Sports Therapy Business Plan

Cyclist Repair Center has identified two distinct market segments which they will target: competitive and recreational cyclists. The two different segments will be attending Cyclist Repair Center for distinct reasons and therefore will be targeted specifically. The sports clinic industry typically is not sports specific, a facility generally does not focus on a single sport.

4.1 Market Segmentation

Cyclist Repair Center has chosen to target two distinct customer segments; competitive cyclists and recreational cyclists.

Competitive Cyclists– these are cyclists that compete either at the professional or expert level. For the cyclist at the professional level cycling/racing is a full time activity where the individual’s income is from cycling. The expert level cyclist is competitive within his or her racing class but does not earn their livelihood by racing. Some compete every week, others compete several times a season. They are competitive in either their cycling class or in their age group.

• Some demographics of Boulder based professional cyclists:
• ages 23-33.
• educational level- 67% have an undergraduate degree, 8% have a graduate degree.
• individual income range is $24,000- $50,000. This range does not include other sources of income such as product sponsorship/endorsement.
• the average number of bicycles owned by the professional is six.
• the average length of a professional career is six years.
• 17% of the professionals have trained with the olympic national team.
• 77% of the cyclists are road cyclists, 12% are track cyclists, the remaining percentage are both.
• Demographic information for expert level competitive cyclists:
• ages 26-54.
• educational level- 75% have an undergraduate degree, 26% have a graduate degree.
• individual median income is $55,000.
• the average number of bicycles owned is 3.5.

Recreational Cyclists– these cyclists enjoy cycling, ride a lot, but are seeking services to make them faster in general or more comfortable when they ride, not to be more competitive. They may also be seeking clinic services to address a cycling specific problem that they have.

• Demographic data:
• ages- 29-62.
• educational level- 79% have an undergraduate degree, 28% have a graduate degree.
• individual median income is $62,000.
• the average number of bicycles is 4.

4.2 Target Market Segment Strategy

Cyclist Repair Center has identified and targeted these two segments because they are the most likely cyclists who would be in need of a wide range of cycling specific therapeutic and training services. The competitive cyclists are in need of these services to remain competitive. Cycling over the last decade or so has become increasingly more competitive. A larger degree of this increased competition is the development of junior programs which seek to introduce cycling to younger children. As cycling completions have beguin to introduce drug controls and testing over the last few years, cyclists have begun to compete on a more level playing field.

At the recreational level there has been a surge in participation over the last decade as well. This surge is due in part to American’s recent focus on health and fitness, to a large degree a reaction to the obesity epidemic. Another driver of increased participation is the low impact nature of cycling. Many athletes have moved from other sports such as running, tennis, etc. to cycling as a form of excellent cardiovascular and aerobic fitness that has a low impact on the body.

The two different segments, competitive cyclists and recreational cyclists participate for different reasons, additionally their level of participation is different. This makes the decision to target each one separately intuitive.

4.3 Service Business Analysis

Cyclist Repair Center participates within the sports medicine/therapy industry. The industry participants are characterized by clinics that specialize in sports related injuries. It is very rare for a clinic to specialize on one specific sport. Sports clinics are a huge industry, especially in a sports town such as Boulder where a large percentage of the population lives in Boulder because of its incredible access to various individual sports.

On a national level the sports medicine/therapy generates over $576 million in revenue. Approximately 17% of this revenue is from professional team (primarily) sports with the remaining percentage coming from individual athletes. Revenue from the nonprofessional side comes primarily from reactive treatments, meaning the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of known problems. A smaller percentage of revenue comes from proactive activities like increasing strength, speed, and cardiovascular efficiency.

On a national level, it is not uncommon for sports medicine clinics to also offer the following services:

• Chiropractic work.
• Podiatry services.
• Orthopedic surgical repair.

4.3.1 Competition and Buying Patterns

Cyclist Repair Center faces competition from several different sources:

• University of Colorado (Boulder) Sports Medicine Center– This is a large clinic that is based on campus but is available to all athletes. Because of its connection with the University, this is an educational research/training center which means many of the service providers are shadowed by students, or have students assisting clients.
• USA Cycling Olympic Training Center- This facility is only available to invited cyclists who are participating on the team or in Olympic trials.
• Boulder Sports Center– this is a large sports clinic that specializes in orthopedic procedures.
• Colorado Mountain Sports Facility– This facility has a wide range of available services with a concentration on high altitude training, offering several large training rooms with oxygen concentrations set up to simulate 12,000 feet. In addition to the training rooms, there are several “high altitude” sleeping rooms for athletes. The concentration on high altitude training is based on the theory that there is value in having the athlete train and even sleep in environments of decreased oxygen, forcing the body to become more efficient with the available oxygen concentration.