Orange Bikes Announces ‘A New Dawn’

by 127

We’ve just had word from Orange Bikes, they’re set to continue. When the application for administration was made, an application was also placed for P. Bairstow Limited, the metal fabricators who build their frames. It appears a restructure and purchase of the fabricators has been possible – we know that Orange had been looking at moving to a single site some years ago, so hopefully this puts things on track for where they want to head. Here’s the official PR:

We have the good news you’ve been waiting to hear!

After a restructure of the business and its associated companies we are pleased to announce that Orange bikes is set to continue under the ownership of Ash Ball.

Our Heritage

Orange Bikes has a rich history that spans over three decades. Since our establishment in 1988 in the north of England, we have always been a hub for talented athletes and have produced some of the most iconic bikes in the industry. Over the years, our bikes have become synonymous with quality and performance.

We know that Orange Bikes holds a special place in the hearts of cycling enthusiasts. Whether it’s the aspiration to ride one of our bikes or the pride of owning one, we’re aware that everyone connected to cycling has their own unique Orange Bikes story.

We are grateful for the support and loyalty of our customers throughout the years. The passion we see for our brand has been instrumental in our success.

We remain committed to delivering exceptional bikes and continuing to be a driving force in the cycling community. 

Our Future

As part of a restructure, Orange Bikes has successfully acquired its UK frame manufacturing partner. This is a significant development that brings us one step closer to realising our ambitious plan of having the entire company exist under one roof.

With this acquisition, we will be able to streamline our operations and create a more efficient production process. The new facility, just 2 miles from our current headquarters, will serve as the new home for Orange Bikes. It will house both frame fabrication facility and bike assembly, allowing us to unify the entire production process in one location.

This integration will enable us to have greater control over the manufacturing process, ensuring the highest quality standards for our bikes. From the delivery of the aluminium for which we are famed, at one end of the factory, to the shipment of complete bikes from the other, we will have a seamless and efficient workflow.

We are excited about this new chapter in the Orange Bikes story and the opportunities it presents. This move not only strengthens our position in the industry but also demonstrates our commitment to British bike manufacturing.

Through the streamlining of our business, we have been able to preserve jobs and reinforce the stability of the Orange brand. This strategic decision ensures a promising future for British bike manufacturing in West Yorkshire for at least another 35 years.

We are excited about the opportunities that lie ahead and remain dedicated to producing high-quality bikes that meet the needs and expectations of our customers.

We’d like to thank our customers, friends, colleagues and peers for all their support during this challenging time and welcome them along for the ride in this next great chapter of Orange Bikes.

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Hannah Dobson

Managing Editor

I came to Singletrack having decided there must be more to life than meetings. I like all bikes, but especially unusual ones. More than bikes, I like what bikes do. I think that they link people and places; that cycling creates a connection between us and our environment; bikes create communities; deliver freedom; bring joy; and improve fitness. They're environmentally friendly and create friendly environments. I try to write about all these things in the hope that others might discover the joy of bikes too.

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Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 127 total)
  • Orange Bikes Announces ‘A New Dawn’
  • kayak23
    Full Member

    That’s great news.
    All the best to them and more power to their elbows 😊

    bootsy
    Full Member

    Awesome news when so many are not surviving. Wishing Orange success.

    qwerty
    Free Member

    Orange not squashed.

    neilupnorth
    Full Member

    ❤️

    nickc
    Full Member

    This is great news.

    mashr
    Full Member

    Good to hear they are out of the woods. Some very careful wording going on there – were the two companies not already owned my Ash anyway?

    Also

    This strategic decision ensures a promising future for British bike manufacturing in West Yorkshire for at least another 35 years.

    Suddenly they’re the most secure company in the world.

    wheelsonfire1
    Full Member

    Brilliant news, my dream of owning a full sus Orange hasn’t been juiced!

    wbo
    Free Member

    Good news 🙂

    Vortexracing
    Full Member

    👏 thats the news we wanted 😀

    clubby
    Full Member

    Some very careful wording going on there – were the two companies not already owned my Ash anyway?

    The more cynical might theorise that the manufacturing company was saddled with all the debt, declared bankrupt and then sold to Orange for pennies.

    Im happy to see Orange continue but some one has lost out big time to allow this to happen.

    comet
    Full Member

    This is good news, but I don’t think they are out of the woods yet.

    Hopefully this is a wake-up call to the business to look at the product range and the value proposition they offer to customers.

    prahran
    Free Member

    The creditors list will be interesting to see. They were millions in debt with a huge pile of stock they couldn’t sell. Indeed, there will be many losing out.

    matt_outandabout
    Full Member

    Good news.
    Slightly pessimistic about the background figures and who has lost out.

    chakaping
    Free Member

    Orange not squashed

    Not folded either.

    ButtonMoon
    Full Member

    🍊 Awesome news! 🍊

    rockhopper70
    Full Member

    Good news for the Halifax manufacturing but as alluded too above, some creditors will be spitting feathers about this I imagine and getting pennies in the £.  This could be the demise of them, but that’s less of a story. I thought Ashley had sold it recently, but can’t be certain. 

    crab
    Free Member

    Glad to hear they’ve come to some sort of way forward. The business obviously needs streamlining, maybe being under one roof under new management and a realistic look at their range and perhaps price will make them viable. Idk. I am not an insolvency expert but I’m glad they’re, for the moment at least, still afloat.

    vickymegalith
    Full Member

    Really so happy to hear a positive future out of uncertainty for an iconic British MTB company, good on them!! And delighted that it’s not another doom and gloom story for the bike industry. 

    chestrockwell
    Full Member

    Great news!

    falkirk-mark
    Full Member

    The futures bright, the futures orange

    mashr
    Full Member

    The futures bright, the futures orange

    If the newco have any right to use the name… that’s up to the big Orange

    fogducker
    Free Member

    Wishing Orange all the best. Worth remembering they’re not some faceless corporation importing from Taiwan – this is people in Yorkshire making a top-end product from the ground up. The industry needs them.

    chiefgrooveguru
    Full Member

    Really glad to hear about this – I hope they can make it work!

