Alex Colnago steps into the limelight with ACOL

His new bike brand is a partnership with South Korean composites specialist Wiawis.

A veritable living legend in the cycling world, Ernesto Colnago casts such a big shadow – an eclipse, even – that I’d imagine it's hard to escape. His eponymous bike brand has been a constant fixture in the sport almost since its inception in 1952, and even at the ripe age of 92, he remains a towering figure with few equals.

Ernesto isn’t the only Colnago in the industry, though. There is another.

Ernesto’s nephew, Alessandro – better known as Alex – has long played a key role in the family business. Barely a year after Colnago (the bike brand) was sold to Abu Dhabi investment fund Chimera Investments, Alex Colnago is now striking out on his own with a new bike brand called ACOL, and it doesn’t sound like he’s planning to play it safe.

“If you want the best steel frame you buy a Pegoretti or a Bixxis. If you want the best carbon frame, then you buy a ACOL.”

Big shadow, yes. But also big ambitions.

A fortuitous meeting

Even someone like Alex Colnago doesn’t just manifest a new bike brand with the wave of a hand. There’s the concept, the design, the engineering, the branding, the distribution – the list goes on and on. Luckily for him, he got a head start in 2023 when he sat down with the folks from South Korean composites specialty manufacturer Wiawis.

“I met the people from Wiawis at Eurobike 2023,” Colnago told me. “We met again in August and October. I went to visit their offices in Korea and their facilities in Myanmar. Most importantly, I met the people, the family. Wiawis is very similar to the original Colnago, and we believe in the same values. I really believe I was lucky to meet them.”

Win&Win (the parent company of Wiawis) was founded in 1993 by Olympic and world champion archer Park Kyung Rae, who grew Wiawis to be the dominant brand in the sport. Wiawis expanded into the cycling market in 2014, in hopes that its carbon composites manufacturing expertise would catapult it to success with a comprehensive range that included road, MTB, BMX, and track.

As is often the case, I wonder if part of the reason Wiawis struggled to break through was due to the unusual brand name. Image: Wiawis.

That was ten years ago now, and raise your hand if you’ve heard of Wiawis bikes.

As Wiawis discovered, the bike industry can be a weird place, and it’s not always enough to let the products speak for themselves. In partnering with Alex Colnago, though, perhaps the stars will align this time around.

“I bring my international vision, my contacts, my love for the design,” Colnago said. “I bring my attention to the details. Here I don't refer to the production or the technology; there's absolutely nothing I can teach them.”

According to Colnago, the key advantage that Wiawis brings to the table is a higher level of vertical integration with respect to its manufacturing. Whereas the vast majority of brands use third-party factories to produce their frames under contract, Colnago says ACOL will be more similar to Giant – one of exceedingly few major brands that directly manufactures its own bikes under the same corporate umbrella.

“For sure [Wiawis] work differently from the other bicycle companies and this comes from both their experience as manufacturers of bows and, most important, because they really produce all the carbon frames, forks, handlebars, seatposts, etc.,” Colnago said. “Which other brands have this advantage? 99% of the brands go for the 3-D drawing and then rely on the supplier to make a quality product. Do you know who manufactures Pogačar's frame, or Van Aert’s, or Vingegaard’s,or Van der Poel’s? Having the internal production, Wiawis can keep the highest quality and go for any test and experiment they wish.”

A sleeping giant?

Wiawis may not be a household name in the cycling world, but digging a little deeper into its impressive manufacturing capabilities suggests it may be on the cusp of breaking through.

Nearly all composite frame manufacturers begin their processes with pre-preg: unidirectional or woven carbon fiber cloth that has already been infused with uncured resin. Only two major brands instead start with dry fiber and add the resin themselves: Giant and Time.

Well, maybe now make that three (depending on what you consider “major”).