Young's Cycles

E H ‘Ernie’ Young opened his first shop in the spring of 1946 when he was only 16 years of age ‘with the aid of two tenners loaned by his dad’.

It made a move along the road to larger premises inevitable when the business became more successful. This enterprise was advertised in ‘Cycling’ for three weeks from 26th August 1946 in which Ernie offered re-enamelling, wheel building and all repairs with an accompanying slogan ‘service to a cyclist from a cyclist’. The shop was technically in the same road as a branch of Claud Butler but that was in Lewisham town centre some three quarters of a mile away and hardly serious competition at this time. Ernie was shortly to be joined by his elder brother George who had been in the famous No.1 Commando fighting the Japanese in Burma and recently de-mobbed. George was to go on to become a highly talented and sought after wheel builder.

But it was not long before Ernie himself was eligible for National Service. However, this did not stop his cycling activities. Having left the Bellingham Wheelers he joined the league club Polehill RC and was able to act as their mechanic in the first amateur Brighton to Glasgow race in 1952 alongside the notorious Johnny Bowles and driving a 10 HP Commer van that could carry five bikes and riders as well as himself as driver. His team distinguished themselves with a second and seventh place overall. Dave Creasy remembers him driving back from Glasgow then on to the West Country where he was billeted.

Around this time Ernie was able to build his first custom-made bicycle at a cost of £21 19s 6d and began selling lightweight frames under their own name that were built by ex Gillott frame builder, Jim Collier. Unusually, frame numbers started with 116.

Ray was to get his chance to be part of the support staff for the England team in Yugoslavia in 1963 but this gallivanting came to an end when he married a year later. As Youngs gained in reputation other important developments were taking place in South London that were to have a profound effect on their future direction. In 1960 the Grandini frameset built by Bill Philbrook gained a justifiably high reputation and had been principally marketed from the late 1950s through Meridian Cycles of Forest Hill owned by Pete Benedict who according to Barry O’Leary was someone ahead of his time.

His shop at 11 Sunderland Road was adjoined to a genuine Italian style coffee bar that had pictures of cyclists’ Continental heroes plastered on the walls. (Another branch at 15 Trafalgar Road, Greenwich was run by Sam Curtis that accommodated the Metro CRC HQ in the basement). Pete was influenced by Italian frame design and was a regular visitor to the Milan Cycle Shows and well known to major manufacturers such as Emilio Bozzi at Legnano. He wanted to create a British version of the Cinelli, Bianchi and Fiorelli and achieved this principally through the development of the Grandini which had Cinelli style lugs with an extra long arrow head feature and a domed fork crown, fully flush Cinelli style sloping fork crown or barrel type used by Coppi-Fiorelli. (see photos below)

An abiding feature was the introduction of the fast-back stay with allen key fitting which was to become the symbol of the Grandini in all its guises over the ensuing years. Some enthusiasts will point to Bill Hurlow as the inventor of this feature but the Grandini may have stolen his thunder. Not content with this, Pete had manufactured his own version of the Campagnolo Gran Sport dropouts but with a screw adjuster that was purported to be a sliding block. The lugs and dropouts variously described as ‘Super Sport’ or ‘Grandini’ ends, were manufactured locally according to Dave Creasy.

Ray Young remembers some of them having mudguard eyes, some not. Two prototypes of the Grandini were made by Harry Healy who had apparently been a frame builder at Paris but all subsequent ones were built by the legendary Bill Philbrook. These prototypes were taken to Italy and so impressed them that large orders would have followed until it was known that only one man was making them at the back of the shop in South London or at Gillingham in Kent.

Other marques were also created with their own Continental features that were called the Meridian and Metro. These were advertised alongside their French and Italian counterparts during an intensive advertising campaign in the ‘Sporting Cyclist’ between 1960 and 1961

The Olympic seal of approval was given to the Grandini when one was ridden at Rome in 1960 by the Trinidadian rider Clyde Rimple. (see photo below left). Despite these accolades the firm did not last long. At this time Youngs had a similar advertising campaign with the slogan ‘The Largest “Single” Display in London.’ with 100 lightweight cycles in their walk around showroom.

They had marketed their own series of high quality frames built by Wally Green from around 1956/7. Costing from 10 guineas for the ‘Marksman’, made with Nervex Pro lugs through to 18 guineas (£18. 18s .0d) for the ‘Continental’ and ‘Aggressor’ models that had Italian style lugs, there was also a track model, the ‘Piste’. All were built in 531 tubing.

However, their most expensive model that had hand cut curly and fleur de lys lugs, called the ‘Trophy’ cost as much as 19 guineas (£19. 19s 0d) with chrome.(see photo left) A complete bike such as the ten speed Marksman with Campag gears and Mafac brakes could be purchased for as little as £34-10-0d (see image of catalogue below).

After Wally Green’s business went into decline, by the 1970s Youngs turned to Holdsworth (Holdsworthy Co. Ltd) to supply their ‘run of the mill’ frames with the exception of the ‘Grandini’. One supposes that the special lugs and ends had ran out by the mid 1970s and although still a fine frame it lost its uniqueness and began to look like many other frames of the period. The abiding feature being the fastback (or shot-in) stays with allen key binder bolt had by now become ubiquitous. Perhaps less prestigious, the Meridian and Metro marques were phased out.

290 Lee High Road continued to be the main address and expanded to include the shop next door (288) (previously a Hairdressers), as well as 284 that was used solely as a showroom. With the Sydenham branch long gone, Ray managed another branch in Trafalgar Road, Greenwich at the corner of Hoskins Street opposite Maze Hill and then moved to 107 and 109 Trafalgar Road a few doors down the road.

By the mid 1980s this branch closed and another premises was purchased at Coney Hall, West Wickham Kent that had previously been the bike shop of Harry Rolands (Harry ‘O’) who was renowned for his wheel building skills. Ray eventually bought the shop outright and continued to run it until he retired in 2004. George had left the business in the 1980s to run a garden centre in Cornwall. The Lee High Road address had been passed to Ernie’s son Stephen then sold off in the 1990s. It is now owned by the Stephens family and ex Holdsworth manager, Bob Donnington can often be seen behind the counter. Ray’s departure marked the end of an era for this great South London marque after a run of almost 60 years but the shop still trades as Youngs Bikes under the management of Martyn Green who specialises in of all things, the Raleigh Chopper, surely an incongruity for the lightweight fan.

Ernie very kindly gave me the few photos he had of the shops in their heyday. He also sent me a copy of a late 1960s catalogue taken from an original in poor condition. Unfortunately the frame books were mislaid during a move. More recently Peter Paine has provided me with a brochure of their models, which is probably from the early 1960s but does not show the Sydenham address. I would like to acknowledge the help given to me by Ernie Young, Ray Young, Dave Creasy, Brian Redfern, Graham Brice, Griff King Spooner, Dave Burwood, Barry O’Leary, Bob Drake and all those who took the trouble to send me photos of their bikes. Sadly, George Young passed away in February 2010 aged 86 .

It is with regret we learned that Ernie passed away in February of 2015.  The end of an era.