I know I'm behind on my blogs, but before I post a race one, I've been wanting to write this one for a while.
On a very cold January day, I went to help out my boys from The Bike Shop in Glen Ellyn at the Harper Velo Swap. The usual suspects were there, cyclists of all sorts, shapes and sizes, hawking thier stuff, wearing full on cycling kits, with sub zero temps outside. I decided to take a walk around to see what was what, and heard something rather unusual at these events - genuine laughter. Tucked against the wall were 2 lovely ladies, who were not selling parts, or tight fitting cycling gear. Rather, they were selling and promoting a brand of casual cycling related clothing, that wasn't your standard fare. The t-shirts and hats were cool, and not in a bike-geek kind of way. They were very fashionable, and caught my eye right away.
The next thing I knew, I was shaking hands with the co-owner and founder of this cool little company - Q7 Cycling, Wanda Berg. She was there with team member and equally lovely Lisa, both of whom radiated such energy and happiness I figured they either got lost on the way to a much more exciting place, or were really happy to be in frigid Chicago. I'm still not convinced they didn't get lost, but what I discovered was a true passion for something more than cycling. It was promoting a healthy lifestyle, in a fun and fasionable way. Let's face it, we all have some form of off-the-bike shirt that says "Bianchi" or "Castelli", etc. But this was something different. Here was a company that realized not everyone wants to look like a cyclist, or cares if the world knows they are a cyclist or athlete, yet understands at the core - no matter what level of athlete we are, we all share the passion of being on a bike. The joy of a ride on a beautiful day, wind in your face, sun blazing down, or even a ride in the snow, as it falls around you and you blast through puddles of melted snow before it ices over. So they have taken that passion and turned it into something we have lost - fun.
But don't take my word for it - here's a brief background from Wanda -
Tom and I have been avid cyclists for quite some time with a combined 24 RAGBRAIs and now into the racing scene. We've toured the Western Coast of Ireland by bicycle and try to make a trip to Wine Country on bikes each year. We ride. Road, gravel, trails, mountain, into town, all seasons, self-contained touring and racing......Love it all!! The idea came up in 2008 on a return flight from a cycling tour. We both were not satisfied with much of the cycling apparel out there at the time and were excited by the opportunity to create things that we would like to wear. The idea was to design apparel that was a little more edgy and maybe retro inspired. We wear what we sell and I think that means something.
We knew what we wanted to do......but what do we call ourselves? Q7 Cycling. Both of us feel quality gear is important~ Q. Somehow we both were drawn toward SEVEN. Lucky number seven~it's my favorite number. For Tom it represents the seven continents and the global nature of cycling. That same year we set up the company(2009), I began racing. Shortly after that we threw around the idea of putting together a team. We are a focused team with serious goals, but at the same time we realize the importance of FUN! So..... for TEAM Q7 it's all about quality athletes and the 7 continents we are gonna dominate! haha! Seriously, you are not gonna see us racing in Antarctica----------but we're not afraid ;)
Currently, we are mainly website based. There are a two bike shops in Iowa that carry our gear. In the next five years we would like to be well represented in the retail arena. This has also been our biggest challenge as retail stores like a 50% mark-up as an industry standard. The difficulty for us is achieving these margins as a small start-up with small volumes and making sure they are still great quality. We have worked with a few manufacturers and now have a relationship with a company that seems to be able to help us out at lower volumes.
Another challenge, we have learned is it takes more to sell gear than a cool looking product. People want to know what a brand is, what it represents and if possible, seem to like to have a personal relationship with the people involved. We have recently started attending bike swaps / trade shows to improve our relationship with riders and retail representatives. Our Racing teams have also helped with product visibility and the walk the walk mentality other riders like associated with their gear.
Something else about us----In 2007 we founded the Johnson County Trail Foundation, a non-profit organization to help raise funds for the local trail system. We are passionate about cycling, creating awareness, bicycle advocacy and promoting trail development.
We have two sons, Holden (5) and Jenson (3). They make design decisions on youth apparel. They should like what they are wearing.
We have men's, women's and youth apparel. My buddy made a design on a bar napkin he thought was cool~~we made a shirt from that design. We like to know what people are interested in. I have a gal pal who is a talented artist----she hand painted some short billed trucker caps (you tried one on at the bikeswap) ......she just sent some kick ass belt buckles!
Overall, we would like to promote cycling, ride, offer sweet gear and continue to have FUN!!
What this company keeps at the forefront so many others have forgotten - celebrating the joy of cycling with like minded individuals, having a good time. Its not to say that achieving more in the sport is to be frowned upon, but don't lose that child-like quality that brought us to this beautiful sport in the first place. So go have some fun and check them out at www.q7cycling.com. You'll be glad you did.
And watch out for Q7 hooking up with Crossfit Endurance in the near future - more fun to come.
Stay strong,
Guy
