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Last time we reported on the Wiggle CRC administration it looked like the company could be bought as a going concern, with a number of buyers apparent ...
By stwhannah
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Bigger firesale coming then
That's shit for everyone. Staff being made redundant, less choice for consumers and more chance of Mike Ashely making money.
Only positive I can see is that LBSs may be able to make some money on parts rather than everyone buying at Wiggle/CRC.
Oh also the smaller guys, SJS and Merlin Cycles spring to mind, get an opportunity to fill the gap
Shit news. Employees i feel most sorry for but had hoped they could keep the house brands going as i genuinely think they had some good ones... we'll see but sounds like it really is end of the line
Well that's another company that won't ever receive another penny of my money again then.... or anyone else's by the sound of it.
Genuinely sorry for the staff.
I wonder what point the money people spend there starts going into Ashley's pocket. I'd like to know, so I know when to stop buying the real cheap shit.
Merlin Cycles is now within a german group
German cycling giant purchases mail order specialist Merlin Cycles (cyclingindustry.news)
The absolute scumbag, buy the IP and bin the rest. Words fail me as to how this has been able to happen, complete and utter greed from all of them
Ah man. Down the same shitdrain as Evans. Luckily, during or the crappy-website-change-times etc, plenty of alternatives have been found online. My last 2 purchases have been from Woollyhatshop’s ebay listings and Merlin.
He is an Olympic level disaster capitalist
won’t ever receive another penny of my money again then…. or anyone else’s by the sound of it.
The whole Mike Ashley hate thing is weird, I have read articles written about him and how he is viewed as the bogeyman of retail. He’s a nasty piece of work, he’s too rich, won’t spend money with him….
But there’s also lots of people saying more needs to be done to save high streets up and down the UK.
He’s saved more high street shops than all* the people on this forum I suspect, we might not like his methods or practices but clearly the methods of the previous owners weren’t working.
Without his input I suspect the high street in most Towns would be worse.
I’m no ‘fan’ of his, I’m really not too fussed, I buy based on various factors depending on what I’m buying and my personal knowledge of a product vs ease/price/availability. Sometimes that’s local, sometimes Amazon, sometimes nasty-multi-corp or a specialist many miles away.
I’ll won’t be boycotting chiggle, HofF or Evans, but nor will they get all my cash.
*awaits Mary Portas to be a poster😉
Lbs is the way forward - I'll be boycotting any products or bramds Mike Ashley tries to pedal....
Terrible for those who have lost their jobs.
I'm no great fan of Mike Ashley either. But he didn't break CRC/Wiggle.
Wonder if I'll get my bike back ??
German cycling giant purchases mail order specialist Merlin Cycles (cyclingindustry.news)
Oooh, does that mean we can get rosebikes and bikeparts.de prices again?
Or will they just continue milking us for every last penny?
That's truly crap 😔
Feel so sorry for all the staff at CRC and the brands - especially Nukeproof as the guys who work there are all enthusiastic riders and great to chat with.
Perhaps Mr Ashley will suprise us with this one and let the brands keep going..
I'd hate to see a Ragley or Nukeproof BSO in the shops......
What a sad and ignominious end for Chain Reaction, after all the stuff we've been through together over the years- my first purchase was an emergency wheel late on a Saturday from the Ballyclare shop back in the days when you rode the same bike in DH on Saturday and XC on Sunday.
Less attached to Wiggle, but will also be missed.
I thought it was a good sign that after the panic selloff of Hope brakes cheaply, that they'd gone out and restocked them, selling back at the normal price- surely they must have had to pay up front to restock? How did that work when they were in administration?
He’s saved more high street shops than all* the people on this forum I suspect,
It's impossible to say for certain, but it's pretty likely high streets would need a bit less saving if it weren't for the aggressive business practices of (especially) Sports Direct.
The irony of this thread and the cheap 5.10s thread running at the same time is brilliant.
The absolute scumbag, buy the IP and bin the rest. Words fail me as to how this has been able to happen, complete and utter greed from all of them
I'm not a Mike Ashley fan, but this is kind of what happens when businesses go tits up like this. The "absolute scumbags" in all of this are the likes of signa who went and crashed Chiggle.
Ashley is just doing what he's known for, picking over the corpse of a dead retail business and buying up the bits that are worth something to him, which would mostly appear to be the websites and trade/brand IP.
The whole Mike Ashley hate thing is weird
My objection to Ashley is the way he reduces once great brands to a label to slap on some cheap Chinese tat. Of course, if people insist on buying CCT they can, but it doesn't have to say Karrimor, Muddy Fox, or Nukeproof on it. Better to leave those names to die a natural death than keep them around as Ashley's zombies.
Mike Ashley doesn’t run the companies into the ground that he buys. The fault 100% lies with the current owners of Wiggle/CRC.
