Halfords to honour Wiggle Chain Reaction warranties on parts and accessories

Halfords and Tredz have announced support for Wiggle Chain Reaction customers following the online retail giant entering administration and being put up for sale, with Halfords pledging to honour warranties on parts and accessories.

The news, first reported by Cycling Industry News, was announced by Halfords chief executive Graham Stapleton who said his company has a "responsibility to support the whole market" and that where possible customers who bought parts and accessories with Wiggle Chain Reaction would have their warranties honoured.

Tredz has also said it will offer Wiggle+ customers a voucher worth £15 to cover the £15 fee for Wiggle's premium service that offers unlimited, free next-day delivery and returns.

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Halfords is the UK's largest cycling retailer, with more than 30 per cent of the market alongside Tredz, chief executive Stapleton highlighting the "responsibility" of the "leading cycling retailers to support the whole market".

"The cycling market is fundamentally sound and is ahead of where it was in 2019, but the extraordinary distortion caused by the pandemic and the volatility of the past three years has resulted in the closure of many independent bike shops, and now we are seeing large online retailers calling time too," he said.

"We pledge that across Halfords and Tredz there is always a full range of children's, adult and speciality bikes available, plus parts, accessories and clothing."

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In September, we reported that cycling sales were down at Halfords as the retailer shifted its focus to car repairs amid a cycling-related sales slump of 2.7 per cent during the 20 weeks to 18 August, with cycling representing just 25 per cent of the company's business.

In June, Stapleton said the company remains "very confident" about the cycling market, despite the UK's largest retailer of cycling products and services suffering a 55 per cent fall in pre-tax profits as the bike industry continued to struggle due to inflation and the cost-of-living crisis.

The support for Wiggle Chain Reaction customers comes after the company entered administration and announced 105 redundancies as administrators attempt to find new buyers for the beleaguered cycling retailer, with reported interest from Mike Ashley's Frasers Group.

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In September, Wiggle Chain Reaction was reported to have recorded £97 million losses, blaming Brexit, Covid and economic uncertainty. A month later and things got worse, Wiggle Chain Reaction's parent company Signa Sports United losing a €150m funding commitment from its parent company, thrusting subsidiaries into uncertainty.

Signa Sports United then closed its United States offices and filed for insolvency, unable to continue without the funding commitment, Wiggle Chain Reaction entering administration on October 27.