wiggle sold to europe

peter kern · 14-06-2021 1:41pm #1

https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/signa-sports-agrees-spac-deal-buy-wiggle-bicycle-store-source-2021-06-11/

i wonder if brexit has anything to do with it ? pure specualation.
out if interest what exactly is a spac deal ?

14-06-2021 1:45pm

https://www.google.com/search?q=SPAC+deal

A special purpose acquisition company (SPAC; /spæk/), also known as a "blank check company" is a shell corporation listed on a stock exchange with the purpose of acquiring a private company, thus making it public without going through the traditional initial public offering process.

Smee_Again · 14-06-2021 1:46pm

SPAC is a special purpose acquisition vehicle. Basically a company set up and IPO'd to raise capital for the purposes of buying an existing company.

retalivity · 14-06-2021 1:46pm

peter kern wrote: »

https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/signa-sports-agrees-spac-deal-buy-wiggle-bicycle-store-source-2021-06-11/

i wonder if brexit has anything to do with it ? pure specualation.
out if interest what exactly is a spac deal ?

It says in the article:

"SPACs raise funds in an initial public offering with the aim of buying a private firm, which then automatically gets a stock market listing."

Basically a shell company to gather money before they identify a target to buy.

EDIT: Snap!
So is CRC being left behind as the UK Store?

Grassey · 14-06-2021 2:01pm

I think that article is a bit lazy, I've seen elsewhere it's the WiggleCRC group being acquired, there isn't seperate Wiggle & CRC

magicbastarder · 14-06-2021 2:14pm

this story explicitly includes CRC:

https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/wiggle-and-chain-reaction-cycles-will-be-acquired-by-european-sports-giant-signa-sports-united

fat bloke · 14-06-2021 2:19pm

So. Biking bargains or no? That is the only question.

Seth Brundle · 12-10-2023 11:26am

I know this thread is more than two years old but felt it was probably the best placce for this.

Seems like the parent company (Signa Sports United) is in trouble and is looking to restructure and delist from the NY Stock Exchange. This will result in shutting down any companies not performing. Chief financial officer Adrian Bruce cited Brexit and the post-pandemic cycling slump as factors that hit the business...

https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/wiggle-chain-reaction-cycles-parent-company-suffering-severe-liquidity-challenges

ednwireland · 12-10-2023 11:35am

probably interest rates. the company I work for is an acquisition vehicle. interest rates have pushed loan costs to our highest outgoing.

Paddigol · 13-10-2023 10:55am

Is it just me or is the selection of bikes with online retailers much narrower now than pre-2020? Wiggle don't sell a single bike with Campag components. In fact Campag spec'd bikes on any of the big online retailers are almost impossible to find. I accept that looking for rim brake frames now is just delusional - I've made peace with the fact that I'll have to shop second hand for those. But everything seems much more generic now, to me anyway. Very little by way of genuine discount either too (I know Wiggle have decent discounts now, but that's probably linked to the above discussion) other than for XS/ XL frame sizes that they're trying to offload.

Maybe its just rose tinted glasses syndrome for me, but it all seems to have gone to crap since 2020. I used to be like a kid in a sweet shop whenever I'd venture into any of the online retailers... now its all 'meh'.

ARX · 13-10-2023 11:47am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121231504#Comment_121231504

What are you looking for in the way of rim brakes? Complete bike or frameset only?

Paddigol · 13-10-2023 12:36pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121231796#Comment_121231796

Complete bike. I'm not actually going to be pulling the trigger anytime soon (house build), but that hasn't stopped me looking. I had my eye on a lovely Pinarello Dogma F12 ex pro bike for a while... afraid to check back as I know in my heart they're all sold. I'm really just commenting from general observation over the past few years. Covid panic seems to have have drained all suppliers of all rim brake stock like lightning, which simply accelerated the industry decision to drop rim brakes. And then the industry seems to be completely flustered by the recent parts shortage/ components supply chain debacle and doesn't know what to focus on now... aero/ endurance/ weight, gravel... and individual brands don't know how/ where to position themselves.

I fully accept that I'm entering "old man shakes fist at clouds" territory here!

ARX · 13-10-2023 1:23pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121232020#Comment_121232020

Have a look at Origine, I was trying to persuade @fat bloke to buy one as I'm thinking of getting one.

