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Claud Butler and Dawes have announced a merger under the pre-existing brand Tandem Group.
Managing director Steve Grant released a statement regarding the move: “Although Claud Butler and Dawes have worked closely together for some time, with immediate effect, the two businesses will be merged and will be known as Tandem Group Cycles.
We will still be wholly focused on the independent dealer sector. We have continued to invest in our large Scunthorpe warehouse facilities to accommodate these changes and enable distribution of the ranges from one location with our sales, product development and back office functions being administered from our existing Birmingham offices.
This change will result in a more streamlined and efficient operation, completely focused on supporting the independent sector, developing the Claud Butler, Dawes and Academy brands complemented by our new Squish junior and entry level British Eagle ranges. Our Pulse parts and product range will augment these.”
Sales director of Tandem Group Cycles Julie Hayward said: “The new Tandem Group Cycles will be completely dedicated to developing its business in the independent sector. Although we have restructured some of our operations as part of the changes we believe this will enable us to deliver a strong and compelling proposition for the future.”
The news comes just one month after the announcement of redundancies within the Tandem Group, citing a “challenging environment” post-Brexit for the business.
“I see today’s news as a fresh lease of life for Tandem Group Cycles. For a while now we’ve been upholding our historical business model of two separate brands, having two separate teams and all the costs that come with it. At times, those two brands have also been seen as close competition with one another which is of course, counter-productive for us. By consolidating our workforce, we will hopefully have a much more effective team that can react quicker to current trends and that can steer the brands in the right directions to prosper,” senior product and marketing manager, Gary Conway, told BikeBiz.
The parent company has commented that detailed discussions about the effects of these changes on customers and suppliers will take place over the next few weeks.
For more information on the Tandem Group, click here.
