The Herd Group Holdings, parent company to apparel brand Stolen Goat, has announced the acquisition of VeloVixen following the brand’s entry into liquidation at the start of the year.
Herd Group has also added bikepacking brand Wildcat to its portfolio – seen as a natural fit as Stolen Goat reaches further into the gravel and mountain biking scene.
According to Herd Group… ‘The takeover will see the important platform that VeloVixen created for the women’s cycling market not only maintained, but grown, with a strong focus on community.’
Led by Stolen Goat CEO Tim Bland, The Herd Group Holdings has been created as the parent company for Stolen Goat, VeloVixen, Wildcat, and Bleat Creative (a newly formed boutique creative agency for the sports industry and other small businesses.)
Marketing agency Bleat Creative is led by Stolen Goat’s Head of Marketing Scott McKay, who brings over 25 years’ experience (both agency and client side) to the business. Bleat will be managing all of Herd Group’s internal brands, while also offering its in-house skill set to other small businesses in the sports industry.
Stolen Goat Founder and CEO of The Herd Group Tim Bland said “VeloVixen has supported, encouraged, empowered and inspired countless women of all ages and abilities to get involved in the sport of cycling.
“This legacy was far too important to let fade away, which is why we wanted to make sure the hard work, passion and commitment that had gone into building the VeloVixen platform didn’t to go to waste.”
Founder of VeloVixen, Phil Bingham, added “Whilst bringing 11 years of hard work to a close is never going to be easy, there is a silver lining to every cloud. We could not be more delighted that the VeloVixen brand, which has contributed so much to so many people’s lives, is to be adopted into the loving care of our friends at Stolen Goat.
“Of the many great people we’ve got to know in the cycling world, it’s the team at Stolen Goat that we’ve been closest to in recent years. They’ve helped us design and manufacture our own brand VeloVixen range and been consistently amongst our most popular external brands.
“Perhaps most importantly, they have shared passionately and sympathetically in the ups and downs of running a small business and been immensely supportive of our journey. We’ve loved working with them.
“We have total confidence that they will do justice to everything that we have created. They will no doubt help to spread the VeloVixen word further still, and bring new dimensions to our creation that we hope our existing customers will enjoy. We wish them every success and happiness in taking on VeloVixen and can’t wait to see how it goes.”
