MAGSTADT, Germany (BRAIN) — Taiwan bike maker Merida Industry Co. Ltd. has acquired an additional 39% stake in Merida & Centurion Germany GmbH from its founder, Wolfgang Renner, for 17.3 million euros ($19.05 million). Merida already owned a 51% share in the distributor.
Merida & Centurion has been the long-time distributor of Merida-branded bikes in Germany. The company also develops and distributes Centurion bikes, once a major brand in the U.S. While Centurion was launched in the U.S. in the 1960s by Western States Import Co. (WSI), Renner has been associated with Centurion since 1976, first as its German importer. His company acquired the Centurion brand from WSI in 1990, after WSI consolidated its brands to focus on Diamondback.
In a filing with the Taiwan stock exchange Merida said it was acquiring the shares from Renner because he is approaching retirement age. Renner was inducted into the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame in Fairfax, California, in 2017 for his efforts in establishing mountain biking in Germany as a journalist and businessman.
"This plan is designed to ensure long-term, sustainable management of Merida & Centurion Germany GmbH," Merida said in its filing.
Merida, founded in 1972, has manufactured at least some Centurion models for decades. Merida also owns a majority share in Japan's Miyata bike brand and at one time owned a 49% share in Specialized Bicycle Components. That share has been reduced to 35% according to exchange filings.
As for Merida, the company had sales last year of NT$27.261 billion ($844 million at August 2024 exchange rate), down 36% from its outlier results in 2022 but in line with its pre-pandemic annual revenue figures. In 2024 so far, revenue through July was NT$18.5 billion, down less than 1 percent from the same period in 2023. The trend at mid-year was more positive, however, with June and July sales up 49% and 18% from the same months in 2023, respectively.
