Posted on: 13-03-2025

Stappenbelt.bike chooses Merida

Merida Benelux is entering a new and intensive collaboration with Stappenbelt.bike, a renowned specialist in sports bicycles based in Zwolle, the Netherlands.

Great news for passionate cyclists and all bike enthusiasts in the Zwolle area: with this new partnership, Merida Benelux and high-end bike store Stappenbelt.bike are joining forces. Stappenbelt.bike offers the expertise of experienced mechanics, with a state-of-the-art workshop at its core, fully equipped with the latest technology. Every sports bike is in the best hands for maintenance, and new bikes are perfectly prepared for the road.

Bikes can also be purchased through leasing, and Stappenbelt has its own cycling group. Additionally, in Zwolle, you can get a professional bike fit to find the best riding position tailored to your personal cycling goals. This is where the visions of Merida and Stappenbelt align: ensuring that everyone enjoys cycling as much as possible by finding the perfect bike match.

In the stunning showroom of Stappenbelt in Zwolle, you can admire and even test the latest Merida models. Think of the newest competition bikes, such as the groundbreaking Reacto aero race bike and the Scultura climbing bike, which has won Tour de France stages, or the legendary Silex gravel bike, which became the first-ever world champion in this discipline just before its official launch.

Merida offers a wide range of road and gravel bikes, as well as mountain bikes and electrically assisted sports bikes. But it’s not just about looking—both the Merida Silex gravel bike and the Scultura Endurance road bike are available in various sizes for test rides in Zwolle. Additionally, the Merida Experience Center is just a 40-minute drive away, where Merida Benelux has an even larger fleet of test bikes, allowing almost every Merida model to be extensively tested before purchase.

Have you tested and decided which Merida bike will make your cycling dreams come true? Purchasing a Merida bike is then done through a specialist like Stappenbelt.bike. This ensures that Merida can provide more service and that the bike is personalized and perfectly adjusted. Edwin Stappenbelt himself is a bike fit expert and can help nearly every cyclist find the ideal riding position, even in cases of injuries or conditions such as a hernia, a knee replacement, or back problems.

"Quality and craftsmanship are what we stand for. I come from a true cycling family—my father was able to ride a road bike until the age of ninety. Almost all of our employees are passionate cyclists themselves, from mountain biking to road racing and everything in between. Right now, gravel racing is also very popular, both among our staff and our customers. With Merida, we can serve every sports cyclist. We want to deliver a bike that we would personally ride in the mountains!" says Edwin Stappenbelt. His son Max also works in the business and spends many hours on his Merida Reacto race bike.

From purchasing to maintenance, Stappenbelt.bike is a true expert in sports bicycles. In addition, Fietsgroep Stappenbelt Zwolle, founded by Stappenbelt.bike, provides a platform for cyclists to meet, share their passion for cycling, and exchange knowledge and experiences. Several group rides are organized in the evenings each week, and for enthusiasts, even international cycling trips are available. Merida supports Stappenbelt by providing access to the Merida Experience Center, which can be used as a base or rest stop during tours or for other cycling-related events.

Bart Oosting, Marketing Manager at Merida Benelux BV, is very excited about this new collaboration:
"At Merida, we position ourselves as a high-end sports brand—our bikes win races in the UCI World Tour, and more and more cyclists are finding their way to the Merida Experience Center to view and test our road, gravel, and mountain bikes. At Merida, we don’t just want to deliver the best bikes, we also want to provide excellent service. That’s why we are very pleased to partner with Stappenbelt.bike, a true specialist where quality and craftsmanship are top priorities."

Berteld Bloem, representative of Merida, is also looking forward to working with this newest Merida dealer:
"More and more specialists are choosing Merida because we offer the right race bike for every cyclist. In addition, we have an excellent range of gravel bikes for both adventurers and racers. Our bikes are competitively priced, offering great value for money. Stappenbelt.bike is a fantastic addition to our dealer network because of its central location in the Netherlands, its wide selection of bicycles in-store, and the possibility of professional bike fitting."