Raleigh

[John]

Maybe

"Owner of bike maker Raleigh files for insolvency"

Be a shame if they disappear for good as I'm sure many of us have owned a Raleigh at some point. They don't seem to have kept up with modern trends though and are now probably looked upon as a lower level bike company. The owner of Raleigh also own Haibike who are huge in the e-bike market, be interesting to see if someone steps in for them

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c4gv45w4j8eo

[DaveE]

It's a shame on one level

But I can't feel too sad as I've not considered them as a viable option since I was a kid

Same with all the hand wringing about Jaguar etc, no one can really claim to feel all that sad if at the same time they've actually chosen to not buy one of their products

"It's a shame someone else didn't waste their money on one"

[mik]

But I can't feel too sad as I've not considered them as a viable option since I was a kid

That.

[Mito Man]

I wonder if the local bike industry is in trouble similar to the car industry, especially with the advent of ebikes. China make the best batteries and motors and surely a bike is very simple compared to a car.

[Jobbo]

If they still hand-brazed steel frames in Nottingham I'd be sad. But I think they're just one of many generic bike brands these days.

[Rich B]

i thought they’d long gone tbh. Sad from a nostalgic POV but bike tech moves fast (except for chains and derailleurs for some reason, presumably the efficiency is hard to beat).

[duncs500]

Same with all the hand wringing about Jaguar etc, no one can really claim to feel all that sad if at the same time they've actually chosen to not buy one of their products

"It's a shame someone else didn't waste their money on one"

Of cause you can claim to feel sad about it.

I mean it's not your fault the products are not good enough, if they were even on a par with another product you'd have probably bought it due to liking the brand. They've really had to go the extra mile with shitness if they have a good brand reputation and still can't sell their products!

It's sad that they haven't done a good enough job as custodians of the company.

[Carlos]

Their modern stuff always seemed to be behind the curve and a lot more expensive than similar looking Chinese or own brand Halfords stuff so not really surprising

My dad still rates them just because his last road bike was a Raleigh Banana circa 1990

[Sundayjumper]

They stopped making bikes in the UK a looong time ago*. Even when I worked in a bike shop in the early nineties they weren’t aspirational. Seventies/eighties was their peak.

Edit - 2002.