Swedish action sports backpack specialist USWE Sports AB announced on June 22, 2022, that it acquired off-road motorcycle soft luggage company Giant Loop, LLC. It’s a move that both companies say makes a lot of sense—and they’re both hoping to build on each other’s strengths to reach a broader audience. 

Giant Loop’s products will now see greater global distribution through USWE’s existing network. In turn, USWE gets a built-in U.S. base of operations, through Giant Loop’s existing headquarters in Bend, Oregon. Since there’s already some overlap between existing customer bases for products produced by both companies, it seems like both of them stand to gain from this deal. 

Harold Olaf Cecil is the owner and founder of Giant Loop, and he’ll both continue to lead Giant Loop for the next couple of years, as well as become a majority stakeholder in USWE. Both companies already produce bags suited for off-road motorcycling—both for bikes, and for riders. Now, they say they intend to expand into other types of two-wheeled cycles, including e-bikes, mountain bikes, and gravel bikes. 

“Giant Loop is a perfect partner for USWE in the USA. We started our companies in the same time period, and our founders met early in each company’s history. We share similar company values, as well as product design and development vision. Our two product lines also perfectly match each other, where USWE focuses on the rider and Giant Loop focuses on the bike gear,” USWE Sports CEO Jacob Westerberg said in a statement. 

“So far, Giant Loop has been developing soft luggage for off-road and adventure motorcycles. However, we see great potential in developing bags and luggage also for e-bikes, mountain bikes and gravel bikes. The barrier between a motorcycle and a bicycle is getting more and more blurry, and we would like to provide the best available gear for the new bikes and the new riders,” he continued. 

“Giant Loop headquarters are in Bend, Oregon, an ideal location for USWE and our focus for the coming years, whether it will be on the bike, on foot or on skis. Together, we have already identified several synergies in sales, distribution and manufacturing and we are looking forward to implementing and benefiting from them. I am convinced that this acquisition will massively strengthen both Giant Loop and USWE,” Westerberg concluded. 

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