Transforming Empty Space for Bike Repairs

October 30, 2019
Fettle Team

Handlebars (now named Fettle) is a brand new start-up in the bicycle industry which has kickstarted life in the heart of London. We are a small team made up of keen cyclists, mechanics and environmentalists who want to play a part in the shift towards more sustainable travel. We’re doing this by taking under-used urban space and transforming it into convenient places for bike repairs & servicing for Londoners.

Who is Handlebars (Fettle) for?

We see the Handlebars (Fettle) mission as enormously valuable on many fronts...

For cyclists, we’re providing convenience. ‘Customers want convenience’ is a mantra we’re drilling into ourselves and it’s something we’re building in to every part of our customer journey - starting from choosing locations where cyclists need repairs the most, all the way through to giving Brompton loan bikes so people can get on with their day, providing same-day services & offering a simple online booking experience.

For landowners, we’re helping to create value from space that is either empty or under-used and providing a differentiating service for existing tenants. This idea of making use of ‘meanwhile space’ is one which is catching on with property developers, helped by some successful examples abroad like Les Grands Voisins in Paris which took a former hospital site and transformed it into a makeshift football pitch, boules court, housing allotments, a hostel providing 600 beds for the homeless, artisan studios, pop-up shops and startups. Whilst we are much smaller than that - we’re still excited to be able to demonstrate to landowners that the space they thought would sit empty or too costly to redevelop can be repurposed into something useful.

This also explains why we see our efforts as extremely important for cities. In one study, it was found that 24,400 commercial properties in London are currently empty, with around half having been unused for more than two years! We love the idea that whilst that space is in between its next use, it can be repurposed to support cycling and sustainable travel.

So - we’ve started unlocking all kinds of different spaces. Take a peak at what we’ve done at our first two sites…



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What our customers say

"Pick up, service and drop off done within 2 days when every other bike shop quoted me 6+ week waiting times."
- Liam J.
"Had my beloved bike serviced in 2 days when all other places had a 6-week waiting list... A gift to London Cyclists."

- Simona S
"It’s simple stuff but no-one else is doing it in the bike repair space… I’m telling everyone about them!"

- Tom L.
"Fantastic first time experience. Ridiculously simple to organise & collect from the workshop. Bike feels good as new!"

- Bhav V.
"They are the Dumbledore of bicycle wizardry!"

- Mohammed U.

Don't just take our word for it

Our customers are shouting from the rooftops about team fettle. We're changing bike repair in London for the better.

98% of customers have rated our London workshops 5* on Google

Get your bike back on the road in no time...