Origine Cycles, the French manufacturer of à la carte bikes. (origine-cycles.com)

Paddigol · 13-10-2023 2:19pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121232220#Comment_121232220

I saw that... and have already tortured myself with visions of the Campy kitted one 😂

Macy0161 · 20-10-2023 11:23am

https://www.bikeradar.com/news/wiggle-chain-reaction-insolvency/

iwillhtfu · 20-10-2023 11:29am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121262235#Comment_121262235

You'd have to wonder what other investments failed to bring down a cycling store through their absolute peak business years.

Definitely a case of they're showing you something but the money was lost elsewhere.

Hard to see anyone stepping in there for a UK based business

Seth Brundle · 20-10-2023 11:39am

My link a week ago which mentioned some restructuring within the group mentioned the following: "Chief financial officer Adrian Bruce cited Brexit and the post-pandemic cycling slump as factors that hit the business"

I agree that its unlikely that a buyer will save them.

Macy0161 · 20-10-2023 11:42am

Since they merged and it wasn't coming from the north, there was less reason to use them anyway, post brexit delivery has been even slower. Might have been different if they had consolidated in Belfast and retained access to both markets?

fat bloke · 20-10-2023 12:32pm

I was a regular CRC customer for all sorts of stuff but post Brexit that stopped dead. That was replicated amongst my cyclist mates too. That's gotta add up and affect a business's bottom line.

JMcL · 20-10-2023 1:42pm

Road.cc have pegged Mike Ashley as the most likely buyer (https://road.cc/content/news/wiggle-reportedly-heading-towards-administration-304591). Whoop-de-do.... Venture capital, doncha love it. Take not one but two successful market leaders, and turn them to sh1t3. Wasn't one of the German e-tailers part of the stable at one point (not the Signa shower - Bike Components or one of the others)?

I note they've both got black Friday sales going (a month early 🙄). Who'd be putting in an order for a bike or a nice set of Prime wheels in the current circumstances?

cython · 20-10-2023 1:46pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121262795#Comment_121262795

Wiggle had bought Bike24 in Germany, but it seems subsequently divested it back to the previous owners after maybe 2 years - I suspect that's the German e-tailer you mean?

Weepsie · 20-10-2023 8:45pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121262795#Comment_121262795

He already owns Evans.

Cionn · 21-10-2023 10:43am

It seems to be a bit like a biking version of the 2008 financial crash. The market saw prices going up 20% annually through the covid years and everybody getting on bikes. Who could have foreseen the end of the Pandemic and people going back on holidays or visiting cinemas. I bought a cracking bike in 2019 for about £2.4k (discounted from £3k). The same bike is now £6k, reality has to bite for Shimano and bike manufacturers at some stage. I presume we will see a culling of manufacturers too in the not too distant future.

godtabh · 21-10-2023 10:57am

Who does wiggle lose c. £90m in one year? That seems like madness

CramCycle · 21-10-2023 11:13am

Website went to sh1t, service went to sh1t, missed their ace in the hole of having a base in NI during Brexit and thought moving it all to the UK was smart, value went down, tried cutting corners with shippers and so on. I'd say some creative accounting to move debt to them from elsewhere like some sports team owners (made up but possible).

I would have bought from CRC alot before Wiggle took over, and it's gonna down hill ever since.

German competitors had better sites, better service and I was surprised to find, I'd sooner pay for shipping each time to know it was a reputable company delivering.

ednwireland · 21-10-2023 11:30am

used to use crc a lot but it the last 2 years been struggling to get what I want. been using bikeinn, alltricks , bike-discount, mantel etc etc more and more.

can't see Mike Ashley improving it

at1withmyself · 21-10-2023 12:03pm

I've gone back to using Wiggle again for the past few months. I don't solely use them but am finding their prices competitive for some items. They also use An Post as delivery and give a delivery date when your at the basket stage. Delivery still much quicker then other sites.

Maybe too little too late but I'll always use the cheapest option with reasonable delivery times so I hope they pull through.

at1withmyself · 21-10-2023 12:03pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121266337#Comment_121266337

Curious of the bike that doubled in price, what model was it?

Weepsie · 21-10-2023 12:58pm

The website change was a disaster. Maybe the back end need updating, but the front end as a consumer was absolutely fine.

It probably lacked a lot of required accessibility features, but the new sites are dreadful. Information has gone missing from them. Searching his hit and miss.

G1032 · 21-10-2023 4:02pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121262510#Comment_121262510

Same here. Pretty much used CRC for 90% of my bike gear but have hardly used at all since Brexit.

