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Halfords is expected to close its Cycle Republic and Boardman Performance Centre operations following a strategic review.
The Halfords Group will today enter consultation with colleagues affected with a view to mitigating redundancies “wherever possible”.
“The Board have come to the difficult, but necessary, decision to propose the closure of Cycle Republic, said Graham Stapleton, CEO, Halfords Group. “This proposal is not a reflection of the hard work of our Cycle Republic colleagues, who I would like to thank for their commitment and passion in serving our customers.”
As a result of the strategic review, Halfords also reaffirmed its commitment to the performance cycling market and proposed increased investment in online brand Tredz. The statement read: “Performance Cycling is an important business for Halfords and it sees a number of positive market factors which have led to the conclusion, through this review, that it represents a good growth opportunity over the long-term.
“Tredz, which has strong brand relevance and customer loyalty, a superior business model and a track record of attracting new customers, offers a winning proposition for the Halfords Group to unlock its ambitions to grow and enhance the Performance Cycling market. To achieve this the Group proposes to reduce the overlap in its Brands and singularly focus its investment and resources into Tredz. We intend to make an initial substantial investment in logistics and IT infrastructure during the course of the next financial to help Tredz further growth.”
Stapleton added: “We are committed to the mainstream and performance cycling markets and the good growth opportunities we see in them. We believe we are better able to maximise this growth if we focus our investment and resources in Halfords and Tredz, through which we deliver market-leading specialist propositions for both mainstream and enthusiast cyclists.
“Going forward we propose to focus our investment and resources in Halfords and Tredz, through which we will deliver market-leading specialist propositions for both mainstream and enthusiast cyclists via a business model that improves our overall economics.”
