The story
The original Merida factory was organized after the Raleigh Nottingham factory as the company began by making Raleigh bikes for the North American market. Tseng would later develop his own welding robots to meet his production goals.
In 2001, Merida bought 49% of Specialized for a reported US$30 million, with its CEO and founder Mike Sinyard remaining the majority owner. In the past, Merida manufactured bicycles for companies including Mongoose. In 2007, Merida invested $7 million to renovate its 35-year-old factory in Taichung, without halting production.
From Wikipedia’s article on Merida Bikes, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4
