Trago2Wheels
IN THE
Trago2Wheels Newton Abbot showroom
SWM
West Country retail giant Trago Mills has extended its motorcycle retail operation with the addition of the Italian SWM brand, for which they have also been appointed UK distributors. Rick Kemp reports
A
ccording to Trago2Wheels division manager Trevor Goodman, the company’s initial meeting with Italian manufacturer SWM Motorcycles resulted in Trago seeing growth opportunities for both parties. Trago2Wheels was seeking a manufacturer partner wishing to re-establish itself in the UK market, while SWM required a UK distributor of substance. Negotiations commenced in 2021, with initial stock eventually arriving mid-season last year. Are motorcycles a compatible commodity for Trago, a major player in the general retail discount sector? Goodman says PTWs are no more unusual than many of the 200,000 other products in the business’s uniquely broad inventory, which, in the words of the company’s founder Mike Robertson, range from “diamonds to dustbins”. The business, which originally started in salvage, has grown over the last 55 years to become something of a West Country institution, now attracting more than two
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million visitors a year to its four stores in Devon and Cornwall and, more recently, a huge premises in Merthyr Tydfil. Central to the business’s success is its focus on family shopping for literally ‘whatever you want’, a slogan that Trago bangs out at every opportunity with the accompaniment of popular rockers Status Quo. “We have three guiding principles, no matter what the product or its category. They are: choice, destination and unbeatable prices. Old-fashioned hardware store choice aside, it is our destinations that set us apart from other brick-and-mortar retailers, plus the bit of theatre our fun parks and idyllic settings bring to shopping”, says chairman Bruce Roberston, who has something of a penchant for motorbikes. When launching Trago2Wheels nine years ago, he was clear about its mission. “We wanted to offer affordable machines to get folk onto two wheels without excessive cost. We started with 50s and 125s,
and now, having found our feet, we are offering mid-capacity machines to existing customers wishing to trade up, as well as many new customers. As I see it, one of the great virtues of having bikes on offer in popular retail rather than ‘solus’ bike dealerships is that it opens up a whole new audience, while at the same time destigmatising a legitimate mobility option, irrespective of it being for a transport need or as a hobby. It’s great to see youngsters booking our free ‘Get Started’ taster sessions and fledgling riders and parents leaving with big smiles on their faces. I’d like to see much more of it; the industry desperately needs more new young riders.” Trevor Goodman, Trago2Wheels division manager
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