    Gribs
    Full Member

    I wonder how much they borrowed under the Covid loans scheme that won’t be getting paid back.

    Drac
    Full Member

    Ah brilliant!

    Great guys who loved their product.

    noeffsgiven
    Free Member

    Great news but I doubt the streamlining will bring their pricing down as their running costs decrease so will still be premium or maybe overpriced imho.

    bikemasterbeave
    Full Member

    Great news and a hope a new dawn means a direct sales model with significantly cheaper prices and I think they would be able to get back a lot of the past glory, where you would see loads of oranges on the trails.

    robertajobb
    Full Member

    Great news.

    Wonder if I can sneak a new Five into the garage without Mrs J noticing 🤔

    StuE
    Free Member

    Fantastic news for all those that work for Orange

    FunkyDunc
    Free Member

    Sounds well dodgy, some people will have lost a lot of money, possibly jobs, and someone has benefited from poor business decision making, or used a legal process to benefit at the expense of others

    And then they blatantly almost tried to spin it as good PR , mind boggles

    I wouldn’t touch orange at all after stuff like this

    godzilla
    Free Member

    Says they will continue under the ownership of Ash ball, didn’t he take ownership in 2015?

    BruceWee
    Full Member

    I think if the Stanton saga taught us anything it’s that these ‘fresh start with the same faces’ solutions can have unintended consequences.

    Let’s see how things pan out but I’d be surprised if it’s as simple as writing off the debt and starting again like nothing happened.

    weeksy
    Full Member

    I think if the Stanton saga taught us anything it’s that these ‘fresh start with the same faces’ solutions can have unintended consequences.

    Which aspect of it Bruce.

    Fwiw I wasn’t buying an orange before and won’t be now either, but it really leaves a sour taste so to speak.

    tall_martin
    Full Member

    I had a segment, it was good. When I packed it up to sell it was cracked. They stood by the warranty and sorted it quickly

    So a great bike, but I wouldn’t buy a second hand one. And at full price I would have a long pause before buying one

    bainbrge
    Full Member

    @funkydunc I’m not sure your analysis makes sense. No one has benefitted inappropriately. The point is there would have been no ability to pay the monies owed to suppliers when they went into admin (I assume) so the restructuring wasn’t the trigger. It’s clearly difficult for suppliers with a significant exposure, but why would allowing the trade, assets and know get wasted be a better scenario?

    Or do you just think the managers of Orange should be punished in some way?

    BruceWee
    Full Member

    Which aspect of it Bruce.

    Well, if you go by the UK press (including STW) then Stanton administrators decided to not to complete an order of about 800 frames.  A mystery party then bought, painted and stickered those frames and sold them to 1bike4life.  Thanks to a timing and Brexit issue the Stanton brand name was ‘available’ in Europe.  Hence there is now an evil copycat running around selling a stolen Stanton brand.

    If you read the German press then it gets a bit more interesting.  Apparently 1bike4life and Stanton were having their frames produced in the same factory.  1bike4life was worried that such a large financial hit could lead to stability issues for the factory’s finances so stepped in to buy the frames and create the Stanton Europe brand since, even according to Dan Stanton, the Stanton brand was dead and buried so who cares if someone ‘steals’ it.

    The problem was that Stanton was able to rise like a phoenix having written off it’s main debt and with it’s frames owned by Dave Loughran and sold to Dan as and when needed.

    I’m not sure exactly how accurate all the above is.  Like I said, that’s just what I’ve been able to piece together and the sources have obviously been biased and only interested in telling one side of the story.  But going into administration always leaves someone in the lurch and those people will do what they have to so their businesses can survive.

    Obviously this exact situation isn’t going to repeat itself but someone has been left in the lurch by this and having a new Orange able to rise like a phoenix like nothing has happened is possibly going to cause issues, we just don’t know what.

    FunkyDunc
    Free Member

    No one has benefitted inappropriately

    I guess we don’t have the full facts, but administration is a legal formal process and only happens when businesses are no longer financially viable and in debt.

    Looks to me that someone has saddled one company with debt, put it in to administration at which point it’s been sold to the other company for 1p or something. Company owner walks away happy but creditors and staff get shafted

    Morally not a great way to operate in my mind 

    thepodge
    Free Member

    The accountant has earned their fee with this one. Both companies in administration but the one with most assets and the greatest stability gets bought out by the other.

    Great news for those who managed to keep their jobs but someone somewhere is going to be taking a big financial hit.

    squirrelking
    Free Member

    even according to Dan Stanton, the Stanton brand was dead and buried so who cares if someone ‘steals’ it.

    That’s one way of putting it.

    Another would be to say he never said that at any point.

    BruceWee
    Full Member

    Another would be to say he never said that at any point.

    Listen to the last STW podcast with Dan.

    He said the only people interested in buying the brand were oligarchs who had no interest in bikes and were just looking for a UK based business to buy in order to have a way into the UK market.

    If that had happened the Stanton we know would have been dead, even if some BSOs were still being produced to make the tax return look legit.

    Without Dave Loughran stepping in to buy the remaining stock that was the only future Stanton had.

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