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Islabikes to halt US operations this fall to focus on bikes for EU & UK kids

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Kids’ bike specialists Islabikes is closing down their US office in Portland, OR and tapering off US operations this fall. After 5 years working from Oregon, Islabikes decided it was more constructive to focus their efforts on their home UK market and to sales through the EU.

2017 Isla Bikes premium youth disc brake mountain bikes for kids

In the meantime, a very limited remaining US stock of kids bikes are being heavily discounted, but will not be restocked. No official word yet as to the exact end date, but their excellent kids’ bikes will continue to be sold from their UK HQ.

Islabike did have a few parting comments to add after several years of engaging with parents and kids from their US operations:

We really appreciate the support from our customers over the past 5 years. Thank you for all the photos and videos of your kids enjoying their Islabikes and the emails and phone calls describing family vacations and adventures; we have so enjoyed getting to be included in those experiences.

To the kiddos: thank you for being brave, confident, sometimes scared, hilarious, charismatic, and eager to ride your bike! Thank you for asking so many questions about your bikes. Thank you for coming out to race at Kids Cross and to try out bikes in our showroom. Your excitement for riding bikes is contagious.

Islabikes.com then back to Islabikes.co.uk

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edge
edge
5 years ago

Sad to see them go. I wonder how much taxes….I mean tariffs had to do with it.

Ayyggsss
Ayyggsss
5 years ago

maybe they should open a plant in the US

Dolan Halbrook
Dolan Halbrook
5 years ago

What especially sucks is that they were big supporters of kids racing here in the Portland area. We’ll miss them.

record11
record11
5 years ago
Reply to  Dolan Halbrook

That is the tragic thing. However, Specialized, Giant, Trek, Felt and many others are not US companies (No, not even Trek in the big picture) – and they all help all over the place with grass roots and youth events. Shame to see them go, but, fact is, American kids are a crap market for anything that might possibly have an chance of sweating, bleeding, and or losing a reasonable effort at “Everyone Wins”.

Dave C
Dave C
5 years ago
Reply to  record11

I don’t understand this comment. Is your claim that youths are too soft to participate in events that have risk or might not get participation medals?!? Our local youth cycling is booming and both my kids race. That’s true on the road, CX and MTB. I’m sad Isla bikes is leaving. They made a good bike for the slightly smaller kids. Mine is riding the CX 26inch version and loves it. He’s beaten many an adult on it.

Crash Bandicoot
Crash Bandicoot
5 years ago
Reply to  record11

That’s not the reason simply the US as a cycling market clearly wasn’t viable. The infrastructure for cycling is terrible in major cities and drivers can hit and kill a cyclist without even a modest concern over jail time or major financial loss add in tariffs and a weak economy . The kids are not the problem come to my town junior development is off the charts and we see 5-10 year olds on mtb trails most full grown adults would struggle with.

James Grosser
James Grosser
5 years ago

Who peed in your cornflakes? My kid had an Islabike and is not “morbidly obese.”

Marc Smith
Marc Smith
5 years ago
Reply to  James Grosser

This is great but american kids are obese, its just a scientific reality. And now, poorer families have become more obese for the first time.

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