district: SoHo
159 Prince St, New York, NY 10012
In a nutshell
A 'clubhouse' store for the high-end cycling brand, offering a full range of cycling products alongside a cafe and an active cycling club.
In their words
"New York is not an immediately obvious place to enjoy the pleasures of cycling, with its traffic-choked streets. But the cycling scene is booming here and the city has a deep connection to the sport.
You’ll find Rapha New York at the intersection of Prince and West Broadway, in the bustling Soho area of Manhattan and you’ll always find something happening when you pay a visit. We host regular viewing parties during the race season and show the biggest races live on the big screens. We also run a full calendar of events, from workshops to talks, which all are welcome to attend.
We have a full café menu to keep you fuelled whether you’re riding or just dropping in on foot. The Clubhouse is the home of the New York chapter of the Rapha Cycling Club (RCC) and provides the setting off point for rides which head out of the city towards the rolling hills near Piermont. Rides out of the city start early when the rest of the city is waking up - a rare quiet time on the Manhattan roads."
Visit Field notes
Rapha, driven by its charismatic founder, Simon Mottram, was at the forefront of the urban high-end road cycling movement back in 2004. The brand is simultaneously nostalgic (with peans to the hard cobbled streets of Belgian classic races and triple-espressos) and forward-looking (with an emphasis upon technical innovations and quality). The heartland of the brand is the urban cyclist, buoyed by caffeine, adrenaline and grit and so this has translated well into a store/cafe that also acts as the focal point for chapters of its road racing club and social rides. Termed 'clubhoses', the stores are filled with cyclists, bikes and cameraderie. If you are a Rapha Cycling Club member you get to buy club-only kit, join their Strava group and go on rides, not to mention getting high-end bike hire in the cities with clubhouses. This store has matured nicely and shown that the concept has longevity. Joining its sister stores in London, Berlin, San Franciso, Hong Kong, Amsterdam and more, the approach clearly resonates with the urban, high-spending cyclist.
Other Reading
The store's page: https://content.rapha.cc/us/en/clubhouses/new-york
Video of the club's favourite local rides: https://content.rapha.cc/us/en/a/story/rapha-rides-new-york
LAST VISITED
19/22/2024
Added
2019
COMPARE WITH
Minimal, spacious, architectural embodiment of a tech-first high-performance athletic footwear brand.
Google's brand/experience offering that makes the Apple Store seem staid and 'last year'.
Eyewear brand whose stores are like art popups. Consistently collaborative (on projects, co-brands, celebrities and artists), the brand produced prescription and sunglass styles that are not repeated.
Confident, swish, if off-the-track setting for this luxury second-hand handbag operation - luxurious lounge meets science lab and robot warehouse. A must-see.
Similar shops
Stylish, recently-expanded store to highlight the On running range, with an extended selection of clothing. Hidden gait analysis and the 'magic wall' that reveals all sizes. Enormous window frontage.
A boutique of handmade Turkish slip-on shoes and curated crafts clothing and accessories. A cosy post-pop-up home for this growing owner-led brand.
Minimal, spacious, architectural embodiment of a tech-first high-performance athletic footwear brand.
Veteran DNVB's showcase store still delivers a combination of product delight, swagger, fun and welcome.
A pop-up store for winter 2024-5 in the heart of Soho. A "locker-room" fit-out and plenty of red vinyl is in keeping with the brand's values. The store blends NYC-specific products with promotions.
Eyewear brand whose stores are like art popups. Consistently collaborative (on projects, co-brands, celebrities and artists), the brand produced prescription and sunglass styles that are not repeated.
