Lismore will lose one of its oldest businesses for good at the end of September when Harris Cycle closes its doors after 107 years of trading in Lismore.

It was 1918 when Cecil Harris and Harold Wotherspoon joined forces and opened Harris Cycle at 85 Keen Street. Darryl Pursey and Jo Bonaccorsi were forced to move from Keen Street in 2021 to Bridge Street in North Lismore when the building was sold and the owners wanted to renovate and move in.

Darryl and Jo had contemplated selling the business pre-COVID, but the global pandemic and then the 2022 floods delayed their decision. When they moved to North Lismore, they decided to build the business up and then sell it.

The problem was that over the last twelve months, no serious buyer has come forward.

It is an emotional decision for Darryl, as he has been involved in Harris Cycle for 40 years.

(Darryl and Jo are ready to take a break)

Darryl married Amanda Wotherspoon, whose father, Cy, bought out the Harris side of the business. When he had a Cerebral Haemorrhage in 1985, Darryl stepped in to do the mechanical side of the business, while Cy's wife, Pam, ran the business. Amanda later joined too.

A few years later, Darryl purchased the business and became the owner of Harris Cycle.

"As far as trying to sell the thing, or thinking about getting out, it hasn't been an on-the-spot decision. This is something that's been happening for quite a few years. We did think Harris Cycle would sell, because it's a viable business."

Darryl and Jo had one potential buyer lined up; however, financing fell through, and they were back to having no buyer.

"I may just keep waiting around for someone for another couple of years, and there may still be no one, and then we're two years old or. So, we feel we have to make the decision at some point. It's just like changing your job. People change their jobs every six years or something. I've been here 40 years, and I'm ready for a change.

"We will go into semi-retirement, we're not going to go into full retirement. It will be nice to do something different for a while."

The next twelve months will be the life of a full retiree, as Darryl and Jo recharge their batteries. Their time may involve travel and riding bikes, but it won't involve selling and fixing them.

After twelve months?

"I may do a workshop or something. I still think someone's going to have to come into town and open up another shop, because it definitely needs it. We don't stand around; we're working all the time there. The rail trail has pushed up business.

Whether you are a lover or hater of the Rail Trail, Darryl and Jo say it saved Harris Cycle from closing earlier; in fact, it is now thriving with more upside ahead when the North Lismore to Byron section is open.

"That's what saved us, coming out of the flood, really," Darryl explained. "Lismore was just dead, and we hadn't really come back anywhere near our normal trading figures, and the minute Muurwilliumbah opened up, it just went back to normal trading, probably better in some way. That shocked me, because I thought north of us, Tweed and the Gold Coast would get that business.

"It probably was a knock-on effect from the flood. I think people were probably looking for something to do. They were desperate to do something that opened up. And we were inundated with getting old bikes going so they can go and ride it. That went really strong, and 12 months later, Lismore to Casino opened. So, we had another spike."

"We are seeing a bit of a knock on now from families coming back, wanting to buy bikes for their kids. I'd reckon it'd be close to 60-70% of the people you ask, What are you going to do with the bikes? Ride the rail trail is the answer. Everyone's planning on riding it, and it's a safe haven for families. When you're out there, you see Mum, Dad and a couple of kids. I never saw that before, and Lismore had nowhere to ride safely before, and now you do. That's great."

Harris Cycle is still for sale, so if you are interested in having a discussion with Darryl and Jo about buying one of Lismore's historic businesses, pop in and have a chat.

If you are in the process of upgrading your bike or buying a new one for the kids, visit 63 Bridge Street, North Lismore, to see what discounts you can get from Darryl and Jo. There is no set sale discount on any stock, but everything must go by the end of September.