JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (BRAIN) — Trek Bicycle Company has purchased longtime shop LakeShore Bicycles. LakeShore Bicycles owner Charlie Fetzer made the announcement on his Facebook page Thursday.
The Fetzer family — including Charlie's wife Cathy and brother Mark — is retiring next month after 42 years of ownership. Trek will take over after a brief closure during the transaction.
Charlie Fetzer wrote that as he considered offers to sell LakeShore, he was "committed to first looking out for others before profits." Ultimately, he made the decision to sell to Trek because it was better for the community.
"They are going to be best for the employees, and I really feel like they are going to be best for the neighborhood and the whole area," he wrote.
Founded more than 75 years ago, LakeShore Bicycles first was called King Street Bicycles, and was located on Park Street. The Fetzers' parents bought it in 1980 from the Robertson family, who had moved it to its current Blanding Boulevard location in 1969.
"I think every family on the west side at one time owned a LakeShore bicycle," Charlie wrote. "They were in every house. We've watched families grow up here, definitely grandchildren of customers are buying bikes here."
He wrote he will remain involved in the cycling community, lobbying for the industry and trying to bring more trails to the Jacksonville area.