Almost two years have passed since Moto Morini ran into serious financial trouble and began looking for a way to continue building motorcycles – the last chance at this fell apart in the middle of 2010. Finally, it seems that Moto Morini may have found a savior.
Moto Morini Purchased
After numerous false starts and Internet rumors, Moto Morini's name, intellectual property (IP) and all associated assets have been purchased by a concern which is run by Italian entrepreneurs Ruggeromassimo Jannuzzelli and Sandro Capotosti and is known as Eagle Bike. The final price is rumored to be €1.96 million (~US$2.8 million), but this did not include theBolognaoperations plant and factory most recently used by Moto Morini.
Of course, the fact that the building which housed Moto Morini production is not part of the deal has many wondering just where the Eagle Bike group will set up shop. Anyone watching the Italian motorcycle industry with any interest has seen that it is not an inexpensive proposition to build bikes in the southern European nation. In fact, in just the last year, both Ducati and MV Agusta have announced plans to open production lines in Asia andSouth Americato help them sell more product in those parts of the world and still have some money to take home. Moto Morini has no home anymore...
Moto Morini's Wild Ride
The Italian marque had a long path getting to this point during the last couple of years since officially filing for "liquidation" in late 2009. Moto Morini seemed to be confused about how to announce the situation by first announcing the bankruptcy and then quickly retracting much of it and saying they would continue to produce motorcycles and sell parts. Perhaps they were hoping for a buyer to quickly step in? We don't know, but a buyer finally did step up in summer of 2010 - Paolo Berlusconi, brother of Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi – but it fell apart as quickly as it began.
Shortly after that failed attempt, Moto Morini announced that the company would be put up for auction in a final attempt to keep everything together and give the marque a future. The original amount they expected to sell for sat at €5.5 million for the company as a whole, but only €2.6 million for IP, names and assets without land. At that offering price there were no suitors, and things looked bleak. Thus, a new price was set at €4.65 million for everything, and only €1.96 million for the core of Moto Morini – Eagle Bike jumped in and took the latter deal.
Eagle Bike's Buy
Eagle Bike was formed rather quickly just ahead of the sale and only submitted their bid for Moto Morini the very afternoon before the evening auction was held. Behind Eagle Bike, though, are two newcomers to the motorcycle industry. The company owners come from fairly disparate occupations, but similar roles; Capotosti most recently held the position of President of the Milan Investementbank Banca Profilo, and Jannuzzelli was Managing Director of the publishing house Camuzzi. Obviously, though, they share a deep love for Italian two-wheelers, and have come across as absolutely dedicated to the revival of Moto Morini as a manufacturer of legendary bikes.
The Moto Morini purchase is not yet finalized, though, as theItalian Courtwill need to process the deal and ensure due diligence is done, documents signed, and keys handed over. Since the entire nation ofItalyis currently on vacation as is normal, it will be a while before things settle down and the story behind the story becomes available. Though you are certain to be tired of hearing the same old refrain, Moto Morini is still a work in progress, so Stay Tuned...
