News

ALPHARETTA, Ga. (BRAIN) — New cycling component company RP Designs has acquired mountain bike brand Ellsworth from the ASG Group. RP Designs and Ellsworth will offer a complete bike lineup, components, and accessories.

SUN PRAIRIE, Wis. (BRAIN) — American Classic is back, first as a consumer-direct tire brand, but wheels — and dealer sales — are on the horizon, the reborn company’s new president, Chris Clinton, told BRAIN.
BOSTON (BRAIN) — The trustee for bankrupt Massachusetts retailer CrimsonBikes has asked the court to convert the bankruptcy case from Chapter 11 back to Chapter 7, which would lead more quickly to liquidating assets and preclude any chance of the business reorganizing and continuing.
IRVINE, Calif. (BRAIN) — If you are seeing some fresh faces in the stores and on the trails these days, there's a good reason: Fully half of today's cyclists either entered the sport in the last two years or returned to it after a lay off.

VOJENS, Denmark (BRAIN) — Hartje Ebsen will distribute SRAM products in Denmark — including RockShox, Truvative, Quarq, and Time — at the beginning of the year.

STOCKHOLM (BRAIN) — Helmet technology company MIPS continues to refine concept testing with the introduction of its Virtual Test Lab, helping brands develop new designs without physical prototype production.

BURLINGTON, Vt. (BRAIN) — The Flagg Bicycle Group announced Wednesday that it acquired women's cycling company Terry Bicycles, which will be renamed Terry Precision Cycling.
The sale was completed Tuesday.

MONROEVILLE, Pa. (BRAIN) — Pro Bike + Run’s Monroeville location will reopen next weekend, six months after a four-alarm fire destroyed its former location and entire inventory.

EL PASO (BRAIN) — Helen of Troy Limited, a publicly traded company that owns several consumer product brands, has agreed to acquire Osprey Packs for about $414 million. Osprey, founded in 1974, makes hiking and backpacking packs as well as hydration packs for cycling.

NEW YORK (BRAIN) — Juliet Scott-Croxford recently was hired by London-based Brompton folding bikes to be president of North America amid the company's 50% U.S. growth in unit sales in the past year during the bike boom and 76% over 2019. Scott-Croxford, formerly the CEO of Worth magazine, took time in October to answer questions from BRAIN about her plans for Brompton's expanding U.S. market.

BAYFIELD, Colo. (BRAIN) — Tailwind Nutrition unveiled a re-branding this fall as the nine-year-old company see continued growth beyond the ultra-endurance athletes that helped it get its start.

MONTEREY, Calif. (BRAIN) — E-bikes and the Sea Otter Classic have had a long relationship dating back to the first e-MTB race held here in 2016. Five years later, while e-bike racing continues to grow, the event is also featuring e-bikes for a greater good.

We spoke to shop owners, front-line staff and industry experts to get a clearer picture of the rewards and opportunities available in the industry. First, we'll compare compensation and benefit numbers with other industries. Then let's look at three good things and one bad thing about working in bike retail.