Gotta be Rocky Mountain (unless they've been bought out by a mega-corp and I missed it, in which case, stop reading and move on!)
Proper Mountain Bike company, I dunno how they've survived continually producing desirable bikes from basic to "Weeksy" 😉
I would buy one of the Powerplays (self developed motor?!) if I had the money. Team riders always top of the EWS too on Altitudes.
Starling - Lovely bikes
Surprised no one has mentioned Hope.
Surprised no one has mentioned Hope.
A fair comment.
Nice to see the support for Galibier. They are my 'go to' for bibs/gloves/waterproofs and they keep sending me free socks!
Has no-one mentioned Cotic yet?
surprised no one has said Burgtec, for their Candy spruce Green that have hope have been failing at (given up on) for years..
will hope launch that dropper lever this decade
Yes, Cotic has been mentioned. Hope are probably swinging at the right level but took a long time to get there. Santa Cruz have been up there for years, they're not Giant but neither are they some company working out a shed in an industrial park.
I nominate one most probably won't have heard of but have seen their work all round - Fiveland Bikes.
Also nominating Santa Cruz
And just to add my tuppence to the fan-boying (although I don't own one currently) they are the brand that everyone compares their bikes to in more or less every category, and in every test. and there are some models in the current line up and past catalogue that have earned their place, Chameleon, Blur, Superlight, Heckler those are some pretty iconic names.
I love my Pinnacle Lithium. All Pinnacle bikes just seemto get the basics right and I lie t ht they always seem to get the full shimano group set .
I’d also say that the Lifeline range from Wiggle and pretty much all the Decathlon stuff is great value.
I nominate one most probably won’t have heard of but have seen their work all round – Fiveland Bikes.
Fiveland bikes isn't actually a *brand*, per se - although I completely agree that as a company they're knocking it out of the park (for those who don't know, they make a load of stuff for Cotic and a few other brands too out of a big shed in Scotland).
For brand penetration over size (and generally Doing Things Right), I'd also echo Cotic for their activism as well as their brilliant bikes, Deviate for the lovely, lovely design (the linkage system is a genuine engineering masterpiece) as well as being really a rather small company - and for supporting the legendary Matt Fairbrother, and possibly Renthal for general Mancunian awesomeness.
CRC/Wiggle brands punching above their weight.... for a company that has well over £500m p/a turnover...
Cotic. In the UK they seem to have driven all sorts forward and ploughed a unique path
And I guess among the 'aficionados' Singular - who were way ahead of the curve on 29er/steel/drop bar etc? It seems faded a bit now...
+1 for Bird bikes. I'd never heard of them until I hired 2 for me and my lad at Hamsterley, just hardtails but they were awesome. They're made up in Consett too I believe. My son was very impressed when he checked out their website on his phone on the way home. They weren't expensive to hire for a couple of hours and the bikes managed all the cack handed mincing we could put them through 🙂
Fairlight cycles definitely punching hard for a small co. I would happily own any/all of their four bikes. Like Genesis but actually decent/innovative/desirable.
For UK-based MTB-making brands, I have to agree with Starling, Orange and Bird.
I also happen to have one of each at the mo 😀
Another UK brand that I think is world-leading is Invisiframe. The quality and Lee's attention to detail is awesome, they really deserve their success.
Rimpact tyre inserts are great too, they got it pretty good at first then nailed it with the Pro version. That hits the sweet spot of weight vs. protection for me.
Stooge bikes, for making something pretty leftfield but actually great for nearly all my riding despite basically being one man.
To be clear though (before anyone pulls me up on my previous comment) its the fact they’re the #1 brand in the industry while not being the number 1 in anything else (Size, quite probably unit sales, innovation, number of models in range etc.) that makes them punching above their weight.
what makes them the number one brand if they aren’t the biggest or sell the most?
genuine question, btw
what makes them the number one brand if they aren’t the biggest or sell the most?
Good question. I would say (anecdotally) that they are the most recognised, most 'followed', most sought after brand in MTB. The reason they're not the biggest and don't sell the most is limited range, higher prices.
I would also say (Objectively) there are disproportionately more Santa Cruz bikes on the trails than any other brand which sells at its same price point.
Good question. I would say (anecdotally) that they are the most recognised, most ‘followed’, most sought after brand in MTB. The reason they’re not the biggest and don’t sell the most is limited range, higher prices.
Yeah, I certainly worry that they're the most nick-able MTB brand (possibly vying with Specialized), even when out on my possibly otherwise undesirable Highball.
I will second Garbaruk, their cassettes are ridiculously light, work well and really do last, I wouldn’t look elsewhere. Customer service is faultless too.
Invisiframe, just round the corner from me, great product and company.
Another vote for Rimpact too, their pro version is brilliant 🙂
Would Propain count? Pretty awesome company, presence and products considering their size.
Rapha, from nowhere to ubiquitous, absolute masterstroke/luck in timing, started in early 2012 and latched onto the UK public uptake in cycling with Wiggins 2012 Tour & Olympics, pressed on from there, Rapha-Condor Sharp, to Team Sky, to Canyon-SRAM womens and now to EF & Legion, haters will hate, but they changed the cycling clothing/marketing game
I really like the stuff that Albion are putting out, especially the stuff that's a bit different (lightweight packable jackets for ultras etc)
Another vote for Bird here.
For a small operation they do great things with excellent customer service and comms.
Plus the bikes are pretty good too 👍
Also Hope for similar reasons.
Gotta be Rocky Mountain
I'm biased, but having owned a few of their bikes now, I'm a massive fan. UK distro isn't great though. Which is a shame.
Another shout for Ragley here. ok CRC put the prices up last year to £350 per frame but £350 !!! half and them some against the Chameleon . £150 off the scout and almost half a Crush. Best hardtail frame ive ever had and there have been a few ........
Vitus via Wiggle? Just bought Jnr a Rapide VR for £1000. Yes an - albeit Alu - Deore shod, RS Sid SL equipped 29er HT with a Ron/Ralph tyre combo that at the family statistics in mind gets him to Adult races without another purchase*
* One would hope so anyway.
