Haibike changes hands and survives: what happens now to warranties and technical support?

The disintegration of Accell Group continues to leave consequences for some of the most well-known cycling brands. Haibike and Winora have found a buyer that will allow them to maintain their activity, although at the cost of dozens of layoffs. Meanwhile, Ghost still lacks a solution and Lapierre is trying to secure its survival after being forced to withdraw from the XCO World Cup and end its sponsorship in the WorldTour.

DuTech buys Haibike and Winora and ensures their continuity

Three months after the start of the crisis that ended Accell Group, two of its main German brands already have an exit. Bike Tree GmbH, a company belonging to the Singaporean group Tri Star/DuTech, has signed an agreement to acquire Haibike and Winora, along with a significant portion of the assets of Winora Staiger GmbH.

The operation was formalized on October 29, the same day the Schweinfurt court officially opened the insolvency proceedings for Winora Staiger. According to the statement from the restructuring officials, the sale includes the rights to both brands, bicycles and stored components, certain equipment and facilities, and the technical and commercial know-how necessary to continue operations.

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This is not the purchase of the entire company, but rather an asset acquisition that will allow Bike Tree to continue the business from Sennfeld, Germany. The agreement has the backing of the representatives of the bankruptcy proceedings and its final execution is expected for early November, once the pending conditions are met.

However, continuity will come at a significant labor cost. Of the 187 employees that Winora Staiger had when the proceedings began in August, 87 will keep their jobs and another 73 will be laid off. Seven vocational training positions will also be maintained.

DuTech recovers part of the cycling empire it tried to buy before its fall

Behind Bike Tree is DuTech, a technology group based in Singapore that had previously attempted to acquire Accell Group before its collapse. That operation was never completed, but the subsequent crisis has allowed the buyer to return and acquire various parts of the former conglomerate.

In fact, the purchase of Haibike and Winora adds to other recent operations. During October, DuTech also acquired assets from Accell in the Netherlands, including businesses linked to brands such as Batavus, Koga, and Babboe, as well as industrial facilities and activities in Hungary. On the other hand, Sparta has ended up in the hands of Tenways.

The result is a partial reconstruction of Accell's business under different owners. DuTech is once again assembling a considerable portfolio of European brands, although it has not recovered the entirety of the former group.

For Haibike, especially known for its e-MTBs, the operation opens a new chapter after months of uncertainty. However, concrete plans for its upcoming ranges, planned investments, or the organization of its future commercial network have not yet been communicated.

Ghost continues without a buyer and Lapierre struggles to survive in France

The situation for Ghost is quite different. The German brand is out of the agreement with Bike Tree and continues without an announced buyer.

Its bankruptcy proceedings, like those of Engelbert Wiener Bike Parts, were opened on November 1, according to information published by the German specialized media RadMarkt on November 2. So far, no operation has been known to guarantee the continuity of both companies.

The future of Lapierre, another of Accell's historic brands, has also not been resolved. The French company initiated a judicial reorganization procedure in August to try to maintain its activity independently after the fall of its parent company.

The Dijon court subsequently authorized the opening of an observation period that allows Lapierre to continue operating while it works to find an investor. Its CEO, William Perrier, acknowledged at that time that this decision did not mean the company was saved, but it did give it time to try to build a future.

In his statements about the search for a new investor, Perrier summarized the situation by stating that they had achieved an opportunity and that it now depended on them to turn it into a definitive solution.

For the moment, the purchase of Haibike and Winora does not change Lapierre's situation, which continues with its own judicial process in France.

The Accell crisis has already claimed an XCO World Cup team and reached the WorldTour

The financial difficulties of Accell have not been limited to its factories, employees, and distributors. Their consequences have also directly affected professional cycling.

One of the most important decisions came in early September when Lapierre confirmed the suspension of funding for the PXR Racing team. The lack of liquidity forced an immediate halt to the XCO World Cup program, turning the Les Gets event into the last race of the structure.

The team, previously known as Ghost Factory Racing, included riders such as Nicole Koller, Anne Terpstra, Caroline Bohé, Anton Cooper, and Tobias Lillelund. Lapierre explained that it had to concentrate its resources on maintaining business activity, serving its customers, and seeking funding, so it could not continue to bear the costs of competition.

The brand did not rule out a possible return to elite MTB, but conditioned any new project on the arrival of an investor and the availability of a specific budget.

The impact has even reached road cycling. The Picnic PostNL has also been affected by Lapierre's problems, its bicycle supplier since 2025.

The Dutch team had planned to maintain its agreement with the French brand until 2028, but the economic situation has hastened its premature end. This has forced the team to seek a new manufacturer for 2027 and has caused delays in the necessary documentation to process its continuity in the WorldTour.

Picnic PostNL assured that it had already identified an alternative, although it had not yet officially announced which bicycles it would use next season.

Thus, the fall of Accell has ended up affecting two of the main competitive modalities of cycling: it has left an XCO structure out of the World Cup and complicated the planning of a top-tier road team.

What will happen with warranties and technical support?

The acquisition of Haibike and Winora also raises doubts among the owners of their bicycles, especially regarding commercial warranties, spare parts, and technical assistance.

The statement regarding the operation does not specify whether Bike Tree will assume the voluntary warranties of the manufacturer corresponding to bicycles previously sold by Winora Staiger. As this is an asset acquisition, that responsibility cannot be assumed without an express communication from the new owner.

In Spain, new bicycles purchased since January 1, 2022 generally come with three years of legal warranty, for which the seller is responsible to the consumer. Therefore, the insolvency of the manufacturer does not automatically mean the disappearance of this right.

It has also not yet been detailed how the supply of specific spare parts for previous models will be organized, a particularly relevant issue for electric bicycles that use components unique to each brand.

The purchase of Haibike and Winora represents one of the most significant advances in the distribution of Accell Group's assets. But the crisis is far from being resolved. While both German brands prepare for a new stage under DuTech, Ghost continues to seek a solution and Lapierre is still trying to ensure its survival after having to sacrifice a good part of its presence in professional competition.