Hi Reader,

This week, I wanted to hand things back over to Steve for a quick update from his side of the story.

A Message from Steve 🚲

Dear Members,

At Symposium in February I announced I was engaging a new Interim MD while I took a step back from Community Management.

Enter Isa. She's now been in the role almost 2 months and during that time she has driven the re-structuring and re-launching of our community. We are almost on target, with most operators signed up for one of the new plans, great results in these early days.

There has been big progress in other areas too...

We've recently optimized the website structure to improve visibility in AI-powered search and discovery tools. This week, I approved the installation of wagtail.io, a new professional Content Management System.

In March I took a trip to Berlin. I caught up with Wollo, Martin, Judith and Andi at Berlin on Bike, as well as Christian Tänzler from the ADFC, our exciting Connections Day speaker for Symposium 2027. I brought Martin a gift (pictured) — a beautiful memory from our Symposium in Lisbon... now immortalised on a mug!

Speaking of Symposium, I was quick off the mark after Lisbon, locking in Hamburg 2027 in March. In April I took a trip to Hamburg to meet with Lars, and check out meeting venues for 2027 (we found some great ones!). We already have 16 companies registered to attend. What a head-start!

For me personally, the last 3 months have been fantastic. I've been working on a new studio album, and playing a lot of UK gigs. It's what I love doing, so making space for that in my life was a great decision.

I'll continue to work with Isa over the coming months, enabling the much needed structure, growth and improvement. Every penny of membership income is being reinvested in the community this year. We still have a lot of work to do recruiting and expanding the community, improving our website and B2C marketing, and re-setting us for long-term success.

I'll pass back to Isa now, and you'll hear from me again in the not too distant future.

Steve

Groupwork Gold Nuggets 💛

This week we close out the final question from Morning Group C: Culture Keepers: Staffing & Impact​
(Duncan Blinkhorn, Cicely Lloyd, Judith Seidel, Rafael Lima, Sadegh Farahat)

3. What is the one “unbreakable rule” of your company culture?

Symposium News 🤝

Momentum around Hamburg continues to grow.

With Christian Tänzler joining us as a speaker, strong early registrations already coming in, and a fantastic host city taking shape, Symposium 2027 is already looking like a very special edition.

The super early bird deadline already passed, but you can take a look of the next ones:

If you haven’t secured your place yet:

👉 Register NOW for Symposium 2027

New: Tool of the Week 🛠️

Our big recurring theme across discussions, Symposium conversations, and recent operator feedback is clear:

👉 reducing dependency on OTAs and strengthening direct bookings.

So this week, I worked on: The Cycle Cities Direct Booking Blueprint

A practical, phased framework designed specifically for bike tour operators.

Over the past months, we’ve shared different practical tools around direct bookings, including:

• A Practical 360° Guide to Increase Direct Bookings
• Practical Guide: Boost Direct Bookings with Google Ads, Social Ads & AI Visibility

This new guide is designed to bring everything together into one practical roadmap.

Since most of you are managing tours, replying to emails, updating the website, handling social media, fixing bikes and solving operational issues

This roadmap is designed for that reality and to help you start a system that works for you

Community — What’s next ➡️

Now that the membership transition is largely complete, the focus shifts fully toward growth, visibility, and creating more practical value for operators across the network.

The foundations are now in place.
Now comes the exciting part: building on top of them.

See you in the next buzz,

Isabella

Managing Director (Interim)
Cycle Cities 🚲