04-05-2025
Is Revel Being Rescued?
The mountain biking world was stunned when Revel Bikes announced on April 17 that it was going out of business. With no prior hint of problems and on the heels of the release of its new Ritual downhill rig and ReRun eMTB, the news shocked the bike industry and customers when Revel sent a letter to dealers informing them of the Carbondale-based company's closing.
"There is no easy way to say this. Revel Bikes as it currently stands is closing its doors. Regrettably, though we have tried every avenue possible, we have exhausted all options and run out of funds to support the business. This decision comes at a critical juncture for our capital requirements, and we cannot weather this one alone. Our circumstance is tough, though not unique in the market, with product delays, significant payments coming due and a very soft market. We are on the ledge and we lost our safety net as a result of continued losses with no end in we have transferred responsibility of the business to the Bank, which currently holds the senior debt position. Unfortunately, their position and that of other senior creditors is such that there is unlikely to be any remaining funds for unsecured creditors, with over $8MM in secure credit. We are now in an orderly wind down. What does that mean? We will do our best with a limited number of people to liquidate the remaining assets that Revel has. Beyond that, I honestly do not know. What I do know is that you all deserve better than this, I am sorry that it got this far. I will do whatever I can to support you as this unfolds.I want to be open to the potential that Revel could be revived to a bigger and brighter future if a new owner comes in while we are going through the wind-down process. This is a talented team with a great brand, someone might want to buy out the debt and see this through. That said, I must be realistic and transparent with all of you – I do not know what will happen from here and we are going to have limited time. Take care of yourself and your teammates, do what is right for you and I will do whatever I can to for being a part of what we built. The Team at Revel gave it their all—we have you to thank for a lot of this. We hope to cross on the trail soon."Ben + Matt + The Revel Bikes Team.
But hope for Revel was sparked this week when CEO Ben Coates posted on LinkedIn a farewell letter that contains a bombshell bit of information that hints at new ownership for the brand:
While we're sad to see Coates leave the industry (but happy to think that he's going to have a lot more time to actually ride bikes), we're also cautiously stoked to see that the excellent brand that is Revel may live to ride another are no other clues as to who may be acquiring this small Colorado company, but we hope if true the new owners put as much passion and quality into the Revel brand as Coats and his team have. will keep on top of this developing story out of both professional duty and our obsessive love of Revel Bikes. Cross your fingers and stay tuned...
