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| Type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Bicycles |
| Founded | 1936 |
| Headquarters | Olney, Illinois |
| Products | Bicycle and Related Components |
| Parent | Pon Holdings |
Roadmaster is an American bicycle brand currently owned by Pacific Cycle, which in turn is owned by Dutch conglomerate Pon Holdings.
Roadmaster Bicycles were first introduced by the Cleveland Welding Company in 1936. In 1950, after purchasing the Roadmaster line of children's and youth bicycles from the Cleveland Welding Company, AMF entered the bicycle manufacturing business with its newly formed AMF Wheeled Goods Division. In 1953, after a labor strike, AMF moved bicycle manufacturing from the UAW-organized plant in Cleveland, Ohio to a new facility in Little Rock, Arkansas. [1] The new plant was heavily automated and featured more than a mile of part conveyor belts in six separate systems, including an electrostatic spray painting operation. [2]
Taking advantage of the increase in its target markets in the aftermath of the baby boom, AMF was able to diversify its product line, adding exercise equipment under the brand name Vitamaster in 1950. As demand for bicycles continued to expand, the company found the need for a new manufacturing facility to keep up with demand. As two-wheeled bicycles increased in popularity a new plant was built in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1951. In 1962, the company moved its operations to Olney, Illinois, where it built a new factory on a 122-acre (0.49 km2) site that would remain the company's principal bicycle manufacturing location into the 1990s. Products manufactured there were children's vehicles, sidewalk bikes, toy autos, tricycles, garden tractors, seat cars and wagons and playground equipment. The company produced over 100,000 miniature Mustangs for Ford Motor Company late in the 1960s. BMX bikes, mopeds and exercise bicycles were introduced in the 1970s.
After two decades of consistent growth, the AMF Wheel Goods Division stalled under the long-distance management of a parent company bogged down in layers of corporate management and marginally profitable product lines. Manufacturing quality as well as the technical standard of the Roadmaster bicycle line - once the pride of the company - had fallen to an all-time low. Bicycles made at the Olney plant were manufactured so poorly that some Midwestern bike shops refused to repair them, claiming that the bikes would not stay fixed no matter how much labor and effort was put into them. [3] The division's problems with quality and outside competition were neatly summed up in a 1979 American film, Breaking Away , in which identical secondhand AMF Roadmaster track bicycles were used by competitors in the Little 500 bicycle race. Despite this product placement, the film's protagonist expressed a decided preference for his lightweight Italian Masi road racing bike, deriding the elderly Roadmaster as a 'piece of junk'. [4]
In 1983 AMF sold the assets to George Nebel, the General Manager and Bob Zinnen. In 1987 the company was sold to entrepreneur and merger and acquisition expert Thomas W Itin. Itin brought in two other investors Equitex and Enercorp, both Business Development Companies, under the 40 Act "BDCs" run by Henry Fong. It changed its name to Roadmaster Industries, Inc. and positioned itself as the leader in the fitness equipment and junior toy industries. Itin and Fong took the company public through an IPO in the end of 1987. Itin and Fong acquired over 20 companies in the sporting goods field. Roadmaster grew from $40,000,00 in unprofitable sales to over $800,000,000 of highly profitable sales. Under the symbol of RDMI it went from small cap on NASDQ to large cap on NMS to the American Stock Exchange and then to the New York Stock Exchange and became a Fortune 1000 company.
Helped by the increasing popularity of Mountain Bikes, Roadmaster experienced a 72% increase in bicycle sales in 1993. A new bicycle production plant was built in Effingham, Illinois to keep pace with the growing demand. Roadmaster acquired Flexible Flyer Company, whose history dates back to 1889.
In 1997 the Roadmaster bicycle division was sold to the Brunswick Corporation. [5] However, it had already become evident that production of low-cost, mass-market bicycles in the United States was no longer viable in the face of intense foreign competition, [6] and in 1999, all U.S. production of Roadmaster bicycles ceased. Brunswick sold its bicycle division and the Roadmaster brand to Pacific Cycle, which began distributing a new Roadmaster line of bicycles imported from Taiwan and the People's Republic of China. Pacific Cycle still uses the Olney facility for corporate offices and as a product inventory and distribution center.