G1032 · 21-10-2023 4:06pm

Speaking of the German sites and slightly off topic but I've been looking for shoes the last few days. Shimano RC702. All the German sites selling for 150+ when delivering to Ireland or other EU countries but for 125 when delivering to UK? Why is this?

cletus · 21-10-2023 5:10pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121267542#Comment_121267542

I presume it's a VAT, thing, like buying here from some sites in the UK

G1032 · 21-10-2023 5:13pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121267739#Comment_121267739

That thought occurred to me alright after posting

nicksnikita · 22-10-2023 9:33am

Looks like a perfect storm for Wiggle/CRC.

Looking back I was starting out at cycling when CRC was young and seemed to be the only valid option for online bike bits.

These days e-sales is a very mature space with plenty options listed above and people generally choosing the least expensive option.

Its reportedly been a very slow Autumn for bike related sales and anyone with major stock levels seem to be suffering

DaveyDave · 22-10-2023 3:29pm

CRC were my go to for any gear when I got into cycling back in 2012 and for the most part the only place I shopped from for a good 4-5 years. It was only the occasional thing they didn't have in stock would I go elsewhere.

Now I'm buying from Bike Components and Bike24 mainly with occasional orders from Mantel.

CRC no longer offering express shipping was a huge pain if I ever needed something in a hurry and their stock levels have been very limited any time I checked.

I buy from Bike Components, Bike24 or Mantel depending on who has stock.

Seth Brundle · 22-10-2023 3:34pm

Apparently cancelling orders and not paying suppliers...

https://www.cyclingnews.com/news/wigglecrc-stops-paying-suppliers-cancels-orders-amid-parent-company-financial-woes/

Squidgy Black · 22-10-2023 4:55pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121267542#Comment_121267542

Probably not including VAT, and letting the customer pay it themselves when it goes through customs plus any duties

Fighting Tao · 22-10-2023 5:47pm

Black Friday sale has started with them already. Desperate for money!

it’s a pity really. CRC were great until Wiggle took over, then Wiggle went downhill and limited what they sold to Ireland after their website update.

Now I mainly buy from the German websites, or BikeInn which is Spanish.

Cionn · 23-10-2023 10:10am

Specialized Roubaix @at1withmyself

Junior · 27-10-2023 3:00pm

Looks like they've gone into administration https://bikebiz.com/wiggle-enters-administration/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

I am not an accountant so recievership/administration etc all mean the same to me, i.e. they are insolvent and can't trade. You'd wonder what's going to happen with those Black Friday deals.

at1withmyself · 27-10-2023 3:31pm

Other articles suggest they will continue to fulfill orders and trade.

cunavalos · 27-10-2023 3:40pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121290886#Comment_121290886

And there is unlikely to be an immediate "liquidation sale" of any stock that is currently held as that is the only value remaining in the company (other than the name) to any white knight investor.

ednwireland · 27-10-2023 4:27pm

dammit was just looking at some deathgrips.

really sad end unfortunately.

Seth Brundle · 27-10-2023 5:31pm

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121290886#Comment_121290886

I'd say that you'd be taking a gamble. Plus as it is outside of the EU, you've no real consumer protection if they decide to keep your money

Seth Brundle · 08-11-2023 4:37pm

Halfords to honour warranties on items sourced via CRC & Wiggle...

https://road.cc/content/news/halfords-honour-wiggle-chain-reaction-warranties-304971

CramCycle · 12-11-2023 9:08am

Had vowed not to buy from Wiggle again years ago but there were handlebars there that I found difficult to source so finally bit the bullet before they closed. Delivered by Parcel Force in 3 days without issue. I didn't find the discounts much better than usual, it was more that they were a safer bet than some random aliE or eBay supplier.

ednwireland · 12-11-2023 9:13am

lots of small stuff I was looking at went out of stock, so was wondering if it was coming straight from supplier. Guess if its in the warehouse and they can sell it they will.

Montage of Feck · 12-11-2023 9:41am

What I liked most about UK suppliers is that they usually sent stuff via regular mail so mostly no postage charges or having to deal with couriers.

Seth Brundle · 01-12-2023 9:01am

International sales now being stopped...

https://www.stickybottle.com/latest-news/wiggle-crc-to-close-irish-international-trading-as-brexit-bites-hard/

Wanderer78 · 01-12-2023 9:48am

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121440742#Comment_121440742

jesus that cant be good!

Large bottle small glass · 01-12-2023 9:55am

85% of sales now in UK, I wonder what it was pre Brexit and the promise of the sunny uplands

wiggle sold to europe

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