Roadmaster Bicycles

Roadmaster Bicycles had been first introduced by the Cleveland Welding business in 1936. In 1950, after purchasing the Roadmaster distinct children's and childhood bikes from Cleveland Welding Company, AMF entered the bicycle production business along with its newly formed AMF Wheeled Goods Division. In 1953, after a labor strike, AMF relocated bike production from the UAW-organized plant in Cleveland, Ohio to a different facility in Little Rock, Arkansas. The latest plant had been greatly computerized and showcased above a mile of component conveyor belts in six individual methods, including an electrostatic spray painting operation.

Taking advantage of the increase with its target markets in the aftermath associated with the child growth, AMF managed to broaden its manufacturer product line, including fitness equipment under the name brand Vitamaster in 1950. As need for bikes continued to enhance, the company discovered the necessity for a manufacturing unit to maintain with demand. As two-wheeled bicycles increased in appeal a brand new plant ended up being integrated Little Rock, Arkansas in 1951. In 1962, the organization moved its businesses to Olney, Illinois, where it built a unique factory on a 122-acre (0.49 km2) website that will continue to be the company's major bicycle manufacturing location into the 1990s. Products produced there were children's automobiles, sidewalk bikes, model autos, tricycles, garden tractors, seat automobiles and wagons and playing field gear. The organization produced over 100, 000 tiny Mustangs for Ford Motor business late inside sixties. BMX bicycles, mopeds and do exercises bicycles were introduced inside 1970s.

After 2 full decades of consistent development, the AMF Wheel Goods Division stalled in long-distance management of a parent company bogged straight down in layers of corporate administration and marginally profitable product lines. Production high quality as well as the technical standard associated with Roadmaster bicycle line - once the pride regarding the company - had dropped to an all-time low. Bicycles made on Olney plant had been made therefore poorly that some Midwestern bike shops refused to correct them, saying that the bikes wouldn't remain fixed no matter how much work and energy was placed into them. The unit's difficulties with quality and outdoors competition were neatly summarized in a 1979 American movie, , by which identical secondhand AMF Roadmaster track bikes were utilized by competitors into the bike battle. Not surprisingly item placement, the film's protagonist expressed a decided preference for his lightweight Italian Masi road racing bicycle, deriding older people Roadmaster as a 'piece of junk'.

In 1983 AMF marketed the assets to George Nebel, the General Manager and Bob Zinnen. In 1987 the company ended up being offered to entrepreneur and merger and acquisition specialist Thomas W Itin. Itin introduced two various other investors Equitex and Enercorp, both Business developing Companies, underneath the 40 Act "BDCs" operate by Henry Fong. It changed its name to Roadmaster Industries, Inc. and placed itself because the frontrunner in the workout equipment and junior model companies. Itin and Fong took the business public through an IPO in the end of 1987. Itin and Fong obtained over 20 organizations within the sporting goods industry. Roadmaster expanded from $40, 000, 00 in unprofitable product sales to over $800, 000, 000 of very profitable sales. In sign of RDMI it moved from small limit on NASDQ to huge limit on NMS towards American stock-exchange and into the New York stock-exchange and became a lot of money 1000 business.

Assisted because of the increasing interest in hill Bikes, Roadmaster practiced a 72% increase in bicycle product sales in 1993. A bike manufacturing plant had been built in Effingham, Illinois to help keep rate using growing need. Roadmaster obtained Flexible Flyer business, whoever record goes back to 1889.

In 1997 the Roadmaster bicycle division was sold into the Brunswick Corporation. But had already become obvious that creation of low-cost, mass-market bicycles in the us ended up being not any longer viable when confronted with intense international competitors, plus in 1999, all U.S. production of Roadmaster bicycles ceased. Brunswick marketed its bike division and Roadmaster brand to Pacific pattern, which began dispersing an innovative new Roadmaster type of bikes imported from Taiwan therefore the individuals Republic of China. Pacific pattern nonetheless makes use of the Olney center for business offices so that as a product stock and distribution center.

Today the Roadmaster brand name has-been reactivated and it is basically a low-end to middle-end bicycle offered through big package stores.

References[edit]

1. Petty, Ross D., Pedaling Schwinn Bicycles: marketing and advertising Lessons when it comes to Leading Post-World War II U.S. bike Brand, Babson university, MA (2007), p. 5 Article
2. Petty, Ross D., Pedaling Schwinn Bicycles, p. 5
3. Vandewater, Judith, Vandewater, Judith, Bike Maker Is traveling once more, St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 7 July 1985
4. Breaking Away, Tesich, Steve (screenwriter), Yates, Peter (director), written by twentieth Century Fox, introduced 13 July 1979
5. Sands, David R., Chinese Bikes Ruled No Threat To U.S. Allows, The Washington Occasions, 5 Summer 1996
6. official web page redirects to . Top of page states "just offered at Walmart"