Brant Richards, designer and figurehead of nichey yet high-profile bike company On-One, has parted company with, er, the company. There are too many companies in that sentence, but it’s too cold for editing, so we’ll plough on.

On-One was created quite a long time ago by Brant and Planet X’s Dave Loughran, making its name with steel singlespeed frames and quirky anti-marketing marketing. Over the years it’s developed quite a broad range of stuff, including scandium and titanium frames, frames that take gears, 29ers and various other bits and bobs.

But quite a long time is a long time, especially for someone who likes changing stuff. The official press release from Planet X says that Brant was “recently headhunted by mail order company Chain Reaction”, while Brant has announced a new brand called Shedfire.

Shedfire’s design brief is “based around making bikes that can go up and downhills, around and over things, without the rider falling off too much”, with the brand launching on 1 May. Unlike On-One’s direct-to-consumer model, Shedfire products will be distributed “inside and outside Calderdale”, or as Richards puts it, “You’re going to be able to buy this stuff in, like, normal bike shops.”

“I’m spending the next couple of months either in my shed, or in Taiwan, working hard to get a lovely range of frames and components, for launch under a new brand name in early May. All being well, that brand will be available through one of the UK’s key distributors, and available to all bike shops in the country, and extending worldwide as we roll out. What I’m trying to achieve is that fast route to market, volume purchasing, great margins, all in key areas that the big brands aren’t hitting. And if that fails, I’ve got a backup plan of
going to sell odd hats and beef jerky.”

That doesn’t confirm or deny the Chain Reaction thing, although it’s worth noting that the mail order behemoth owns a key UK distributor in the shape of Hotlines, importers of such fare as Tomac and Lynskey (with whom Brant has worked before to produce On-One’s titanium frames). You can probably join the dots for yourself.

Exactly what the range will comprise is, as yet, unclear (largely because Brant himself hasn’t decided) but there’s bound to be some interesting stuff in there.

So where does this leave On-One? The brand looks set to continue, with Planet X on the lookout for a new designer to “continue to develop a quirky, interesting and fun loving brand”.

Dave Loughran said:

“This is an exciting time for On-one. We are looking for a new designer and the opportunities are out there to continue to fill a niche that big manufactures can’t see. We always said that our most successful projects were finding the ‘niche of a niche’ and that’s a tradition we’re going to continue.”

“I believe a new designer, with different ideas and a fresh look will help take On-one further along its unusual path. I am sorry that Brant is leaving and wish him every success. He has been an influential part of the team that has built a brand with strong foundations and a cult following.”

Commenting on his former role, Brant said:

“It’s just over nine ears since I ended up in the Planet X warehouse in Doncaster, and after offering to fix some mudguards I broke, in return for a singlespeed frame with a funky five piece welded wishbone that Dave had designed. I hope that on-one will continue to be known for product that fills a niche that big manufacturers can’t see. Or creating niches that people didn’t know they needed. Long live on-one!”