Retail Roundup: Trek bike shop, French bakery rolling in to Plainview

Bored folks have been good for the bike business.

In fact, new bikes were hard to come by in the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic — and in some places, they still are.

"We are in the midst of unprecedented demand," said Eric Bjorling, spokesman for Trek Bicycle Corp.

The Waterloo, Wisconsin-based retailer will be opening a new Trek Bicycle Store in Woodbury Plaza in Plainview late this year, he said.

Also, The French Workshop, a Queens-based artisanal bakery, will open its third shop, in Woodbury Plaza, in November, said manager Theodora Christophorou.

Other tenants at Woodbury Plaza, 401 S. Oyster Bay Rd., include Trader Joe's, Gap, Bed Bath & Beyond, CVS and Banana Republic.

Founded in 1976, Trek is a bike manufacturer, retailer and distributor. Its bikes are sold by 11 retailers on Long Island, such as Rockville Centre Bicycles and Sayville Bike Works.

But the Plainview location will be operated by Trek.

"The store will have a wide range of bikes and cycling accessories, including a full-service center," Bjorling said.

Riding a cycling surge

The store will occupy a 3,150-square-foot space that The Shoe Box vacated this year, said Matt O’Grady, a leasing agent for Colin Development LLC, a Manhasset-based co-owner of the shopping center.

In March, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo declared bike shops essential businesses that could stay open, while movie theaters, bowling alleys, shopping malls, in-restaurant dining and other leisure activities were shuttered to help stop the spread of the virus. And many employees working in nonessential jobs were furloughed.

Cooped-up consumers took their frustrations — and their bikes — to the streets, sidewalks and park trails this year. Nationwide sales of traditional and indoor bikes, parts and accessories grew an unprecedented 75% to $1 billion in April compared to the same month a year earlier, according to The NPD Group, a Port Washington-based market research firm. Typically, April sales are between $550 million and $575 million.

"It’s been a challenge to keep pace, but we’re focused on getting as many people riding as possible and help people live happier, healthier lives. Cycling is an incredibly important activity in terms of health, the environment, sustainable transportation, and a much-needed source of escape and relaxation during a difficult time," Bjorling said.

LI's second French Workshop

As for The French Workshop, it sells desserts, croissants, sandwiches and other items, Christophorou said.

Its first shop opened in Bayside, Queens in December 2015 and the second opened in Garden City in March 2018.

"Everything is baked on site. Fresh baked every morning and throughout the day, actually," Christophorou said.

The business is owned by two families — the Pantelatos, which includes Christophorou, and the Zorbas, she said.

Each family has had its own Greek bakeries, and one of Christophorou’s brothers trained as a chef in what was formerly The French Culinary Institute in Manhattan, she said.

"And between the two families and the expertise of the families, we were able to develop this concept," she said.

The French Workshop in Plainview will occupy 3,840 square feet in Woodbury Plaza, O’Grady said. The space has been used for temporary seasonal stores for years, he said.

Retail Roundup is a column about major retail news on Long Island — store openings, closings, expansions, acquisitions, etc. — that is published online and in the Monday paper. To read more of these columns, click here. If you have news to share, please send an email to Newsday reporter Tory N. Parrish at tory.parrish@newsday.com.

By Tory N. Parrish

tory.parrish@newsday.comToryParrish1

Tory N. Parrish covers retail and small business for Newsday. She has worked at the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and Observer-Dispatch in Utica, N.Y.