Trek Bicycle Corporation is a bicycle and cycling product manufacturer and distributor under brand names Trek, Electra Bicycle Company, Bontrager, and Diamant Bikes. The company has previously manufactured bikes under the Gary Fisher, LeMond Racing Cycles, Klein, and Villiger Bikes brand names. With its headquarters in Waterloo, Wisconsin, Trek bicycles are marketed through 1,700 independently owned bicycle shops across North America, subsidiaries in Europe, Asia, South Africa, as well as distributors in 90 countries worldwide. Most Trek bicycles are manufactured outside the United States, in countries including the Netherlands, Germany, Taiwan, and China.
A cargo bike is a human powered vehicle designed and constructed specifically for transporting loads. Cargo bike designs include a cargo area consisting of an open or enclosed box, a flat platform, or a wire basket, usually mounted over one or both wheels, low behind the front wheel, or between parallel wheels at either the front or rear of the vehicle. The frame and drivetrain must be constructed to handle loads larger than those on an ordinary bicycle.
Brunswick Corporation, formerly known as the Brunswick-Balke-Collender Company, is an American corporation that has been developing, manufacturing and marketing a wide variety of products since 1845. Today, Brunswick has more than 13,000 employees operating in 24 countries. Brunswick owns major boating brands, including Sea Ray, Boston Whaler, Bayliner, Mercury Marine, Attwood, Lund, Crestliner, Mastervolt, MotorGuide, Harris Pontoons, Freedom Boat Club, Princecraft, Heyday, Lowe, Uttern, Quicksilver and CZone, among many others. In 2021, Brunswick reported sales of US$5.8 billion. Brunswick's global headquarters is in the northern Chicago suburb of Mettawa, Illinois. On October 4, 2021, Brunswick Corporation announced that it has completed its acquisition of Navico, a global leader in marine electronics and sensors for $1.05 billion, adding to Brunswick the industry leading Navico brands of Lowrance, Simrad, B&G, and C-MAP.
Dorel Industries Inc. is a Canadian company, based in Montreal, Quebec, which designs and manufactures juvenile products and home furnishings. Its Dorel Sports division, sold in 2022, sold bicycles. It was formed in 1987 as a result of a merger between Dorel Co. Ltd., founded in 1962 by Leo Schwartz and Ridgewood Industries, founded in 1969. Dorel employs approximately 10,000 people and its products are sold in over 100 countries.
The Schwinn Bicycle Company is an American company that develops, manufactures and markets bicycles under the eponymous brand name. The company was originally founded by Ignaz Schwinn (1860–1948) in Chicago in 1895. It became the dominant manufacturer of American bicycles through most of the 20th century. After declaring bankruptcy in 1992, Schwinn has since been a sub-brand of Pacific Cycle, owned by the Dutch conglomerate, Pon Holdings.
The Huffy Corporation is a supplier of bicycles with headquarters in Dayton, Ohio, United States.
American Machine and Foundry was one of the United States' largest recreational equipment companies, with diversified products as disparate as garden equipment, atomic reactors, and yachts.
Giant Manufacturing Co. Ltd. is a Taiwanese bicycle manufacturer, recognized as the world's largest bicycle designer and manufacturer. Giant has manufacturing facilities in Taiwan, the Netherlands, China, and Hungary.
Pacific Cycle, Inc., is an American division of Dutch conglomerate Pon Holdings that imports and distributes bicycles. It was founded in 1977 by Chris Hornung. The company pioneered the sourcing of bicycles from the Far East for distribution in the U.S., developing relationships with suppliers primarily in Taiwan and China. The company now owns several well known bicycle brands as well as diversifying into bicycle accessories and other types of children's play equipment. Pacific Cycle sells more bicycles than any other company in North America and is one of the most prolific bicycle suppliers in the world. In 2006, Chris Hornung left Pacific Cycle leaving President Jeff Frehner in control. Alice Tillett has been the President of Pacific Cycle since 2008.
