Company acquires Ridley Motorcycle assets
2 Wheel Ventures LLC, a former Ridley Motorcycle Co. licensee, last week acquired all of Ridley’s significant assets, according to a company press release.
The purchase includes intellectual property rights, tooling/fixtures, parts inventory and manufacturing management software/hardware systems. 2 Wheel Ventures reports it also secured the company’s manufacturing plant and former key personnel.
“The past two years have been extremely challenging for our industry,” Ridley co-founder Jay Ridley said in the release. “With the rapid growth Ridley was experiencing in 2005, 2006 and 2007, the company over-leveraged itself in order to meet demand for its products. When the credit market began to crash in 2008, it was almost impossible for the company to overcome its debts.”
In 2007, Ridley Motorcycle Co. licensed 2 Wheel Ventures to market the company’s brand on apparel and accessories. The license expanded in 2009 to include parts and technical help.
2 Wheel Ventures says it is committed to reorganizing the company’s assets, providing parts, reconditioning pre-owned Ridley motorcycles and offering technical support to Ridley owners, dealers and service centers. As the market conditions improve, 2 Wheel says it will evaluate the option of restarting production of new Ridley motorcycles.
Ridley Motorcycle Co. was established in 1995 as a line of fully automatic motorcycles, with a continuously variable transmission that allows riders to cruise without manual shifting or clutching.
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