The cycling company Eddy Merckx S.A. has entered a strategic partnership with Sobradis, a Belgian investment company known until now for being a distributor of shoes. The bike company’s founder, Eddy Merckx, will retain his position and be joined by Sobradis’ Pieter Vansynghel as chief executive and Sven Goeminne as chief operating officer. The company employs 20 people and has sales of about €6 million per year; it exports about half of its product.