British bike / apparel companies ?

elredso
elredso Posts: 94
edited September 2012 in MTB general
Just trying to compile a bit of a list of UK based companies - especially ones that design in the UK (if any)

I know:

Fisher Outdoor
Orange
Whyte
Raleigh

Comments

  • cooldad
    cooldad Posts: 32,599
    Raleigh are owned by a Dutch company (I think), and bikes are made in Asia. Nothing to do with the UK.
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  • bennett_346
    bennett_346 Posts: 5,029
    Endura?
  • cooldad
    cooldad Posts: 32,599
    Apollo? Halfords anyway.
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  • blu3cat
    blu3cat Posts: 1,016
    Shutt Velo Rapide?
    Rapha?
    Charge Bikes and their clothing brand Surface?
    "Bed is for sleepy people.
    Let's get a kebab and go to a disco."

    FCN = 3 - 5
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  • Twojumpers
    Twojumpers Posts: 17
    Hope
    Enigma
    Roberts
    On-One
    Cotic
    Genesis
    Morvelo
    .....
    Chumba VF2 - Inbred 29 - Dr Dew
  • mudsucker
    mudsucker Posts: 730
    DMR
    Royal Racing
    Pace
    Pashley
    Brompton
    Bikes are OK, I guess... :-)

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    1982 Holdsworth Elan.
  • schlepcycling
    schlepcycling Posts: 1,614
    Torm
    Planet X
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  • welsh_14
    welsh_14 Posts: 259
    Intrepid Apparell UK designed and made I believe....
    Any reason you are compiling this list?
  • cat_with_no_tail
    cat_with_no_tail Posts: 12,981
    Fisher is just a distributor AFAIK,they neither design nor manufacture anything at all.
    Raleigh are all made in the far east.
    Whyte are designed in the UK, but I thought they were manufactured somewhere else.

    What exactly is it you're trying to do?

    There are LOADS of UK based companies, but very few that keep everything in the UK. Partly down to cost, but also down to the fact the technology in the bigger factories in places like taiwan is far superior, meaning they can produce higher quality bikes in bigger quantities.
    "Avan-TT"
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  • elredso
    elredso Posts: 94
    welsh_14 wrote:
    Intrepid Apparell UK designed and made I believe....
    Any reason you are compiling this list?

    I work in product design and just doing a bit of research - saw a job about a year ago using solidworks, designing bike accessories, but it didnt state the company - perfectly happy in my current job, but just wanted to do a bit of research and see if there are any product design roles in the UK - as a lot of engineering work is shipped out to the far east, but design still done in the UK
  • styxd
    styxd Posts: 3,234
    Nukeproof
    Genesis
    Cotic
    Dialled
    DMR
    Orange
    On One/Planet X

    Are a few off the top of my head.

    Frames may well be designed in the UK, I wouldnt bank on alot of the components these companies sell being designed here though - generic "catalogue" items.
  • welsh_14
    welsh_14 Posts: 259
    elredso wrote:
    I work in product design and just doing a bit of research - saw a job about a year ago using solidworks, designing bike accessories, but it didnt state the company - perfectly happy in my current job, but just wanted to do a bit of research and see if there are any product design roles in the UK - as a lot of engineering work is shipped out to the far east, but design still done in the UK

    I would think most things still made in the UK will be clothing etc rather than bike parts/bikes, however I may be completely wrong there!
    As said there are a lot of UK companies but whether much of their stuff is made in the UK is debatable. If you are just looking at the design side then I would think there will be jobs around just not in the manufacturing side. Although I think Hope and Orange still manufacture in the UK.
    Just a suggestion but have you tried companies house? Don't know if you could do a search based on description rather than company name...
  • edhornby
    edhornby Posts: 1,780
    Moulton (London and built there)
    Brompton (Bradford upon avon)
    Orange (Halifax)
    Pace are still going?

    now think framebuilders - Rourke, enigma, Hewitts, Argos, Bob Jackson

    also think components like USE, Royce, Hope
    "I get paid to make other people suffer on my wheel, how good is that"
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  • warpcow
    warpcow Posts: 1,448
    I think Fisher design and distribute Whyte nowadays, don't they?

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  • Clank
    Clank Posts: 2,323
    edhornby wrote:
    Moulton (London and built there)
    Brompton (Bradford upon avon)

    Wrong way 'round, bud.

    Moulton is BoA, with Brompton being near Kew, in the capital.
    There's Pashley in Stratford, too.

    Three businesses there that definately design and build in the UK (Brompton being the largest UK frame builders).

    As for 'boutique' frame builders, the UK has 'em coming out the wazoo! Seriously, the list is astonishing. Then there's the UK designed and Far-East build guys.
    How would I write my own epitaph? With a crayon - I'm not allowed anything I can sharpen to a sustainable point.

