TWO former employees of the popular Speeds Cycles store have opened their own bike shop in Bromsgrove, after being overwhelmed by customers' support when the branch closed down.

Former Speeds Cycles manager Hannah Smith and mechanic Owen Hazlewood moved to Darlington shortly before the shop, which had been in Bromsgrove since 1911, closed its doors in September last year.

But the couple decided to move back and open their own store after being inundated with messages from local riders asking where they could go for their cycling needs.

Academy Bikeworks, based at Basepoint Business Centre, officially opened on Saturday, September 8, offering bike repair services and selling consumable parts.

Manager Hannah said: "Owen and I are delighted to be back in Bromsgrove and in a position to once again provide a service for the local cycling community.

"When Speeds closed down it had a massive impact local riders, and despite not having worked at Speeds for some time and being over 200 miles away lots of Speeds customers got in touch with us, telling us how sorry they were to see Speeds closed and how worried they were about where they could take their bikes for future servicing needs.

"It means the world to us that local riders can now come back to us, to have their bike serviced by a team that they can trust."

The shop is not stocking cycle accessories at this time.

Academy Bikeworks is open Tuesday to Friday between 9am and 5.30pm, and from 9am to 5pm on Saturday.

For more information call the shop on 01527 903677 or visit academybikeworks.co.uk.