Fongers

Fongers was a Dutch manufacturer of bicycles, based in Groningen. It was founded in 1884 and ended, like Royal Enfield UK, its life in 1970. In 1954 Mr. P. G. Toplis, the Sales Manager for Sturmey-Archer Gears Ltd (which still exists today) spent a holiday motorcycling in Continental Europe with a friend Mr. D. C. Gardner. He rode a Bullet 350 and Gardner a Model G. In Groningen they posed for a picture in front of the Fongers factory with Mr. A. Westerhoek (left) from the company and his small son. Notice the Union Jacks on the bikes.

The Fongers factory has been turned into an apartment complex called Fongersplaats, but they retained the front of the factory where the above picture was taken. Here it is from Google Street View. The old picture is from REVS, the Royal Enfield internal employee magazine.