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39-518: Brompton Bicycle Limited , trading as Brompton , is a British manufacturer of folding bicycles based in Greenford , London. The Brompton folding bicycle and accessories are the company's core product, noted for its self-supporting compact size when stored. All available models of the folding bicycle are based on the same hinged frame and 16-inch (35×349 mm) tyre size . Components are added, removed, or replaced by titanium parts to form

78-810: A commissioner on the UK Commission for Employment and Skills . Butler-Adams has been a member of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (MIMechE) since 1993 and a Fellow ( FIMechE ) since 2014. He qualified as a Chartered Engineer (CEng) in 2001 and has been a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society since 2013. He was appointed Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2015 New Year Honours . Butler-Adams married Sarah Georgina MacIntyre in 2004 and has three daughters. His recreations include aviation (he holds

117-420: A DBA must be registered with a local or state government, or both, depending on the jurisdiction. For example, California, Texas and Virginia require a DBA to be registered with each county (or independent city in the case of Virginia) where the owner does business. Maryland and Colorado have DBAs registered with a state agency. Virginia also requires corporations and LLCs to file a copy of their registration with

156-467: A DBA statement, though names including the first and last name of the owner may be accepted. This also reduces the possibility of two local businesses operating under the same name, although some jurisdictions do not provide exclusivity for a name, or may allow more than one party to register the same name. Note, though, that this is not a substitute for filing a trademark application. A DBA filing carries no legal weight in establishing trademark rights. In

195-469: A combined rear fold and suspension design. During riding, the main frame and the rear triangle intersect at a rubber block which provides suspension. The suspension block is kept in compression by the rider's weight. There is no suspension for the front wheel, although the titanium forks of the Superlight versions provide a small amount of spring. In 1976 Andrew Ritchie founded the company, named after

234-408: A record monthly turnover of just under £1 million; the employees were rewarded with fish and chips . In the same month, the company stated that it was hoping to continue a 25% rate of growth; partially enabled by switching to just-in-time stocking for some of the parts being sourced from suppliers, and by having those suppliers hold the stock until it is needed rather than parts living for periods at

273-600: A wine merchant. David's father was Derek Butler-Adams (1908–1996). David's mother was Beatrice Margaret Baker (1911–1994), the latter by whom William David Butler-Adams is related to Anglican priest Robin Griffith-Jones , cricket enthusiast Nigel Baker and British politician Peter Baker . Butler-Adams was educated at Aysgarth School in Yorkshire and Rugby School from 1987 to 1992 in Warwickshire . He

312-446: Is 349 mm (13.7 in), carrying tyres with 16″ tread diameter. The handlebars and some peripheral components are aluminium. A Brompton bicycle uses over 1,200 individual pieces, many of which are specific to Brompton. As of 2024 the combinations allow one-, two-, three-, four-(P and T line versions), six-speed or twelve gearing options to be factory-fitted, with higher or lower gearing available as an option. The Brompton uses

351-667: Is called a razón social . Will Butler-Adams William David Butler-Adams (born 11 May 1974 in London) OBE FRGS is the managing director of Brompton Bicycle Limited a manufacturer based in the United Kingdom and Brompton Bike Hire Limited a provider of bicycle-sharing systems . Butler-Adams was born in London, the last of four children of Rosalie, daughter of Major General William Pat Arthur Bradshaw and David Bernard Butler-Adams (b. 1939),

390-424: Is too similar to a name that is already registered. Using one or more fictitious business names does not create additional separate legal entities. The distinction between a registered legal name and a fictitious business name, or trade name, is important because fictitious business names do not always identify the entity that is legally responsible . Legal agreements (such as contracts ) are normally made using

429-481: Is used, among others, such as assumed business name or fictitious business name . In Canada , " operating as " (abbreviated to o/a ) and " trading as " are used, although " doing business as " is also sometimes used. A company typically uses a trade name to conduct business using a simpler name rather than using their formal and often lengthier name. Trade names are also used when a preferred name cannot be registered, often because it may already be registered or

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468-588: The Brompton Oratory , a landmark visible from his bedroom workshop where the first prototypes were built. At the time he was working as a gardener. Ritchie obtained backing from friends and sought to license the design, but after five years began manufacturing the bicycle design himself. Production ground to a halt in 1982 after which Ritchie continued to explore possibilities for continued manufacturing whilst undertaking other jobs. Finally in 1986, again with backing from friends and former customers, enough

507-466: The United Kingdom , there is no filing requirement for a "business name", defined as "any name under which someone carries on business" that, for a company or limited liability partnership, "is not its registered name", but there are requirements for disclosure of the owner's true name and some restrictions on the use of certain names. A minority of U.S. states, including Washington , still use

