GRAND RAPIDS, MI (BRAIN)—Tom and John Black, brothers and partners in Velocity Rims, will begin manufacturing in Jacksonville, Florida, in February 2012. Velocity’s current production facility in Brisbane, Australia, will cease operations by the end of this month.
“Tom Black, the founder of Velocity, will be relocating from Australia to Florida where he will continue to oversee rim production at Velocity’s new factory,” said Adam Lorenz, Velocity USA’s director of advertising and marketing in a press release . Lorenz said the move will make Velocity the only U.S.-produced cycling rim.
Velocity’s distribution center will continue to operate out of Grand Rapids, Michigan, as it has since 1992. With the manufacturing plant relocating to the United States, the Grand Rapids distribution center will become the company’s worldwide headquarters. The Australian facility will remain as a distribution center for the Asian and Australian markets.
The move also will allow the company to respond quicker on custom orders, a big part of its business, according to John Black, president of Velocity Worldwide.
