“The market for road race bikes dropped by 25 percent last year and a specialist in this category, we were hit unexpectedly hard. We were not able to compensate our decline in turnover in other bike categories as we are 100 percent dedicated to the road race market. Our turnover was stable, although we anticipated a growth in sales,” Bart Van Muylder, CEO of Diepensteyn NV, said.
Diepensteyn NV took over the company from Eddy Merckx in 2014, and most of the 17 million euros debt was generated before that. It is largely attributed to the sponsorship of the Quick-Step Floors team, which ceased in 2012. Diepensteyn put over 27 million euros into the company last August. It might seem like bad business, but the management remains optimistic.
“We are proud we have doubled our sales over the past two years and still believe in the future of Eddy Merckx Cycles,” Van Muylder said.
