OUR FAVOURITE STORES…

OUR FAVOURITE STORES…

“Our Favourite Stores” is a series of portraits of retail partners across Canada. This quick glimpse of The 11 Inc. is the 1st in a series.

We had heard a good deal about Heath’s new cycling store, The 11, in Toronto even before they opened their door’s in March 2015. And several attempts to meet with the the owner, heath, had come awry for all the usual reasons… so it was a long time in coming, but just recently XACT owners, Lawrence and Marianne got to visit the store, including a personal guided tour by XACT ambassador, Logan Cornel. We were not disappointed! 

What we liked most from our tour of The 11 was undoubtedly the use of the space and how this lends itself to displaying such beautiful products at their very best. We loved the customer parking, the stunning Bianchi that at first glance looks like a vintage bike but in actual fact is a contemporary build but eligible for L’Eroica, a bike race in Italy where only pre-1987 bikes may compete. The only exception being the Bianchi that was in front of us.

As we sat down at the mosaic table to start our business meeting with Heath,  enjoying a freshly brewed espresso, we listened and learned the brief history of The 11 Inc and some of the exciting ideas being put into place. Then we were on for a real treat as Logan took the time to tell us the story behind the products, the services being offered and some of the  unique equipment in the store.

When touring the bike fit station we  spotted what appeared to be a used bike… it turns out the BMC bike in question is Rohan Dennis’s frame that he gave to Heath as a gesture of thanks; Rohan set the hour record of 52.491 km, beating Matthias Brändle’s record by over 600 metres on 8 February 2015. The record stood until 2 May 2015, when it was broken by British rider Alex Dowsett.


The signed Blue Jays bike jersey dated from a fundraising event benefiting the Jays Care Foundation, which strives to create lasting social change for children and youth through baseball and creating safe places for playing.

We were reassured to see a half eaten XACT PROTEIN wafer next to a steaming cup of espresso. One of my favourite post ride snacks… but I guess bike fitting can burn the calories too!

The last word has to be on the quality of customer service that you can expect to enjoy at The 11. Knowledgeable, friendly and welcoming staff, and a store philosophy of really listening to the customer seems like a such a simple idea, but I can tell you, it works so well. XACT is delighted that all products are now available to enhance your cycling pleasure and enjoyment.

# F U E L Y O U R G O A L S