I’m no great fan of Mike Ashley either. But he didn’t break CRC/Wiggle.
True, but he hasn't saved the staff from being made redundant either - he's waited until the company was on its knees and bought the branding only.
He hasn't bought any of the wealth of experience the staff have, saved jobs, lively hoods etc. Done nothing that affects hundreds of people. The man is consistently a retail vulture, picking at the bones of businesses and then regurgitating them back up as cheap imitations.
The irony of this thread and the cheap 5.10s thread running at the same time is brilliant.
100% this. 100's of pairs that have popped up on FB marketplace now at over inflated prices which I find depressing.
True, but he hasn’t saved the staff from being made redundant either – he’s waited until the company was on its knees and bought the branding only.
That was the job of the previous owners - they screwed up. If there was a company left to save the Administrators could have got more money for it.
The irony of this thread and the cheap 5.10s thread running at the same time is brilliant.
Faux outrage only lasts until it hits the right price. Nobody was bashing him when he was selling dirt cheap specialized enduros a few months back either.
If it gets to the point where he is coming in for a business it was long ruined before he got there.
A company went bust
To pay off creditors they sold the brand names
I’d rather it wasn’t Mike Ashley that bought them. I’d rather the business had found a buyer for the infrastructure and employees. But the recievers job is to obtain as much as they can for the assets to pay off creditors.
It’s such a shame. It’s bad enough that the operations staff will be out of a job looking for another employer to use their skills in warehousing/logisitics/CS. But their skills will transfer well to other jobs if they can find them, though they may miss their teams. I feel more for the (probably very small) teams of product managers, engineers and buyers that were making a really good job of brands like nukeproof and vitus. Those teams are gone.
That was the job of the previous owners
From what I understand of the situation the owners had 150mil of investment removed by investors. If I took a large proportion of investment out of my business it would fold too 🤷♂️.
If there was a company left to save the Administrators could have got more money for it.
crc's been the Benchmark shop for telesales and internet cycling sales for as long as I've been riding. I wonder how many other big cycling brands will go pop this year, crc/wiggle cirtainly won't be the last. The issues are industry wide rather than single company centric.
The issues also seem, at least to me, to go far wider than the cycling industry, all parts of post pandemic retail is in complete turmoil at the moment.
Hang on, a year ago Wiggle/CRC were the enemy..?
This was posted on Facebook half an hour ago:
“I have been running the bike workshop for WiggleCRC for the last 2.5/3 years .... sadly its came to an end for us all , if anyone needs or knows of anyone who needs some experienced bike mechanics I can put in touch with 20+ of some of the best ...MTB experts , Roadie fanatics and all rounders and even an old rockstar who's built 98% of the ebikes that's came through ,who also does Rod Stewart tributes to keep you entertained. Also a badass MHE driver who can drive anything and is more of a machine than the trucks he operates.....They've all achieved some great things and accomplished every hurdle along the way and this sad news is nothing to do with these legends they've smashed everything thrown at them.”
Say hello to £4.99 delivery charges 😐
year ago Wiggle/CRC were the enemy..?
Only at war with the lbs never the Consumer?
Like many, I bought my first MTB/ATB at butler cycles which became wiggle and upgraded bits on it through various phone calls to the original crc bike shop
I suppose it's much the same that supermarkets are the enemy of the corner shop. Tesco are currently actively and directly trying to kill off the small local shop with changes at Booker.
IP purchase - I really hate this kind of thing. Not just selling Chiggle to Ashley, but the whole concept right from the sole trader to the SME to this sort of deal. You are basically selling the brand recognition and the reputation (and maybe the client list) to a totally different person or organisation who have done nothing to deserve it. It's tantamount to fraud in my books. You are basically conning the unaware consumer that the new owners/operators deserve to be trusted the same as the old ones. It's a bag of shite.
Lbs is the way forward –
It really isn't. I've been cycling long enough to have been buying cycling tat before the internet. Unless you are very very lucky the LBS experience is bobbins. Always was - we just didn't have a choice back in the day. Online shopping has led to choice, availability and price improvements in pretty much every type of retail sector and no reason for cycling to be any different. Advice and spannering are the LBS USP and for me.....my knowledge (with a few mins of google to add specifics to a broader understanding) and practical skills are plenty good enough for it not to be a benefit. They are just not needed for me.
edit - lovely message from that Wiggle workshop manager.
You know that banner at the top of the home page that says Singletrack Forum powered by Chainreaction...
They are just not needed for me.
You can't have you cake and eat it.... Saying IP buy outs are bad because
You are basically conning the unaware consumer that the new owners/operators deserve to be trusted the same as the old ones. It’s a bag of shite.
But local shops are not required just because your knowledge is larger than the average consumer.
