Vintage Hub Re-Cyclery rolls into Clifton with style and substance

For roughly four years Vintage Hub Re-Cyclery managing directors, Greg Sulfridge and John Tittra, collected European style bikes and parts. It all started with the purchase of a triathlon bike gone wrong.

Sulfridge remembers purchasing the $1,500 bike for a triathlon he had intended on completing.  Instead the bike got limited use until Sulfridge found a vintage European bike that was just as good riding-wise, but much better stylistically and environmentally for his tastes.

"What we're trying to do is recycle older bikes," said Sulfridge who went on to say that Vintage Hub Re-Cyclery is trying to create an affordable way to bring nostalgia back.

Suflridge also says how important the design of a bike is for its rider.  Ultimately, "we really look at it as the bike picking you."

The 900 square-foot store located at 3230 Jefferson Avenue (map) in Clifton made perfect sense for Sulfridge and Tittra who saw the built in customer base from nearby University of Cincinnati's close to 40,000 students.

The store has four employees and does a buy/sell/trade operation that also includes the famous $40 tune-up; which according to Sulfridge is the cheapest in town.  Vintage Hub Re-Cyclery also works with the MoBo Bicycle Cooperative in Northside on parts that they donate to the group - parts that Sulfridge says have become more available thanks to the internet.

On average, the vintage bikes sell for around $165 at the store.  Vintage Hub Re-Cyclery is open Tuesday through Saturday from 12pm to 7pm at the Clifton location and is located along several bike and bus routes.  To find out more information call the store at (513) 281-VHUB.

Writer: Randy A. Simes
Photography by Amber Kersely
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