A POPULAR bike dealership has closed down suddenly after facing “ongoing financial challenges”.
A branch of Blade Motorcycles, located on Elgin Drive in Swindon, abruptly closed its doors this week, stating it had become “unfeasible to continue”.
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The motorcycle shop, owned by the Heritage Automotive Group, was established in 1995.
The dealership represents eight motorcycle brands, including Ducati, Harley-Davidson, Honda, Suzuki, Triumph, and Yamaha.
It also served a large proportion of marques, servicing and selling bikes from many of the brands mentioned above.
The Swindon site was also the closest to another Blade Motorcycles dealership, with the Abingdon branch just 25 miles away.
Their statement read: “We want to let you know that Blade Motorcycles Swindon has now closed. This decision was not made lightly.
“While our passion for motorcycles and our dedication to serving you remain unwavering, the ongoing financial challenges of maintaining the Swindon site have made it unfeasible to continue.
“We understand this news may be unexpected, and we truly appreciate your understanding.”
Blade Motorcycles urged customers to head to other locations for servicing – with a full list of the nearest stores on their website.
These include Abingdon for Ducati owners, Abingdon and Stratford-upon-Avon for Honda riders, and Cheltenham and Stratford-upon-Avon for Triumph.
They added: “Thank you for being part of the Blade Motorcycles community. We look forward to supporting you at our other locations!”
The actual reason for the closure has yet to be confirmed beyond the cited “ongoing financial challenges”.
This comes as a car dealership in Walton, Somerset, was forced to shut its doors after some 50 years in business.
Blackdown Motor Company ceased trading after facing “extremely challenging conditions” during the festive season.
The family-run dealer closed suddenly and led to 24 staff members being made redundant just days before Christmas.
Indeed, records show that a resolution to wind up the company – which represented Subaru and South Korean brand KGM – was passed at a general meeting of the firm’s members on December 23.
This was followed by the official appointment of a voluntary liquidator on January 7.
A statement of affairs published on January 10 reveals the company closed with vehicles totalling £2.36m in value, although their finance provider liability came to £2.52m – leaving a deficit of over £150,000.
