12:28pm Friday 5th January 2007
By Candice Pearson
ENTREPRENEUR and cycling fanatic Mike Austin and his wife Mel Platt are opening a new museum and shop in Wor-cester Road, Malvern.
It is billed as the world's first museum of cycling memorabilia, as well as a gallery, gift and antique shop, coffee shop, ebay shop, and a venue for talks, films and games evenings.
As yet, it does not have a name, so Mr Austin is appealing to Malvern Gazette & Ledbury Reporter readers to come up with one.
He has been collecting cycling memorabilia for years and has been all around the world on his bike. The museum will showcase the unusual things that Mr Austin picked up on his travels.
He said: "I want to bring that element of fun that seems to missing from other museums.
"With the rarity and delicate nature of the items that are on display, I hope to show the other side of cycling. The aim is to bring a little cosmopolitan feel to Malvern."
The museum will host chess and backgammon evenings, and show cycling movie classics like Bellevue Rendezvous and Bicycle Thieves, as well as illustrated talks.
Whoever comes up with the best name will win a dinner for two at The Foley Hotel.
"It needs to be short and snappy but need not say cycling or bicycle. We want it to have a much broader appeal. It's a shopping experience for everybody to enjoy in a relaxed environment," said Mr Austin.
Entrants can send in as many names as they like to PO Box 59, Malvern, WR14 3YR, making sure they include their details.
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