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Wiggle is an online brand of the Frasers Group, having been bought after WiggleCRC went into administration with losses of £97 million.

Previously Wiggle was part of the WiggleCRC group, which included Chain Reaction Cycles, however only the brands were transferred to the new owners.

History

The origins of Wiggle trace back to a local bike shop called Butlers Cycles, located in Portsmouth. Mitch Dall, a founder of Wiggle, bought the shop in 1995.

Wiggle started trading in May 1999, with an initial investment of £2000 from Dall and Harvey Jones.

Between 1999 and 2009, Wiggle experimented with online retail, and experienced strong growth.

By 2006, Wiggle was turning over £11.8m and Livingbridge private equity took a 42% stake in the company. After a further three years of 40% growth, Livingbridge bought the remaining 58% in 2009, including Dall's remaining 26% stake.

Livingbridge brought in Humphrey Cobbold as CEO in December 2009. By 2011, projected annual revenue was £118m following strong international growth helped by a weak pound. Andy Bond, the former CEO of Asda, was hired to help this process.

In 2011, Livingbridge considered taking the company public in an initial public offering, with the company's overall value estimated at £200m, and pre-tax profits having risen from £7.1m to £10.2m in the year to January 2011, following a 123 percent increase in international sales.

After an auction in December 2011, Wiggle was acquired by venture capitalists Bridgepoint Capital for £180m. Wiggle was now one of 6 European online sports retailers, and no 2 in the UK to Chain Reaction Cycles.

In September 2013, after the sale of the business, Cobbold stepped down and Stefan Barden (former CEO of Northern Foods) took over.

In 2015, the company consolidated its 3 owned and 1 rented warehouses in Portsmouth to a newer larger 320,000 sq ft facility in Wolverhampton.

In 2015, Andy Bond stepped down and Brian McBride joined as chairman. McBride was formerly the CEO of Amazon UK and is the chairman of the online fashion clothing retailer ASOS.

WiggleCRC

The merger of Wiggle and Chain Reaction Cycles was announced in 2016: by this time No1 and No2 largest global online players in the cycle and tri sports product categories.

In late 2016, Stefan Barden was replaced by Will Kernan as the new Group CEO - Kernan was previously the CEO of The White Company, and before that MD and COO at New Look. In January 2019, it was stated that Kernan was to be replaced by Ross Clemmow, a former Debenhams director.

The WiggleCRC Group formed after the Competition Commission approved the merger and Wiggle bought 100% of the Chain Reactions Cycle equity from the Watson family for £62m. A key driver of synergies was the closure of CRC's Northern Irish warehouse and distribution infrastructure whose volume was integrated into Citadel in Wolverhampton; this process was concluded in December 2017.

The Wiggle and Chain Reaction Cycles brands remain distinct, with their own websites. Proforma turnover was over £360m in 2017 and Wiggle was the largest pure-play online sports retailer in Europe.

In October 2017 it was announced that WiggleCRC had bought a German competitor and market no. 2, Bike 24, for a reported £100m, giving access to German suppliers and a potential 'Brexit hedge'.

Group Proforma sales are now believed to be about £500m, and it was announced that the Bike24 brand and websites will continue alongside the Wiggle and Chain Reaction Cycles websites.

In 2018, a Chain Reaction Cycles' employee was critical of the group's actions after the merger; citing continued redundancies, shift patterns and a perceived shift of operations away from Ireland to Wolverhampton.

On 27 October 2023 a notice was published to The Gazette announcing an administrator for the Wiggle Limited business following a period where the parent company's key financial backer pulled the plug on financing. This eventually resulted in most of the staff being laid off in February 2024, and in March 2024 the brands started to operate as part of the Frasers Group alongside Evans Cycles.

