Oakley continued to show that it values the floor space that the local bike shop dedicates to its products, as well as the customer base that sees its products there. At this year's Interbike show, Oakley offered those independent bicycle retailers exclusive access to the limited edition 'Retina Burn' Radar sunglasses that David Millar (Saunier Duval-Prodir) used at this year's Tour de France, and the entire allotment was spoken for by only halfway through the show's second day.
According to Oakley Product Manager Steve Blick, the bright hue was originally created exclusively for Millar and a few others and was a retro look designed to be a throwback to when Oakley was just emerging on the cycling market. "I looked at the colour we used a few years ago, like a cool 1980s retro style," he said. "We tweaked it a little and called it Retina Burn."
Oakley hopes that its decision to release the limited edition models only to bike shops will serve as an assurance to its faithful dealers that despite recently merging with the Italian firm Luxottica Group S.p.A., the attention to its roots, particularly in terms of distribution, will remain a focus. "Everyone has heard of our merger and our distribution," said Blick. "But the cool thing is that you can only get this at the local bike shop, where we started. Yeah, we are a big company but we need to stay with our roots."
The limited edition Radar comes in two lens sizes, Pitch and Path, and each size is limited to just 500 pieces.
Glasses
Goggles
Watches
Accessories
Alphabetical
Video Reviews
