RE: Nokia pulls out of WiMAX ForumIs Nokia always as 'right-on' as aces high thinks he is? Or are they a bit full of themself?
Don't worry. They'll be around awhile longer; with some back pedaling.
97-Year-Old Schwinn Bicycle Co. Files for Bankruptcy
Los Angeles Times
"Schwinn missed the turn in the market to lighter, more sophisticated machines"
Schwinn Bicycle Co., whose Phantom, Sting-Ray, Varsity and other gleaming two-wheelers taught the sensation of freedom to generations of American youngsters, filed Thursday for federal bankruptcy court protection.
The venerable Chicago company, founded in 1895, owns just 7 percent o f the U.S. bicycle market compared to 25 percent during its 1950s heyday. The company said that it needs to restructure its heavy burden of debt and might need to merge with another company.
The family-owned company vowed to remain in business, and its bicycle s retain a solid, if stuffy, reputation. But Schwinn's woes were lamented across an industry that it still personifies for many Americans.
"It's a sad day for the bike world," said Mike Sinyard, owner and founder of Specialized Bicycle Components in Morgan Hill, Calif., whose 1981 "Stumpjumper" launched the mountain bike craze that has revolutionized the industry.
Edward Schwinn Jr., president and chief executive, blamed Schwinn's problems on $75 million of debt the company took on in the 1980s and said that the firm could no longer afford the debt burden in today's weak economy.
But cycling enthusiasts say that Schwinn missed the turn in the market to lighter, more sophisticated machines which helped triggered a cycling and fitness boom in the 1970s.
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Copyright 1992 by The Tech. All rights reserved.
This story was published on Friday, October 9, 1992.
Volume 112, Number 48
The story was printed on page 3.
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