Interview with Christophe Piron, CEO Shifting up a gear ... · Interview with Christophe Piron, CEO...
Transcript of Interview with Christophe Piron, CEO Shifting up a gear ... · Interview with Christophe Piron, CEO...
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Interview with Christophe Piron, CEO
of Bihr
Shifting up a gearIn France, it is the undisputed market leader. Now the motorbike parts and accessories spe-cialist Bihr is shifting up a gear by expanding its activities in rider gear. Besides France, the country where the company was created in 1975, and Spain, where it has one of its largest distribution centers, the company is now developing the German market to become a truly pan-European supplier. After completion of the targeted expansion, Bihr wants to go on de-veloping its strengths: short delivery periods and a wide product choice that is constantly being adapted to new and changing customer demands.
Bihr is Europe’s largest supplier of
spare parts, accessories and tires
for motorbikes, quads, all-terrain
vehicles and scooters and of mo-
torcycle clothing and helmets.
The company was established by
motorbike racer Cyril Bihr in 1975.
“He couldn’t find the right piston
for his bike, so he had to import it
from Asia,” CEO Christophe Piron
describes the beginnings. “When
he stopped his racing career over
40 years ago, he set up his own
wholesaling business for spare
parts.” Since 2011, Bihr has been
a member of the Belgian Alcopa
Group, a family-owned company
with activities in import and distri-
bution, parts, building materials,
real estate, trading and retail, over
2,000 employees in 19 coun-
tries, and revenues of 2.3 billion
EUR. “We are part of the Group
and have our own subsidiaries in
six countries,” states Mr. Piron.
“France, where we have a large
distribution center, is one of our
main markets. Another important
market is Spain, where we have
a logistics center, too. In addition,
we have branch operations in
Belgium, the home country of our
parent company, the Netherlands
and Switzerland. At present, we
are opening a brand-new site in
Germany that will focus solely on
motorcycle and scooter clothing
and helmets, unlike our other
branch locations. Germany is one
of the largest and most significant
markets for rider gear and helmets,
and we have exclusive agreements
with major clothing brands and our
own sales force that from now on
are supporting the German motor-
bike dealers.”
Bihr employs 400 people, includ-
ing 240 in France and 100 in
Spain, and turns over 140 million
EUR, of which the largest share
of 120 million EUR is generated
through the sale of spare parts
and accessories, and 20 mil-
lion through protective clothing
and helmets. Operating in the
B2B segment, the company sup-
plies more than 14,000 dealers
across Europe with over 200,000
brand-name articles. “Besides the
countries where we have our own
branch operations, we have cus-
tomers in Portugal, Italy, Austria,
Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Slo-
venia and the Nordic countries,”
says Mr. Piron. “Our strength is
our first-class logistics. We have
four logistics facilities with total
storage of 40,000 m2 and are able
to supply almost all dealers in
Europe within 24 hours.” The new
German operation will be supplied
from the company’s spacious,
modern warehousing complex
located in Bartenheim in Alsace
close to the German border. “All
logistics facilities are managed by
ourselves, whereas for transport
we cooperate with reliable, external
partners,” Mr. Piron describes the
division of labour in logistics. In
addition to providing swift logistics
and excellent customer service,
Bihr distinguishes itself through its
advanced information technology.
“For automotive spare parts, there
is specific software available to find
and order the right part,” explains
Mr. Piron. “There is nothing like
that for motorcycles. Therefore, we
developed our own solution. This
way, we ensure that every cus-
tomer gets exactly the right spare
part.” Bihr handles 90% of all
orders through its website. “Digital-
ized, efficient ordering procedures
Read this article onlinewebcode: 8338
At present, we are opening a brand-new site in Germany.
The portfolio comprises of around 300 brands and 200,000 items distributed through a network of 14,000 dealers
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Bihr NVPierstraat 231 (3rd floor) 2550 Kontich Belgium
+32 3 4501706 +32 3 4501700
Bihr SAS7 rue Robert Schuman ZI Parc 3 68870 Bartenheim France
+33 3 89703099 +33 3 89703090 Bihr Iberia/Industrias Vicma SA Carretera Nacional N°340, km 619,4 30850 Totana Murcia Spain
+34 968 424752 +34 968 422778
[email protected] www.bihr.eu
are very important,” states Mr.
Piron. “On peak days, we dispatch
up to 8,000 parcels.”
Though the overall motorbike mar-
ket is declining, Bihr is benefiting
from sustained, strong growth.
“New motorbike sales are not that
important to us, because our focus
is exclusively on the aftermarket,”
Mr. Piron explains the apparent
contradiction. “For us it is impor-
tant that the motorcycles are being
moved. In general, the season
starts in spring when the bikes
are taken out of the garage and
prepared for the new driving sea-
son. That is our busiest time. With
regard to clothing and helmets, the
situation is a bit different. Here,
the season starts earlier because
the dealers want to have the new
products.” Due to its focus on the
aftermarket, Bihr is continuing its
positive development. “We expe-
rienced strong growth in the past,
and we expect an increase of 20%
this year,” says Mr. Piron. “Not by
expanding geographically, apart
from our current entry into Ger-
many, but by further improving our
delivery periods and adapting our
product portfolio to our customers’
demands.”
Bihr has a total storage capacity of more than 40,000 m2 spread over four warehouses
We are able to supply almost all dealers in Europe within
24 hours.
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