The extensive depth-of-range of Wilier bikes, framesets, clothing and accessories is pretty much unrivalled by any other company. Showcasing exceptional quality Road, Commuter, Gravel and Mountain bikes, with Wilier Hybrid E-bikes liberally sprinkled across all genres, Wilier are likely to have a bike which ticks all the boxes for you.
So, where and when did Wilier begin their ride down the road to European bike industry domination…
The Beginning
The home of Wilier is in the provincial town of Bassano Del Grappa in Italy. It all began with local craftsman and shopkeeper, Pietro Dal Molin in 1906. Pietro had become fascinated with bicycles , as they were the most popular way of getting around. In Bassano, owning a Wilier bike became the height of fashion.
War Production
Wilier continued producing bikes and building their business. They survived the war years by supplying Italian Army Riflemen with bikes in WW1. Badly affected by bombing in WW2, Wilier built a new factory following the end of the war and forged ahead in the period of peace. Soon new heroes would capture the imagination of Italy’s bike riders, in the form of Fausto Coppi and Gino Bartali.
Wilier at the Races
As cycle sport on the roads of Europe flourished, Wilier soon entered into the world of sponsorship. With riders such as Fiorenzo Magni riding for Wilier in all the big races, including the Tour of Italy, the brands future looked assured. However, in 1952 Wilier didn’t get paid for a large shipment of bikes sent to South America. This on top of other business knockbacks forced Wilier to diversify into assembling motorbikes. However this proved a futile attempt to keep the business afloat, and it was forced to close its factory gates.
A New Era
The factory laid dormant for 17 years, untill two brothers, Wilier fans, bought the factory and bicycle production machinery contents. The Gastaldello brothers and bicycle salesman, Giovani Longon teamed up to re-open the factory, take on staff and get Wilier back on the road again. The early frames coming out of the reopened factory were manufactured in stainless steel, some were finished in the famous Wilier copper finish.
Road to Domination
Sponsorship once again led to Wilier becoming a well known world wide brand. In 1997 sponsorship of the Mercatone Uno team led to climbing star Marco Pantani winning TDF stages Alp D’Huez and Morzine aboard his Wilier. The Lampre team also proved a valuable advertising platform for Wilier, with the likes of Alessandro Pettacchi ensuring they were never short of media coverage through untill 2010. Up into the modern era and Wilier are prominent in the World Tour pro’ cycling peleton with their Filante SLR, Wilier 0 SLR and Wilier Turbine bikes ridden by Team Astana Qazaqstan in 2022. Wilier’s Gravel racing pedigree is also of growing importance for the brand, one of the biggest gravel races of 2022, the Unbound Gravel 200 was won by Ivar Slik riding a Wilier gravel bike.
Diversity
The latest bikes from Wilier show the incredible diversity in bike riding today. On top of a thoroughly impressive road, gravel and MTB line up, their Ebike range is also fantastic. Wilier recognised that customers don’t just want Ebikes to ride to the shops, they need to ride everywhere! The Wilier Hybrid range reflect this perfectly. The Hybrid ebikes include road, gravel, hardtail MTB and full suspension models and even flat bar road and gravel options too.
Clothing
Wilier clothing matches the same high quality as their bikes, framesets, wheelsets and everything else they produce. As well as technical race and training clothing lines, Wilier produce a wide range of leisure wear too, these are perfect for showing you appreciation of the the Italian brand.
Parts & Accessories
Spare parts and accessories are not usually taken seriously as an income stream for big bike brands. However, Wilier see the opportunity to supply quality products and they do so. From disc rotors and pads to lights, pedals, pumps, saddles and bikepacking bags – if you are looking for a bike related product, have a look at Wilier’s extensive range. They also produce some awesome wheelsets too.
Check out our full range of Wilier products here