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  • 97th choice
    97th choice Posts: 2,222
    Boardman, not made in UK but designed here.
    Too-ra-loo-ra, too-ra-loo-rye, aye

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    Merida CX500
  • RevellRider
    RevellRider Posts: 1,794
    warpcow wrote:
    I think Fisher design and distribute Whyte nowadays, don't they?

    Whyte Bikes still come through ATB Sales. Fisher Outdoor did do Kansi Folding bikes for a while, which I believe were designed in house. Ison Distribution do have a whole host of parts and bikes that come from in house. Gusset, Identiti, Halo, 4 Jeri plus many more. There are far too many companies which are designed in the UK and manufactured overseas for me to even start listing
    Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Epsilon.
  • warpcow
    warpcow Posts: 1,448
    RevellRider wrote:
    warpcow wrote:
    I think Fisher design and distribute Whyte nowadays, don't they?

    Whyte Bikes still come through ATB Sales.

    That's the one!
    Commie Meta SL
    Evil Sovereign
    Santa Cruz Heckler (gone)
    On One Inbred (gone)
    Ragley Mmmbop (gone)
  • chez_m356
    chez_m356 Posts: 1,893
    cooldad wrote:
    Raleigh are owned by a Dutch company (I think), and bikes are made in Asia. Nothing to do with the UK.
    from wiki
    By 2003, assembly of bicycles had ended in the UK with 280 assembly and factory staff made redundant, and bicycles were to come "from Vietnam and other centres of 'low-cost, high-quality' production. Only the final assembly takes place in the German town of Cloppenburg.

    In April 2012, Raleigh was acquired by Dutch group Accell for $100m US, whose portfolio includes the Lappiere and Ghost bicycle brands
    Specialized Hardrock Sport Disc 10- CANYON Nerve AM 6 2011
  • RevellRider
    RevellRider Posts: 1,794
    Raleigh still have a distribution and design centre based outside of Nottingham
    Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Epsilon.
  • cooldad
    cooldad Posts: 32,599
    RevellRider wrote:
    Raleigh still have a distribution and design centre based outside of Nottingham
    Well they're doing a sh1t job
    41WtiGNYWXL.jpg
    I don't do smileys.

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  • kammybear
    kammybear Posts: 500
    Can't believe my 1st mountain bike looked like that 10 years ago!

    I thought I got myself a top spec full sus for a bargain price of £120...HALF PRICE!
  • chez_m356
    chez_m356 Posts: 1,893
    kammybear wrote:
    Can't believe my 1st mountain bike looked like that 10 years ago!

    I thought I got myself a top spec full sus for a bargain price of £120...HALF PRICE!
      you could get one of these for around that :wink:
      hot21wht-3q-turbo.jpg
        hot21wht-turbo-closeup.jpg
        Specialized Hardrock Sport Disc 10- CANYON Nerve AM 6 2011
      • chiefinspector
        chiefinspector Posts: 153
        Lumicycle are another UK Company.
      • shigllgetcha
        shigllgetcha Posts: 145
        Carrera?
        Combined Carrera Hardtail thread
      • The Rookie
        The Rookie Posts: 27,812
        Carrera, made/build by Merida, I think the Frame is just a generic Merida one, although I dare say halfords accountants have a hand in speccing the components to suite the different segment, so no more british really than any other Taiwan built bike sold through a UK store as an inhouse brand (Pinnacle, Vitus, etc)
        Currently riding a Whyte T130C, X0 drivetrain, Magura Trail brakes converted to mixed wheel size (homebuilt wheels) with 140mm Fox 34 Rhythm and RP23 suspension. 12.2Kg.
      • YeehaaMcgee
        YeehaaMcgee Posts: 5,740
        warpcow wrote:
        RevellRider wrote:
        warpcow wrote:
        I think Fisher design and distribute Whyte nowadays, don't they?

        Whyte Bikes still come through ATB Sales.

        That's the one!
        Yep. Designed by Whyte (UK), and distributed by ATB.

        Marin's an odd one. Californian coompany, with suspension bikes designed by Whyte, in the UK, and manufactured in the far east.
        My photos
      • andy_welch
        andy_welch Posts: 1,101
        Are Middleburn still going?
      • Clank
        Clank Posts: 2,323
        andy_welch wrote:
        Are Middleburn still going?

        In a word, yes!

        http://www.middleburn.co.uk/index.php
        How would I write my own epitaph? With a crayon - I'm not allowed anything I can sharpen to a sustainable point.

        Disclaimer: Opinions expressed herein are worth exactly what you paid for them.

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