546-526: The 2003 Eurobike trade show, Neobike exhibited their—now unsanctioned—clone of the Brompton, offering it to potential dealers within Europe. Neobike-produced copies of the Brompton bicycle were then imported into The Netherlands branded as the "Scoop One" and "Astra Flex V3". Later, Neobike's interests in its copy-bicycle business were transferred to an entity called Grace Gallant Enterprises, for sale under

585-576: The Brompton case this included the M-style handlebars, curved main frame tube and the cable-placement. Each of these were noted to be distinctive design decisions that another manufacturer could change without compromising the ability to create a functional folding bicycle. Such a level of perceived similarity was therefore likely to cause "confusion in the market" under the Dutch copyright law , Article 13. Neobike did not choose to appeal and Brompton Bicycle

624-666: The Brompton factory. The company was awarded The Queen's Award for Export in 1995. In the Queen's Birthday Honours of 21 April 2010, the company was awarded two Queen's Awards for Enterprise , in the Innovation and International Trade categories. This was the second time Brompton had won the International Trade Award, they first received it in 1995. It is very rare for a company to receive two of these awards in one year. Will Butler-Adams , Managing Director,

663-591: The East Asia market under the Flamingo and MIT brand names. Later iterations of the clones had their frames made of aluminium, rather than the steel frame of the originals. Following the expiry of the Brompton patent, Brompton Bicycle's legal actions against Neobike/Grace Gallant have all been brought on the basis of copyright - and industrial design-law . A court case was held at the Groningen civil court in

702-593: The Netherlands on 24 May 2006, which ruled that the industrial design of the Brompton folding bicycle was protected by copyright. Additionally, the Neobike-provided manual had included direct copies of those drawings found in the Brompton user manual. The Brompton Bicycle Limited v Rijwielbedrijf Vincent Van Ellen BV ruling held that there was creative flexibility in the design for a bicycle beyond those choices made purely for functional reasons; in

741-418: The U.S., trademark rights are acquired by use in commerce, but there can be substantial benefits to filing a trademark application. Sole proprietors are the most common users of DBAs. Sole proprietors are individual business owners who run their businesses themselves. Since most people in these circumstances use a business name other than their own name, it is often necessary for them to get DBAs. Generally,

780-427: The age of 28, following a serendipitous meeting with the company's chairman, Tim Guinness, on a coach journey. At Brompton, he was promoted to director in 2006 and managing director (aka CEO) in 2008. Since 2002, Brompton has increased in size by an order of magnitude, from around 27 employees to over 200 employees while turnover has increased from around £2 million to £25 million. As of 2016 he serves as

819-456: The brand "Flamingo". Between 2004 and 2010, several batches of copies were imported into the European market: into the United Kingdom under the name "Merc", into Belgium, and into Spain as the " Nishiki Oxford". Taiwanese-manufactured clones bear the model numbers FL-BP01-3/FL-BP01-7 standing for Flamingo, "Best Persuader", 3-speed/7-speed. As of 2014, Grace-Galant continue to make clones for

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858-407: The business. Numbered companies will very often operate as something other than their legal name, which is unrecognizable to the public. In Chile , a trade name is known as a nombre de fantasía ('fantasy' or 'fiction' name), and the legal name of business is called a razón social (social name). In Ireland , businesses are legally required to register business names where these differ from

897-534: The county or city to be registered with the State Corporation Commission. DBA statements are often used in conjunction with a franchise . The franchisee will have a legal name under which it may sue and be sued, but will conduct business under the franchiser's brand name (which the public would recognize). A typical real-world example can be found in a well-known pricing mistake case, Donovan v. RRL Corp. , 26 Cal. 4th 261 (2001), where

936-641: The franchise contract had been "under review", there having been quality issues with the Asian-built Brompton bicycles. Euro-Tai and Neobike failed to return the Brompton-specific tooling loaned by Brompton Bicycle. One week later after the expiration of the official licensing agreement Euro-Tai sold its controlling stake in Neobike to YTE Manufacturing, an aluminium supplier that was already involved with producing frames for Neobike. At

975-402: The law is to protect the public from fraud, by compelling the business owner to first file or register his fictitious business name with the county clerk, and then making a further public record of it by publishing it in a newspaper. Several other states, such as Illinois , require print notices as well. In Uruguay , a trade name is known as a nombre fantasía , and the legal name of business

1014-399: The legal name of business is called a razón social (social name). In Brazil , a trade name is known as a nome fantasia ('fantasy' or 'fiction' name), and the legal name of business is called razão social (social name). In some Canadian jurisdictions , such as Ontario , when a businessperson writes a trade name on a contract, invoice, or cheque, they must also add the legal name of

1053-556: The many variations. The modular design has remained fundamentally unchanged since the original patent was filed by Andrew Ritchie in 1979, with small details being refined by continual improvement. Ritchie was awarded the 2009 Prince Philip Designers Prize for work on the bicycle. Brompton is the largest volume bicycle manufacturer in Britain, producing approximately 50,000 bicycles each year. The company's bicycles are also available for hire. All Brompton folding bicycle models share

