Boutique, South African bike brand Morewood will be bursting back into life for 2016.

The last we heard from Morewood was at Eurobike in 2013 when it launched the 27.5 inch Makulu but apparently there have been some big changes going on behind the scenes.

Morewood Bikes has been replaced with Morewood Bikes (Pty) Ltd and will now be run by Richard Carter (who is one of the original co-founders) and Victor Momsen, founder of fellow South African brand Momsen bikes that is known for its cross country and marathon bikes.

There will also be a change of direction for the brand. Previously Morewood made two downhill frames (the Makulu and the Izimu) and a 100mm cross country frame (the Zula). It will now look to develop complete bikes aimed at the “gravity and trail” markets. Morewood has also promised a new suspension platform design for 2016.

A tease of a new bike from Morewood’s Facebook page

Carter said: “The bike industry has changed significantly over the past three years in terms of bike categories, marketing and retail strategy. We knew we could not continue to be successful as essentially a frame-only brand. We needed to evolve into a complete bike brand.”

Momsen and Morewood may initially seem like an uneasy pairing but Momsen believes that it could help the brands dominate the South African market.

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He said: “There are a number of synergies between Morewood Bikes and my own brand, but the most significant is that they’re both South African brands competing with foreign brands operating within the local (South African) and international markets.

“By combining our resources and ideas, this partnership will allow both brands to leverage their respective strengths whilst maximising our resources and creative energies. Richard and I have known each for a long time and I am excited to help re-position the Morewood brand in the local and global market.”

There’s no word yet on what the new frames will look like but you can expect them to be launched prior to Eurobike in September.