G. Ērenpreis Bicycle Factory
| Industry | bicycles |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1927 |
| Founder | Gustavs Ērenpreis |
| Defunct | 1942 |
| Headquarters | Riga, Latvia |
Gustavs Ērenpreis Bicycle Factory (Latvian: Gustavs Ērenpreis velosipēdu fabrika) was a manufacturer of bicycles and bicycle parts in Riga, Latvia. The factory was founded in 1927 and continued in private operation until 1942. Prior to World War II it grew to become the largest and most important bicycle factory in Baltic states. After the war, the factory was nationalized by the Soviet Union and became the largest bicycle factory in the Latvian SSR as the Red Star Riga Bicycle Factory.
From the beginning of 20th Century cycling was a very popular and fast growing sport in Latvia, leading to a strong and highly competitive bicycle manufacturing industry in that country.
The Gustavs Ērenpreis Bicycle Factory was established in 1927 by master Latvian bicycle manufacturer Gustavs Ērenpreis (1891-1956).
Ērenpreis' path to establish his own factory was long and complicated. In 1907 he started to work at the Eduards Bērziņš bicycle workshop in Riga, which produced bicycles and repaired and sold English Triumph and Douglas motorcycles in the Baltic states. During World War I the workshop was evacuated to Harkov.
In 1921, following the end of the war, Ērenpreis launched his own workshop, where in the first years he repaired and sold abandoned military transport of the Bermont army. He moved into manufacturing the following year as the "G. Ērenpreis Motorcycle and Bicycle Workshop", where he manufactured his own first bicycles under the "Baltija" label.
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