References

1. ^ Tom Davidson (7 March 2024). "What the story of Evans Cycles can tell us about the future of Wiggle". Cycling Weekly. cyclingweekly.com. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
2. ^ Will Jones (21 February 2024). "'Once the warehouse is clear, it's game over' – WiggleCRC lays off almost entire workforce". Cyclingnews.com. Cyclingnews.com. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
3. Sibun, Jonathan (6 October 2010). "Wiggle thanks 'middle aged man in lycra' for record profits". ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
4. Wood, Zoe (22 October 2011). "Wiggle considers IPO as cycling becomes the new golf". the Guardian. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
5. ^ "Wiggle founder rides off". The Daily Telegraph. 2 May 2009. Retrieved 9 November 2015.
6. "2012 Annual review" (PDF). bridgepoint.eu.
7. Monaghan, Angela (18 December 2011). "'Staycations' and weak pound have boosted British trade, says Bank of England". ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
8. Zoe Wood. "Wiggle considers IPO as cycling becomes the new golf". The Observer. Retrieved 23 January 2014.
9. "Wiggle cycles to flotation or sale". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 23 January 2014.
10. Felsted, Andrea (7 December 2011). "Bridgepoint buys Wiggle for £180m". Financial Times. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
11. "What's the best online store for road cycling gear? | Cyclingnews Forum". forum.cyclingnews.com. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
12. "Wiggle and Chain Reaction Cycles are set to merge: So how did we get here and what does it all mean? | CyclingTips". CyclingTips. 15 February 2016. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
13. "Humphrey Cobbold leaves Wiggle CEO role". BikeBiz. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
14. "Wiggle appoints Brian McBride as chairman". 2 March 2015. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
15. "Wiggle and Chain Reaction merger moves closer to completion after CMA clearance - Cycling Weekly". Cycling Weekly. 30 June 2016. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
16. "Merger of Wiggle and Chain Reaction Cycles approved - MBR". MBR. 1 July 2016. Retrieved 6 June 2017.
17. "Wiggle-CRC Group partners with ReBOUND to offer tailored global returns". SHD Logistics. 20 December 2018. Retrieved 5 September 2019.
18. Leroux, Marcus (7 December 2011). "Business big shot: Will Kernan". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
19. "Wiggle poaches The White Company boss Will Kernan". Retail Week. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
20. Stevens, Ben (3 February 2017). "The White Company's boss departs for Wiggle role - Retail Gazette". Retail Gazette. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
21. "Ross Clemmow succeeds Will Kernan as Wiggle boss". Retail Week. Retrieved 1 July 2019.
22. Carey, Brian (5 November 2017). "Watson clan cycle off with €50m in cash after sell-out". The Sunday Times. ISSN 0956-1382. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
23. "Local bike shops look away now - reports of worsening losses at Wiggle are exaggerated". road.cc. 29 September 2017. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
24. "WIGGLE LIMITED - Filing history". beta.companieshouse.gov.uk. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
25. "CHAIN REACTION CYCLES LTD - Filing history". beta.companieshouse.gov.uk. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
26. "Data: Top 25 pureplay retailers by sales". Retail Week. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
27. "WIGGLE-CRC TO OFFER TAILORED GLOBAL RETURNS". Post & Parcel. 14 December 2018. Retrieved 5 September 2019.
28. "WiggleCRC acquires German rival Bike24 in reported £100m deal - Cycling Weekly". Cycling Weekly. 23 October 2017. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
29. "WiggleCRC makes £100m move on German rival Bike24". BikeBiz. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
30. "Brexit and the bicycle: What does the UK's departure from the EU mean for cycling?". Cyclist. Retrieved 28 March 2018.
31. "Wiggle-CRC rejects insider's claim of crisis at Chain Reaction Cycles". road.cc. 19 April 2018. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
32. "Wiggle Limited appoints administrator". 27 October 2023.

• Companies based in Portsmouth
• Retail companies established in 1999
• Internet properties established in 1999
• Online retailers of the United Kingdom
• Cycle retailers
• 1999 establishments in England