There's a place for both. My LBS is excellent and also does significant trade on the internet with regular great deals. I often buy from them online and pick up in store, within hours.
but the whole concept right from the sole trader to the SME to this sort of deal. You are basically selling the brand recognition and the reputation (and maybe the client list) to a totally different person or organisation who have done nothing to deserve it. It’s tantamount to fraud in my books. You are basically conning the unaware consumer that the new owners/operators deserve to be trusted the same as the old ones. It’s a bag of shite.
Couldn't agree more. This has happened to countless brands under SportsDirect, Karrimor already mentioned above.
Buy in the last of the good stuff people trust, then downgrade the production and manufacturing to the usual sweat shops, until it eventually gives up.
M.Ashley might not be doing anything wrong and it was for the owners to save etc, but the whole practice still stinks.
You can’t have you cake and eat it
Of course I can. I've lost a fast food outlet, but I've still got Sigma, Merlin, SJS, Spa, Brixton, and then tredz, the german mob and BikeINN if I'm desperate. All significantly better for me than anything I could call a LBS (although I appreciate Sigma, SJS, Spa, Brixton and even Merlin are someone's LBS, just not mine - although ironically Butler's Cycles was my LBS at one point.
But local shops are not required just because your knowledge is larger than the average consumer.
To me they are not, no. And haven't been for decades. For others, they might be great - maybe. I've overheard so much terrible terrible advice come out of the mouths of randoms on the shop floor's of LBSs on the rare occasions I step in one that I'd doubt it's always as good as the recipient might think.
Oh man! I loved CRC. As far as i was concerned, they were my LBS. Lots of great advice when added, huge choice, excellent prices. Nothing comes (came) close to.
I used to use Evans a lot, but after Mike Ashley got his claws in they went seriously downhill.
On a practical, i was about to buy a brand-x dropper post. Is it possible to buy? Will i reveive it? Will Mike Ashley get my money? How does it work now; if at all?
You know that banner at the top of the home page that says Singletrack Forum powered by Chainreaction…
A business transaction that STW is now unlikely to get paid for...
I largely stopped using CRC after the Wiggle takeover, so Ashley picking over the bones isn't going to make much difference. Shame though, I was ordering from their MBUK ads back in the 90s.
Do they know where Ragley is at all?
Off at a tangent slightly but Karrimor always get a mention of having been ruined by Ashley but their boots were shit and the brand past its best in the 90s. Muddy Fox gry mentioned in the article as well and they were also garbage long before Ashley acquired the brand.
Back to the present day though it is a shame about Chiggle imho as DHB/Vitus/NP etc. was genuinely good kit and the service was decent.
Its not like the guy is Phillip Green ffs
reverse snobbery imo
So would people outlaw brand sales? They seem to be part of the constant churn of life. In this case they would be denying creditors money they are owed
So would people outlaw brand sales?
In an ideal world, yes. Unless it's the same manufacturer and same product etc, then it shouldn't be the same brand name.
But appreciate that's completely naive/idealistic
Ashley is not on Frasers Group board but, almost certainly, exercises considerable influence behind the scenes.
It's clear that consumers, generally, and the stock market like what the group are doing.
He and his company are acting fully legally; UK headquartered and paying UK taxes in full.
He turned an initial investment of £10k in the early 80s into a business worth >£5 billion.
It's clear he sees value where others don't - and is willing to take a financial risk.
I have no allegiance to any part of Frasers Group but facts are important
So leaving the Mike ashley issue.
What happens to all the existing stock in situations like this?
Does it get returned to the original manufacturer?
Does it get returned to the original manufacturer?
During the fire sale I went for a ride with a Wiggle employee. I asked why road tyres weren’t cheap. He said they’d be boxed retail. They could be returned for a refund to the supplier at any point for a full refund. The own branded stuff and OEM stuff is to be sold to post off creditors. Maybe right at the end they’ll give up on their website and sell it in bigger lots.
Thank you, just wondered as they must have millions in stock at in the warehouse
Just seen a post on FB that apparently all those directly employed by the brands - Vitus, NP etc. have all been let go too.......
Do they know where Ragley is at all?
I'm wondering if I still have a warranty, would they be honoured by the new owners or are they toast?
I’m fully expecting Nukeproof to continue producing bikes and retaining some key employees. It’s a well recognised successful brand producing cutting edge bikes and with a race team. It must be one of the jewels of Ashley’s purchase. Thoughts?
with a race team
Who is on the team?
If it's anything like Evans and Pinnacle they just seemed to keep selling the Arkose, etc. unchanged until they were a bit behind the curve and then give up, no further developments.
I’m fully expecting Nukeproof to continue producing bikes and retaining some key employees. It’s a well recognised successful brand producing cutting edge bikes and with a race team. It must be one of the jewels of Ashley’s purchase. Thoughts?
Well my reading is that they’ve bought the brand and that is it. The news hear is that the design team has gone.
