Pedalling coffee

A CYCLING enthusiast and a participant in the recent Hong Kong Cyclothon, William Hui has turned his hobby into a career with the opening of bicycle-themed cafe Velo 6.
“We are the first cycling cafe run by real cyclists,” says Hui of the venue, which opened in August.
“Fortunately, Hong Kong now boasts a thriving cycling and coffee scene. We’re glad to be the first cycling cafe to make it more diverse.”
Named after the French word for bicycle and the number in the lane on which it is located, Velo 6 also refers to the group of six cycling enthusiasts who came together to set up the novel coffee shop. In addition to Hui, the other founders are Brian Fu, Wai Kin Chan, Louis Shih, Mark Han and Kevin Cheng.
“We’ve all loved cycling since we were small and have ridden fixed gear, track bikes, road bikes and in cyclocross. I started cycling on a BMX bike when I was five and I’ve never stopped, riding both BMX and mountain bikes. It’s benefited my life in so many ways. I hope to inspire more people in Hong Kong to incorporate cycling into |their lifestyle through our caf้,” |says Hui, who currently owns a Condor road bike and a Passoni from Italy.
“Our goals at the International Bicycle Confederation have always been to develop hubs for bicycle lovers, provide a cultural experience, and nurture the bicycle community – in short, offer a cultural ride to a unique, sustainable lifestyle! We see cycling as a lifestyle choice just like reading books and enjoying coffee,” he continues.
“Velo 6 aims to inspire more people to take up cycling by offering them a unique experience – a cycling concept store, cafe, gallery and meeting spot for bicycle enthusiasts – a place to share experiences and to interact with all cycling enthusiasts.”
The caf้ is on the ground floor of an old two-storey building in the very heart of Hong Kong – On Wo Lane in the Central district – making it convenient for cyclists, tourists and locals to hang out. A road bike wrapped in pieces of knitted fabric is parked by the stairway, making the venue easy to spot even from a distance.
Bikes proliferate both outside and inside the caf้ and as we open the door we simultaneously take in the stacks of hardcover books about cycling and the aroma of coffee. Cycling shoes, cycling helmets, Spurcycle bells, cycling mugs, cycling bottles and cycling frames as well as Freitag bags decorate the walls.
“We are always trying to offer our customers a wide choice of products. The same applies to our selection of coffee. We use an Electra coffee machine, sell Carmen’s Best ice cream from the Philippines, which we’re told is Pope Francis’ favourite, and serve snacks by leading Spanish brand La Cala by Albert Adria.
“We also order exclusive coffees, mainly from Italy and our Velo 6 Gold standard house blend is a smooth and balanced brew that we are convinced motivates you to go further. The Velo 6 Grand is our special concoction. Heavy with fruit and nut, it gives a caffeine kick that echoes the rush of crossing the finish line,” says Hui.
Hui has also teamed up with Shimano’s official service truck that provides repairs, tune-up and grooming needs and offers customised cycling tours of France, Italy, New Zealand, Australia, and Japan.
“We will be advocating cycling via our International Bicycle Film Festival and we intend to roll out our proprietary all-purpose bicycle soon! We have lots of plans for the future and look forward to collaborating with various bodies in advocating cycling,” he says.
“Cycling is a way of living in terms of personal and community development, health and happiness. We believe that it’s time for the city to get in gear. Hong Kong needs cycling. We have transport gridlocks, air-quality problems and health problems. Cycling is the solution to all of these.
“Now that we have the harbour-front cycleway on Hong Kong island and a cycling route along the Kowloon waterfront, we hope that the community will use their bikes to commute between home and work.
“We often get people telling us they wish they’d been introduced to the cycling lifestyle earlier and it’s things like this that motivate us to transform the way people see the world through cycling. We want to advocate that cycling is a culture not simply a sport.”

Spoken word

- Velo 6 is on the ground floor of No 6 On Wo Lane, Central, Hong Kong
- Find out more at www.Velo6.cc, Facebook: Velo6HK, and Instagram: @Velo6HK
- For information on the International Bicycle Film Festival, visit www.IBFF.cc.