The news is no longer simmering, it is boiling over. Kinesis, the Taiwanese parent company of Mountain Cycle has decided to chart a new course for the local bike brand. The future of the brand is still up in the air, but my sources tell me that it will not include Portland. So that’s the end of Mountain Cycle as we know it.
Kinesis gave employees a days notice before letting them go. Only one employee remains at their “dead” offices on North Williams Street, and he is there to liquidate remaining inventory.
There’s been a lot of speculation about what extent the Specialized saga played into Mountain Cycle’s demise. Many people in the community are jumping to the conclusion that Specialized caused this to happen. That is definitely not the case. I know for a fact that Kinesis and Specialized are currently negotiating an amicable settlement to the case. I also know that this settlement may include Mountain Cycle changing the name of their Stumptown cyclocross bike to “Stumptown OR”. This is an agreement that both sides seem to be cool with but an official agreement has yet to be signed.
Why does the Specialized situation matter now that Mountain Cycle is no longer? Well, Kinesis just wants to clear up any doubt about the legal situation so as not to scare away potential buyers of the Mountain Cycle brand.
I will keep you informed of any further developments.