Head Sport, the Austrian firm best known for its skis and tennis rackets, has acquired Advanced Sports Enterprises (ASE), the parent of Performance Bicycle and cycling brands including Fuji, SE Bikes, Kestrel, and Breezer, for $21.5 million at a bankruptcy auction.
According to Bicycle Retailer, Head agreed to purchase most of the assets, including some Performance Bicycle stores. ASE began liquidating all 102 Performance Bicycle locations about a month after filing for Chapter 11 on November 16 with hopes of relaunching the chain post-bankruptcy.
Ideal Bike, Dick’s Sporting Goods, and Moosejaw, which is owned by Wal-Mart, were also at the auction but it was unknown if they made a bid for ASE’s assets, according to Bicycle Retailer.
Earlier in January, Specialized Bicycle agreed to acquire the Roubaix bike trademark for the U.S. from ASE for $700,000. A hearing in bankruptcy court in North Carolina is scheduled for January 22 to approve both the Head and Specialized deals.
