The Belgian Association of Bicycle Retailers, founded in July, is the newest member of the European Twowheel Retailers' Association, ETRA.
The Belgian association is a division of Federauto, the Belgian trade federation for the transport sector.
Matthy Briers, the president of FederProCycle, said there was an urgent need for a trade association in Belgium.
"Although our country has a legal access to the sales and repair of bicycles, just about anybody and everybody starts up bicycle activities. Many sheltered workshops create employment by deploying bike activities. That is unfair competition to us, regular bicycle dealers, since their activities are subsidized.
"Secondly, we have around 50 schools that offer training. We want to ensure that the level of this training is such that it results in really professional dealers.
"We also want to look into the possibility of assisting colleagues who are temporarily confronted with a problem. Finally, we want to (re)establish our relationship with manufacturers and suppliers. There must be respect on both sides. If we can develop a good contact, we will have a win-win situation."
FederProCycle is the third new member to join ETRA this year, after the Society of Irish Motor Industry (SIMI) and VDZ (Verband des deutschen Zweiradhandels e.V.).
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