Helping two-wheeled customers for a quarter century

Rich Palzewic

Staff

September 7, 2026

DE PERE – For 25 years, The Bike Hub in De Pere has kept local riders rolling, from fixing flats and tuning gears to helping customers find the right bike for their daily rides.

Located at 1025 N. Broadway, along the Fox River State Trail, Co-owner Scott Steeno said The Bike Hub has stood out in a competitive market with at least a half-dozen other bike shops in the Green Bay area by focusing on quality service and products.

“There is definitely competition in the area, but I also think that drives business,” Steeno, who co-owns the shop along with his wife, Sue, said. “Maybe if somebody buys a bike from us, they’ll have it serviced at a different store for various reasons – maybe they moved or something. I think bike stores feed off of one another, and everyone seems to have their own niche.”

Steeno said staying true to the shop’s niche and excelling at what it does best are key to succeeding in a competitive bike market. 

“We really care about our customers, have a passion for the sport and realize when you have something so good, you want to share it with others with the same passion,” he said. “I think we do a really good job of sharing that with other people and getting them excited about something we feel can have a really positive impact on their lives.”

Though The Bike Hub offers bikes for all walks of life – fat, gravel, hybrid, mountain, road, etc. – Steeno said the shop also specializes in trikes and recumbents.

He said trikes eliminate the need for balancing, making them a safer option for riders with balance issues, joint pain or limited mobility. 

“With a lower center of gravity, trikes reduce the risk of tipping, especially when stationary or on uneven surfaces,” he said. “There aren’t many shops in the state that offer them, so that’s one of the things we specialize in. We’ve specialized in recumbents and trikes for probably more than 20 years now.”

Steeno said bike shops generally fall into two categories: neighborhood shops that primarily serve local riders and destination shops that draw customers from farther away.

The Green Bay area, he said, has examples of both.

“With neighborhood bike stores, they’re stores of convenience,” he said. “If you have a flat tire or you need something, you’re going to your neighborhood bike store. With destination bike shops, even though you might have a store closer in proximity, somebody may choose another store because they specialize in something you want or have a certain brand.”

25 years of quality bikes, service

Beginning operations in 2001 on Redbird Circle near De Pere High School, Steeno said The Bike Hub was originally owned by Dave De Keyser and Rebecca Cleveland.

He said the couple stayed in that location for about a year before moving to the shop’s current spot on N. Broadway.

“Dave and I worked together in the bike industry many years ago – even before The Bike Hub was born,” he said. “Eventually, I went my own way, and he went his, which meant he and Rebecca opened The Bike Hub. I got back involved in the bike industry in about 2016 when I started working at InCompetition (InComp) in Green Bay – [owned at the time by Mark and Deb Ernst]. That’s when Dave and I reconnected.”

That move, he said, marked a turning point in his career.

“InComp began in 1989 and was [a] go-to spot in the area for more than 30 years – whether you were in it for competition or recreation,” he said.

After Deb passed away, Steeno said Mark eventually “wanted out” of the business, leading him and Sue to purchase InComp.

Meanwhile, with De Keyser and Cleveland preparing to move to Colorado, the couple was looking to sell The Bike Hub and saw Steeno and Sue as a good fit to take over.

There was just one problem, Steeno said. 

“I had already bought InComp,” he laughed. “I think a year passed, and Dave was like, ‘I’m calling him anyway.’ He called, and we sat down and chatted. From there, Sue and I also decided to buy The Bike Hub, which happened Feb. 28, 2019. That’s how all of this transpired.”

Running two different stores in two separate locations, Steeno said he and his wife eventually thought it was best to merge the two shops.

So, in summer 2020, he said InComp and The Bike Hub merged, with all business moving forward being conducted out of the De Pere location.

“We kept The Bike Hub name,” he said. “I’m also a passionate cross-country skier, so we brought the skis from InComp to The Bike Hub. That’s what we focus on in the winter.”

A difficult start

About a year after purchasing The Bike Hub, Steeno said the COVID-19 pandemic upended businesses across the country, including The Bike Hub and InComp, as they scrambled to adapt.

When Gov. Tony Evers designated bike shops as essential businesses, Steeno said the shops closed for “a few weeks” to “assess the situation.”

“Like many others, I figured COVID would run its course and we would open pretty quickly because it would be gone,” he said. “Obviously, we discovered COVID wasn’t gone, so then we reopened with all the new safety protocols.”

After the unknowns wore off and their two shops reopened, Steeno said COVID gave the bike industry in general “a shot in the arm.”

“Before COVID, our numbers were strong, but as an outdoor recreation industry, our numbers after COVID got a big boost,” he said. “Was there a better way to social distance and deal with the stress of COVID than getting yourself outside and exercising? Since COVID, our numbers have remained high.”

Over the past several years, Steeno said the e-bike industry has also “exploded” – helping shops across the country with sales and service.

“I’d guess that e-bike sales are the largest growing segment in the industry,” he said. “It’s quite astonishing the percentage of sales we get from e-bikes. Every year, those numbers keep increasing.”

With a wide variety of bikes available across the industry, Steeno said it’s not possible to stock everything customers would like to see in person at The Bike Hub.

“Bikes take up a lot of space, but we stock what we know will sell the majority of the time,” he said. “Of course, we can special order as well.”

Though bike technology will continue to evolve and products will change, Steeno said he and Sue have no plans to relocate away from the current De Pere location.

“We love the location,” he said. “The store is small, but there is a lot of neat history with the building. From what I understand, this building was Le Mieux before they got the Toyota dealership. They did small engine stuff out of here. There were also several other businesses here, one of them being Seroogy’s. It’s an old building with some great history, so it’s really neat to be here.”

Though the building “might not be anything special in terms of curb appeal,” Steeno said its location a few yards from the FRT – one of the most heavily used trails in the state – is also a huge benefit.

“We get a lot of random people popping off the trail and stopping in,” he said. “Maybe it’s people who have flats or mechanicals, or those who are just going for a leisurely ride, and then they’ll see our sign [on the trail] and stop in. Having the trail in our backyard is a huge benefit.”

For more information on The Bike Hub, visit thebikehubonline.com or its Facebook page.