear

Despite the growth, however, e-bike sales at Ashland Bike Company doesn’t solve the challenge of stagnant sales through winter months, said Rees Vail, vice president of Fin Feather Fur. 

“The bike shop is good,” he said. “But we want to make sure we have more of a 12-month business, get more foot traffic in there — swing the door.” 

That’s why the other end of the store will be a designated area for selling various footwear, Vail said. 

Shoes for various sports — football, baseball, soccer and running — will hit the shelves soon. Vail said shoppers can expect brands such as Sketchers, New Balance, Saucony and Brooks, among others.

Vail said he also ordered pickleball supplies, given the store’s proximity to courts at Cahn Grove Park. 

One of the new hires at the store includes Kiersta Tucker, an endurance athlete who is knowledgeable in running footwear. Brittany Pelton rounds out the experience spectrum — she has little-to-no experience in cycling and running. 

“But I’m excited to learn,” she said.

“It’s hard to remember what it’s like to be a beginner sometimes,” Bunt said, adding that having Tucker and Pelton at the store will help cater to all levels of athleticism.

Though the shop is operating at the new location, Bunt said Ashland Bike Company hopes to host a grand opening at the newly renovated store on Cleveland Avenue at a date in the spring.