Mavic gone bust?

bobmcstuff

M Sports International seems pretty likely to be a holding company set up by Regent for Mavic (questions about Mavic are still being referred to Regent). The quote about the lack of capital connection from a French Mavic rep seems like a red herring - Regent and M Sports share a chairman.

Maybe they did this to limit Regent's liability under French law, potentially?

TheBigBean

Delaware is the route for most ownership structures in the US. Can't remember why. Having a tin pot SPV in Delaware is a bit like having one in Luxembourg.

RichN95.

TheBigBean said:

Delaware is the route for most ownership structures in the US. Can't remember why. Having a tin pot SPV in Delaware is a bit like having one in Luxembourg.

It's nothing suspicious or immoral. Delaware simple have the best and most up to date corporate legal structure and the best courts. They invest in both.

molteni_man

I love Mavic Kysrium Elite wheels. I have 2 pairs and they are bomb proof across all seasons and Hampshire lanes. The Aksiums have been fab and I have enjoyed every moment of my carbon Cosmics. Someone has got to want to take the brand on and develop it. Best bit of French engineering!

bobmcstuff

RichN95. said:

TheBigBean said:

Delaware is the route for most ownership structures in the US. Can't remember why. Having a tin pot SPV in Delaware is a bit like having one in Luxembourg.

It's nothing suspicious or immoral. Delaware simple have the best and most up to date corporate legal structure and the best courts. They invest in both.

I was sure I had heard of some sort of tax shenanigans associated with Delaware so did some Googling: https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/76951/why-are-so-many-us-companies-incorporated-delaware

Some groups accuse Delaware of being a tax haven because the “Delaware loophole” allows companies to declare certain types of revenue in Delaware rather than in the state where the business actually occurred. Delaware also doesn’t tax profits on royalty payments, trademarks, or copyrights.

So there is some of that. Although the other two reasons given in there for Delaware's popularity sound legit. Interesting that all US law students learn Delaware company law.

david37

shame. I suspect a large part of that companies value is its brand.

amrushton

But no one seems to know who owns Mavic Might be on Inrng or cycling tips. Bought by x, sold to y.

js14

A report says that the French lawyer Didier Poulmaire and his associates who have put in a bid to save MAVIC are hoping to get financial support from cycling enthusiasts. They are looking into the possibility of setting up a trust fund in which a minimum of 500 supporters would invest between 200€ and 200,000€ each. They have just 2 weeks to finalise the bid. More details here (in French): https://matosvelo.fr/index.php?post/3086/le-projet-de-sauvetage-de-mavic-par-l-avocat-didier-poulmaire-associez-vous-a-cette-reprise.

Mind you, 200,000€ would probably buy you enough Pinarellos with Dura-ace wheels to fit out the whole club…

junglist_matty

I'll always have fond memories of my Mavic D521SUP wheels..... In the late 90s early 00s I was back in the LBS every few months getting them rebuilt with new rims! I must have spent a small fortune (from my pot wash earnings) on those things!!!!!

The most iconic Mavic wheels for me were the Mavic all yellow deemax wheels.... Lusted after a pair of them!

Not a huge fan of their road offerings, have had kysriums and open pros and the rims have always started cracking on me after about 5k miles.... Thankfully open pros are cheap to fix

However Mavic will be fine, the brand will be bought by someone new - it's too big to not be!

js14

junglist_matty said:

However Mavic will be fine, the brand will be bought by someone new - it's too big to not be!

The brand name might interest a Chinese manufacturer, they could then replace the "Guangdong Wheels" or whatever decals by yellow and black Mavic ones.

js14

There are 14 candidates interested in taking over MAVIC according to France Bleu Haute-Savoie, including one consortium with the backing of Bernard Hinault. Others include the Guers group which bought the Time brand off Rossignol, and the US/UK Fox. At best, it seems less than half of the 250 employees in France will keep their jobs and maybe none if the bids from certain candidats are accepted.

gweeds

Back to focussing on wheels

https://twitter.com/inrng/status/1285614853563076613

bobmcstuff

Hmm. I think they need some investment, feels like they've been somewhat left behind the last few years. Not sure a family owned DIY business is the right owner for that. But I don't know anything about them.

First.Aspect

I don't know. They've been conservative about rim widths but that's about it. And honestly they might have actually been right. But what they make are really good wheels. If they can stay as the go-to aftermarket wheels while still offering alloy sets that help bike brands meet target rrps, they will be fine. Not sure they need anything more than consumer confidence.

jimmythecuckoo

I am pleased they have been saved.

Although my cosmics might not be worth so much now

joe_totale-2

Rim widths could be wider but the UST system is the best tubeless system I've used so that's an example of good product development.

Mavic clothing never seemed to do anything different from the other brands so no wonder it probably didn't sell very well. Seems sensible to me to ditch it.

They've probably suffered from losing a lot of the OEM market for wheels given that big brands now make their own wheels. A few years ago it seemed like most new bikes came with Aksiums.

gsk82

The uptake in unbranded Chinese crap, plus companies buying unbranded Chinese crap and putting a sticker on it, will also have had a big impact on their sales.

What possible reason could there be for buying a £1000 set from a trusted, reputable brand, when there's Chinese ones which are also round and black for only £300?

gweeds

*waves at Hunt Wheels*

me-109

Shoes are super-comfy, helmets the right shape and size, shorts were pretty good and tops seem to last quite well. I may have to stock up.