Whether that means continuing to buy bikes to the current spec’ from the current supplier and selling them in say Evan’s we don’t know. It might mean writing Nukeproof on generic hard tails and selling them in Evan’s. Or maybe they’ll pass the designs to the current Evan’s Team.
But I think we are still at the rumour stage
Who is on the team?
+1
There's no nukeproof factory team registered with the UCI
Nigel page (team manager nukeproofsram) has said it’s all over on Instagram. Assume that’s it then. Terrible news for all, nukeproof were really excelling at the moment.
So it played out exactly as I predicted in November when it all kicked off. Personally I don’t think anyone was ever interested in buying the business as a going concern as it was a huge money pit losing around £10s of millions a year it seems.
ive been hammered by emails from recruitment companies trying to find work for all the staff laid off
MA is just going to copy paste the evans website, the brand names are just traffic funnels to double his turnover with zero extra cost. I do expect all the brands to be butchered over the next few years
yes I’m sad for staff but they were working for a zombie waiting to die. I’m more upset for all the businesses killed off over the years trying to compete against CRC operating with negative margins paid for by loans they never needed to pay, see the £160 million they were “let off” by the head company.
consumers got their cheap stuff but I can assure you things are going to get a lot more expensive very soon. People were only really fans for the price IMHO. Nobody will fill the loss making void.
theres a lot of collateral damage in the background. I know several taiwan suppliers were bankrupted by it. I’m also suspecting several viable external brands to die in the process as they have sold naff all at a critical point in the year due to the fire sale of a years worth of stock in 8weeks we have just been through. So there’s a lot to digest, it’s not just crc disappearing but a lot lot more at stake.
neil SuperstarComponents
People were only really fans for the price IMHO.
After the wiggle / CRC merger id agree with you. Before that it customers were also driven by the range, fast reliable delivery and customer service (back when you could speak to someone). The recent web site changes were a complete joke.
Its not like the guy is Phillip Green ffs
He's a property tycoon rather than retail - buys a failing shop franchise, boots off the the expensive rental sites & keeps the freehold ones, then rents those sites back to his other brands. So he makes money twice on them all. High streets have died off, not due to lack of footfall, but lack of freehold and affordable rents/rates.
It’s clear he sees value where others don’t – and is willing to take a financial risk.
Buying only the IP isn't much risk in this case imo. His USP is to buy a brand cheap, stick the logo on crap and sell it cheap. He's bought marketing and brand awareness for a fraction of the cost - that's not a big risk, it's his business model.
Well that's bad news for all the staff in all the companies affected.
If I'm honest, and I've used CRC/Wiggle, the last few years of underpriced selling and aggressively putting LBS's out of business was not sustainable or positive for the cycling industry. It was a race to the bottom on price, constantly. I'm a huge bargain hunter, but I'm wondering if this is a good thing for many others in the business.
Lbs is the way forward
It hasn't been the way forward for me for 20 years as they a) never have anything I need and b) have less knowledge about the things I want than I do
I will continue Google searching for the items I want and buy from whatever shops come up that stock them, all online. No LBS is ever going to be able to stock the things I want.
What happened to the Pinnacle brand? They seemed to have just carried on selling what existed before with no more development.
The tricky thing with nukeproof is they've just developed the bafang ebikes. Not sure how they'd continue selling or supporting those?
I agree with Neil here, I also didn’t expect a buyer to come forward for the group as a going concern.
Unless Nukeproof is sold separately and quickly to a third party it’s also gone along with the other in-house brands, MA doesn’t do bicycle engineering and design.
All likelihood is the brands either die or become budget offerings like muddy fox etc.
It’s all a huge shame, some good people and lots of work down the drain.
@Ribena - I am almost certain you won’t ever see another high end nukeproof bike for sale unless they sell the brand externally.
Not sure how they’d continue selling or supporting those?
“they” don’t exist anymore. All that exists is a name.
So does this mean the mega I recently bought is now a Genuine End of Line Limited edition
I do wonder what the value of the CRC or Wiggle brand names is as an IP to Ashley. The associated product brands yes - like Karrimor were 20 years ago. But the retailer brand names....
Unless he plans to upscale the current Evans warehousing operation and just make cut and paste websites labelled CRC and Wiggle.
until it breaks in 2 weeks, then it's just 'end'.
🙂
Unless he plans to upscale the current Evans warehousing operation and just make cut and paste websites labelled CRC and Wiggle.
That’s what Neil suggests. A simple way of sending more traffic to something you already have. Presumably it’s brand recognition and leveraging their track record on google
If CRC\Wiggle administrators have let all the staff go it seems odd the website is still open for orders. Who is going to be picking/packing those? Do staff get given notice in this situation and are still working for a week or so? I would have thought the website would have been closed. There could be a fair few people not receiving their orders if they are not aware of the announcement.