Murray was an American company whose assets are now owned by Briggs & Stratton and Pon Holdings. The corporate brand is a descendant of the Murray Ohio Manufacturing Company, which manufactured bicycles and lawn and garden equipment. The company went bankrupt in 2005 selling most of its assets to Briggs & Stratton and Pacific Cycle.
A cruiser bicycle, also known as a beach cruiser or (formerly) motobike, is a bicycle that usually combines balloon tires, an upright seating posture, a single-speed drivetrain, and straightforward steel construction with expressive styling. Cruisers are popular among casual bicyclists and vacationers because they are very stable and easy to ride, but their heavy weight and balloon tires tend to make them rather slow. Another common feature is their ability to be customized with accessories including fenders, lights and saddle bags. They are designed for use primarily on paved roads, low speeds/distances, and are included in the non-racing/non-touring class and heavyweight or middleweight styles of the road bicycle type.
Mongoose is a brand name of bicycles originally designed, manufactured, and sold by BMX Products, Inc. It is now available through the distributor Pacific Cycle.
CCM is a Canadian bicycle manufacturer based in Montreal, Quebec.
Ross Bicycles Inc. manufactured over 15 million bicycles under the Ross brand between 1946 and 1988. The company began in Williamsburg, New York, United States, later moving its headquarters and manufacturing to Rockaway Beach, Queens. The headquarters remained in Rockaway when manufacturing was later moved to Allentown, Pennsylvania where Sherwood could focus on designing his high end Gran Eurosport model which featured synthetic grease, polished bearings, and 26 skip tooth front sprocket for friction reduction. Sherwood Ross, against the advice of his vice president Randy Ross, retooled the Allentown factory and experimented in unrelated bicycle endeavors involving government contracts. Randy Ross moved Ross bicycles manufacturing to Taiwan to keep margins competitive and bicycle manufacturing profitable, but Sherwood Ross's decision to keep the Allentown factory working on government contracts ultimately led to the company having to file for bankruptcy protection in 1988 Ross Bicycles was re-established on July 31, 2017 by Shaun Ross, the current CEO of Ross Bicycles.
The Raleigh Bicycle Company is a British bicycle manufacturer based in Nottingham, England and founded by Woodhead and Angois in 1885. Using Raleigh as their brand name, it is one of the oldest bicycle companies in the world. After being acquired by Frank Bowden in December 1888, it became The Raleigh Cycle Company, which was registered as a limited liability company in January 1889. By 1913, it was the largest bicycle manufacturing company in the world. From 1921 to 1935, Raleigh also produced motorcycles and three-wheel cars, leading to the formation of Reliant Motors. Raleigh bicycle is now a division of the Dutch corporation Accell.
Nishiki is a brand of bicycles designed, specified, marketed and distributed by West Coast Cycle in the United States, initially manufactured by Kawamura Cycle Co. in Kobe, Japan, and subsequently by Giant of Taiwan. The bicycles were first marketed under the American Eagle brand beginning in 1965 and later under the Nishiki brand until 2001.
A wheelie bike, also called a dragster, muscle bike, high-riser, spyder bike or banana bike, is a type of stylized children's bicycle designed in the 1960s to resemble a chopper motorcycle and characterized by ape hanger handlebars, a banana seat with sissy bar, and small wheels. Notable examples include the Schwinn Sting-Ray and Krate lines and the Raleigh Chopper line. Other notable manufacturers and retailers that offered models include AMF, CCM, Columbia, Huffy, Iverson, J. C. Penney, Malvern Star, Monark, Murray, Ross, Sears, and Vindec.
Pacific Cycles is a Taiwanese bicycle designing and manufacturing company headquartered in Xinwu District, Taoyuan City. The company manufactures its self designed cycles including folding bicycles, electric bicycles, tricycles and other supportive cycles. It has an in-house research and development studio known as "Section Zero" for new product development and also provides original design manufacturing services for over 40 bicycle brands and original equipment manufacturers worldwide from this facility. The company has a bicycle museum in Taoyuan City known as "Pacific Cycles Museum".
Tube Investments of India Limited is an Indian engineering and manufacturing company that specializes in bicycles, metal formed products, and chains. It is based in Chennai and a part of Murugappa Group. It was incorporated as TI Cycles of India Limited in 1949, as a joint venture company.
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