1092-461: The named defendant, RRL Corporation, was a Lexus car dealership doing business as " Lexus of Westminster ", but remaining a separate legal entity from Lexus, a division of Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Inc. . In California , filing a DBA statement also requires that a notice of the fictitious name be published in local newspapers for some set period of time to inform the public of the owner's intent to operate under an assumed name . The intention of

1131-403: The registered legal name of the business. If a corporation fails to consistently adhere to such important legal formalities like using its registered legal name in contracts, it may be subject to piercing of the corporate veil . In English , trade names are generally treated as proper nouns . In Argentina , a trade name is known as a nombre de fantasía ('fantasy' or 'fiction' name), and

1170-416: The same curved frame, consisting of a hinged main tube, pivoting rear triangle, fork, and hinged handle-bar stem. The main tube and stem are made of steel in most models. The rear triangle and fork are either steel or titanium, depending on model. The T line introduced in 2022 has an all-titanium frame and other lightweight components. Steel sections are joined by brazing rather than welding. Wheel rim size

1209-459: The surname(s) of the sole trader or partners, or the legal name of a company. The Companies Registration Office publishes a searchable register of such business names. In Japan , the word yagō ( 屋号 ) is used. In Colonial Nigeria , certain tribes had members that used a variety of trading names to conduct business with the Europeans. Two examples were King Perekule VII of Bonny , who

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1248-469: The term trade name to refer to "doing business as" (DBA) names. In most U.S. states now, however, DBAs are officially referred to using other terms. Almost half of the states, including New York and Oregon , use the terms assumed business name or assumed name ; nearly as many, including Pennsylvania , use the term fictitious name . For consumer protection purposes, many U.S. jurisdictions require businesses operating with fictitious names to file

1287-538: The termination of the earlier Eurotai/Neobike franchise agreement. Many reviews of Brompton folding bicycles are favourable. 51°29′27″N 0°17′35″W  /  51.4907°N 0.2931°W  / 51.4907; -0.2931 Trading as In a number of countries, the phrase " trading as " (abbreviated to t/a ) is used to designate a trade name. In the United States , the phrase " doing business as " (abbreviated to DBA , dba , d.b.a. , or d/b/a )

1326-527: Was awarded Order of the British Empire in 2015. In July 2015 a plan to move the company from Brentford to nearby Greenford was reported. In February 2022 another move, from Greenford to Ashford, Kent was announced. In 1992, Brompton agreed with Euro-Tai in Taiwan to allow the manufacture of a licensed copy of the Brompton bicycle for distribution in Eastern Asia. A joint venture company called Neobike

1365-658: Was awarded a first class Master of Engineering (MEng) degree in Mechanical engineering from Newcastle University in 1997. During his degree he studied the Spanish language at the University of Valladolid in Spain. He started his career as a project manager for Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) where he worked from 1997 to 2000 and continued as a Plant Manager for DuPont from 2000 to 2002. He joined Brompton at

1404-460: Was granted the right to have all of the imported bicycles destroyed with an injunction against future imports by Neobike's distributors. In June 2010, Brompton Bicycle gained a further injunction against the import of the unlicensed copy Brompton models into Spain, this time under the name "Nishiki Oxford Bicycle". The case was decided on the basis that Grace Gallant predecessors' had not returned all of Brompton Bicycle Ltd's drawing and toolings upon

1443-553: Was known as Captain Pepple in trade matters, and King Jubo Jubogha of Opobo , who bore the pseudonym Captain Jaja . Both Pepple and Jaja would bequeath their trade names to their royal descendants as official surnames upon their deaths. In Singapore , there is no filing requirement for a "trading as" name, but there are requirements for disclosure of the underlying business or company's registered name and unique entity number. In

1482-585: Was raised to resume production on a larger scale. With a bank loan underwritten by Julian Vereker (founder of Naim Audio ), production was restarted in a railway arch in Brentford . By early 1988, mass-production Brompton bicycles were once again in circulation. From 2002, when Will Butler-Adams joined the firm (he became Managing Director in 2008), to 2013, production increased from 6,000 to approximately 40,000 bikes per year. The workforce increased from 24 to 190. In March 2009, Brompton Bicycle achieved

1521-658: Was then established to manufacture them. Brompton Bicycle in the United Kingdom would loan tools and drawings, and be paid on a per-unit royalty basis. By mid-1992, Neobike had recruited three senior research and development employees from Dahon , another folding bicycle company, and had started to produce other designs and copies in addition to the official Brompton design. Brompton's licensing contract with Euro-Tai/Neobike lasted approximately ten years until it expired on 31 December 2002. By this time, five senior Neobike employees had been convicted and jailed for stealing trade secrets from Dahon and Ritchie had previously stated that

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