7Anna, parent company to NS Bikes, Creme and Rondo have filed for bankruptcy, promising continued operations whilst they seek new investment.
It appears like 7Anna have had a particularly crap time of it of late. No one thing contributing to the rocky road they’ve found themselves on but it appears have all started as Signa Sports’ owned Hotlines folded. The CRC-owned distributor was a massive customer of theirs, giving the brand access to global markets.
From there, it seems like they’ve been diddled at ever turn, but have promised to plough on supporting their current and future customers.
Read the full press release below.
“To all bike lovers and customers of Rondo, NS Bikes and Creme.
This is a difficult moment for us, so we want to speak to you honestly and openly.
On Monday, a bankruptcy petition was filed, and due to the informational hype that has appeared online, we would like to clarify that such a petition does not constitute the termination of operations or the abandonment of our brands. Anyone can file such a petition – in this case, the 7ANNA Management Board did so due to legal requirements.
The company is operating normally. We service and sell bikes, and even release new models daily. We want to support you every step of the way. We’re constantly in talks with major investors and we sincerely hope they’ll be successful – then the entire company can continue its journey. We’ll even shift into fifth gear.
The last two to three years have been incredibly difficult – the entire team has put in a superhuman effort to fight and navigate such a brutal environment. The problems began a year and a half ago when our largest client, who sold our bikes in Western Europe, went bankrupt. This left a huge hole, but we kept going. The following season, we had problems with our bank, which withheld funding from partners for several months. As a result, our bikes were not released until after the season.
Another blow came with the bankruptcy of one of our largest suppliers, Sprick, which meant we were once again left without top-of-the-line bikes. Moments later, hackers stole a huge sum by redirecting a transfer from our client to a fake account in Portugal. Literally two weeks later, our largest client received a large shipment of bikes but didn’t pay for it and simultaneously cancelled the contract for subsequent deliveries. All of this coincided with the deadline for repaying our bank loan. We couldn’t take so many blows at once and needed help and time to reorganize.
Throughout all these years, the owners and management have done everything possible to keep the company afloat—raising additional funding twice, investing heart and energy every day. Despite this, the headwinds proved so strong that we had to take this formal step to ensure the future of our brands.
We’re not giving up. We’re still operating, servicing our bikes, supporting you, our customers, and paying attention to every detail. For now, nothing changes – stores, service, and warranties are operating as usual. We’re not disappearing – we’re continuing the history of brands that have often inspired the industry. Every bike that left our company carried with it passion and uniqueness.
This is certainly not a bed of roses – we know that many of our trading partners are feeling anxious, but we assure you that we are doing everything in our power to ensure that our brands survive and continue to inspire. We believe that the capital we have built – as one of the few Polish brands recognized globally in its segment – will be appreciated.
Thank you for being with us – together we can get through this difficult time and come back stronger.“—Szymon Kobyliński, on behalf of the entire 7ANNA team