High-end cycling distributor Saddleback has fallen into administration, resulting in 42 redundancies.
The Yate-based business, near Bristol, has closed its doors after 22 years supplying bikes, accessories and clothing to retailers across the UK.
Jonathan Dunn and Matt Whitchurch have been appointed as joint administrators to the company, which distributed a raft of premium cycling brands including Pivot, Castelli, Sportful, Silca, Abbey Bike Tools and Feedback Sports.
Dunn said the company had been hit by “increasingly difficult market conditions” in recent years.
“Our immediate priority is supporting those employees who have been made redundant and helping them access financial support,” he said.
The administrators said Saddleback’s directors had attempted to sell the business but were unable to secure a deal. The company was subsequently placed into administration.
Saddleback was founded in 2004 and had built a reputation as a distributor of prestige cycling brands in the UK market.
However, the business had suffered a series of setbacks in recent months after key brand partners moved away from the company.
ENVE, a long-standing Saddleback partner, ended its relationship with the distributor in February and switched its UK and Ireland distribution to Mohawk’s, its own European distributor. The brand also announced plans to open a UK office and showroom in Warwick.
Cannondale also parted ways with Saddleback in March, just months after joining its portfolio in January 2025.
Saddleback had described the addition of Cannondale as “transformative” in its accounts, with the brand helping lift turnover by £10 million to around £24 million in the year to January 2026.
However, Cannondale has since returned to a direct-to-dealer sales model in the UK through Pon, which also owns brands including Santa Cruz and Cervélo.
Saddleback had increased staffing levels to support the Cannondale business, but the loss of both Cannondale and ENVE left the company with costs it could no longer sustain.
Really Useful Bikes owner Rob Bushill, whose business is also based in Yate, said it was a “real shame” the company had closed.
The collapse comes amid continued pressure across the cycling sector, which has faced weaker demand and challenging trading conditions following the pandemic-era boom in bike sales.
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