Mercian Cycles customers complained of "dysfunctional" service and other issues before bike manufacturer entered liquidation

Mercian Cycles customers raised concerns about the service of the manufacturer, several accounts of issues with orders or dealings with the company shared in the months before it entered liquidation.

Last week, we reported the news that the 78-year-old Derby-based bicycle manufacturer had ceased trading, an agency appointed to assist in the process after Mercian entered voluntary liquidation.

A source confirmed to road.cc that all employees were laid off on 3 May, the company's directors allegedly having "just crawled under a rock and let it all happen, there was nothing controlled about closing it down".

"Yes, it is sad that they have closed their doors, but a business like Mercian needed work to make it work and the current directors were hardly ever present," the source said. "This had a detrimental effect on quality, resulting in several bad reviews and expensive returns and re-works. The current directors treated the company as a cash cow and didn't move with the times."

We contacted Mercian for comment but did not receive a reply, numerous online reviews and posts on social media highlighting customers' issues with products and services in the past few years.

One review suggests a "total disaster" rebuild took twice as long as expected, the customer reporting issues with the paintwork when it did arrive.

"Not once was I given a straight answer on completion dates. I called them 24 times in total during the entire process and it got to the point where I just dreaded having to listen to the 'I couldn't care less' attitude of the two gentlemen I spoke to in the office. I was constantly being told it will be next week please call us back then and each time I called back I was given a different excuse," the customer said.

"On a positive note the rebuild was great. Just a shame that for the extremely high price I was charged the overall experience was so poor. If you want to get your bike resprayed I would suggest you go somewhere else. If I was to do it again knowing what I know now, I would most certainly have gone somewhere else."

Another customer who wrote their review at the start of the year said they "cannot put into words how dysfunctional, poorly managed and un-customer focused this company is".

"I ordered their most expensive custom frameset, a Pro Lugless44, and was very specific in what I wanted it to do. It finally arrived after a two-year wait but couldn't actually be ridden because they had built the frame incorrectly. I then had to send repeated requests for a refund. When I finally got my refund they refused to compensate me for either my 'loss and inconvenience' or for the money I had to pay my local bike shop to first build and then dismantle the bike in order to return the frameset.

"I cannot list the number of times during the whole process I sent emails or made calls requesting updates that were simply not responded to. When I did get replies there was no apology, no contrition just lame excuse after lame excuse. The frame had to be repainted once because they painted it in the wrong colour way despite being sent a graphic mock-up. I was also expected to pay for a second set of custom transfers when they placed one on upside down.

"All in all, having wanted to own a custom Mercian for the last 40 years I am now left regretting that I wasted two years of my life waiting for a product and 'custom build experience' that was completely lacking. I would strongly urge anybody looking to buy a custom bike to take their hard-earned cash and go to a company that actually cares about their product, their customer base and their professional reputation. There are now so many to choose from."

Other reviews cite issues with workshop servicing and products bought online that apparently never arrived.

The source we spoke to also said that due to the suddenness of the company ceasing trading, "there are several frames in the workshop for repair" and "to my knowledge, no owners had been contacted prior to the closure to come and get them back".

A post on the Mercian Cycles Facebook group explained how one owner, who has now got his bike back, had it in for a re-spray but had not heard anything since the company entered liquidation.

Another commenter said: "My wife bought me a £600 restoration voucher for my 50th birthday. We excitedly had an appointment booked to drop off my frame on the 19th May. We turned up to very sadly find a locked Mercian building and haven't been able to contact anyone for a refund. Extremely sad times for UK cycling firms."

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Since the news last week, there have of course also been many tributes and messages recounting positive memories and experiences with Mercian's bikes. Opus Business Advisory Group, hired to assist in the process, is "working closely with the company to help manage a controlled wind down of the business and a smooth transition for stakeholders".

The company was founded in 1946 by Lou Barker and Tom Crowther, the much praised steel frames earning plaudits as the work of one of the most skilled British manufacturers. 

The company was well-known for its superb lugs and looks, and the quite eccentric and unique barber's pole paintjob on the seat tubes. Over the years Mercian Cycles had sponsored many pro teams and riders; not only in the UK but also in America, where the brand had quite the cult following. Its frames were often custom-built, sometimes even using hand-cut lugs and were traditionally built using steel, originally Reynolds 531, though as of 2010, newer steels such as Reynolds 853 and Reynolds 953 and part-carbon construction were in use.

In 1984, the Mercian shop moved to larger premises at Shardlow Road, Alvaston, where it continued to operate from until 2019, before relocating back to its manufacturing unit within Derby.

From the original founders, the business passed to Ethel Crowther, ex-wife of founder Tom Crowther. It then passed to Mercian framebuilder Bill Betton. In 2002, Mercian Cycles was acquired by Grant Mosely and Jane Mosely.

Other notable people to have owned a Mercian include the movie star Ewan McGregor, who had a frame hand-made a few years ago, as well as famed British clothing and accessories designer Sir Paul Smith, who owns and rides several Mercian track bikes. The brand had also recently commissioned several frame colour schemes from the unique and eccentric designer.