David Millar’s clothing brand CHPT3 has been saved by the founder of Factor bikes, Rob Gitelis, after the firm entered 'voluntary liquidation' last December.
Millar, 48, became brand director at Factor in January after what appeared to be the end of his clothing brand. However, in an email update circulated by CHPT3 on Thursday evening he said the company would now continue.
"I remember my final team dinner as a pro cyclist, at the 2014 Vuelta a España in Santiago de Compostela," Millar wrote, "I stood up and gave a speech, I concluded it with the biggest learning from my career, 'Never give up.' I suppose I'd taken that into the real world and figured it would be equally applicable there."
He continued: "I've learnt these past few years that sometimes giving up is the hardest, and often the bravest, and occasionally, the only thing to do. One thing is certain, there will never be a chapter four. Rob Gitelis, founder of Factor, stepped in and rescued CHPT3."
Millar regularly wrote blogs, articles and other pieces for his own brand which were distributed via email to subscribers. He said his new role at Factor enabled him to continue to do similar work for his new employer.
As well as designing clothes, CHPT3 also successfully collaborated with Brompton bikes on a new design and also began producing shoes before their initial demise.
"For me things are good, I've taken a break from CHPT3 and am loving my new job as Brand Director at Factor, it's allowed all the things I learnt in my decade of being a jack-of-all-trades entrepreneur to find a home," Millar continued. "Rob and his team have placed a confidence in me that I don't think any other company or brand would have done, after all, I have no CV.
"One of the things I enjoyed most at CHPT3 was being able to share my cycling adventures, through diaries and blogs, and Factor has given me the opportunity to do even more of these. I've been cut loose and become part of a team who will help me create whatever I want to tell the Factor story across emails, videos, podcasts, blog posts. It's a ton of fun.
"I'll be sharing these with you from Factor going forward. If you love bikes, you'll love Factor. Stay tuned, there are some exciting things in the pipeline from CHPT3 and Factor."
"CHPT3 - back to the future. There are exciting things to come, yet for now the Transit Shoes will be our focus - they were the crowning achievement of CHPT3 when it comes to product, years of R&D, they are ground breaking in every way," Millar wrote. "In many ways, the Transit shoe is the ultimate representation of that vision I had for CHPT3, combining the same care and attention to not only the aesthetics that mattered to me as a racer, but the performance."
"The Brompton relationship remains. Will Butler-Adams and I remain great friends, we are yet to hatch plans, what we'll do next is undecided, although now the dust has settled we’ll put our heads together as the collaboration was one of the bedrocks of CHPT3," he added.
"Brompton opened my eyes to a whole new cycling world, when founding CHPT3 in 2015 I knew nothing about urban cycling, that world was as far removed from me as the Tour de France was to commuters. I didn't consider the two worlds having any commonality, I was a racer, they were commuters, and never the twain shall meet."
