A Powys bike company was praised for its innovation and technology at an awards ceremony celebrating the best of Mid Wales businesses.

Family owned bike business Atherton Bikes rode off with the award for technology and innovation at the 2024 Powys Business Awards, which comes just over five years after the Machynlleth company first started.

The judges at the ceremony, held on Friday, October 4, said Atherton Bikes had taken advantage of a gap in the mountain bike market for technical innovation and secured a loyal and lasting worldwide customer base, delivering cutting edge product standards.

Dan Brown, chief executive of Atherton Bikes, said: “This is a huge award for us. It has been a long five years, but we are ready to scale up now from a start-up to an industry leader.

 

“Our bikes are already sold in 33 countries and we have big ambitions to become a global player. The business started here in Powys and it’s good to be able to support Machynlleth and surrounding area in terms of employment.”

The company was formed by siblings Dan, Gee and Rachel Atherton, who hold more than 50 mountain biking World Cup wins between them, in 2019 and now employs 14 people as they prepare to move into a new headquarters in Machynlleth.

READ MORE: Powys Business Awards 2024: Find out who the winners are

 

Throughout their careers, the Athertons were frustrated that, even at the top level of the sport, bike frames were rarely a perfect fit for the high performance level they were looking for, establishing their company to introduce new technologies to the mountain bike industry to improve the way bikes are made.

The siblings vowed that their bikes would not only be a perfect fit for all riders, but would be strong enough to guarantee a lifetime of hard use, using 3D printing of titanium lugs which are bonded to straight carbon tubes.

Gil Harris, Atherton Bikes’ head of marketing and communications, added: “From our small factory in Machynlleth, we are disrupting the MTB industry and making the global giants take note.

“Just five years after launch, we have sold 700 bikes to customers worldwide and stamped our authority on the international racing stage with seven world titles, including the first Elite World Championship win for a British bike brand.”