British cycling kit brand Le Col sold to tennis giants HEAD
Former founder Yanto Barker left brand in recent months
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British cycling kit brand Le Col has been sold to American-Austrian tennis giants HEAD, it was announced on Thursday.
The clothing brand, founded by former professional cyclist Yanto Barker in 2009, will be now be run from Milan, Italy, as part of the HEAD Group's sportswear and apparel division.
HEAD is famous for its role in tennis and winter sports, with interests in skiing, swimming and diving too. Le Col was sold by private equity firm Puma Growth Partners.
"We are pleased to have exited Le Col to such a strong counterparty and believe HEAD will be a superb custodian of the Le Col brand going forward," Rupert West, Puma's managing director, said in a statement.
Last month, CW reported that Barker had left the company. The circumstances of his departure were not disclosed; however, Companies House filings show Barker resigned from his role as director on 7 October 2025.
In recent years, the business has struggled for profitability amid industry challenges. In 2022, it posted a more than £6 million loss for the year, which it followed up with a £3.4 million loss in 2023, and £2.6 million loss in 2024.
Since 2018, Le Col received support from Puma, which, to date, has put more than £15 million into the business.
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Writing in Le Col's latest accounts for 2024, published last month, new director Richard Mills said the period "continued to be a challenging year for the cycling industry, following the COVID boom in cycling".
Le Col first introduced its products to the market in 2011, and has since become one of Britain's most influential cycling brands; the company supplied to WorldTour teams in Bora-Hansgrohe and Mark Cavendish’s former Bahrain-McLaren, sponsored women's team Drops-Le Col, and partnered with Bradley Wiggins for its Le Col by Wiggins collection.
HEAD was founded in 1950, and is headquarted in Kennelbach, Austria. Alongside the HEAD brand in racquets, skis and more, the group also owns and operates Tyrolia, Mares, Aqualung, Zoggs, SSI and rEvo.
Le Col appears to be the company's first cycling brand. The press release does not specify any further changes to the brand, which designs its kit in London and manufactures it in Europe.
Adam is Cycling Weekly’s news editor – his greatest love is road racing but as long as he is cycling, he's happy. Before joining CW in 2021 he spent two years writing for Procycling. He's usually out and about on the roads of Bristol and its surrounds.
Before cycling took over his professional life, he covered ecclesiastical matters at the world’s largest Anglican newspaper and politics at Business Insider. Don't ask how that is related to riding bikes.
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