Twenty-four years ago today, on January 7, 1997, four bike industry veterans launched the foolish idea of building custom bikes for everyone. The industry called us crazy – and worse.
More than 30,000 custom bikes later, we haven’t yet accomplished that goal, but we think we’re well on the way. We will make it so long as we keep listening, learning, riding, working with our hands, and innovating.
So much has changed over the years. Unfortunately, we rarely look back at how Seven has evolved. But even a quick sideways glance shows us that our first bikes have little in common with our latest designs.
Well, not everything has changed. Three of the original four founders are still “leading” the company. In fact, seven of the first ten full-time employees still work with Seven. Sometimes it feels more like a family than a business.
When asked about the anniversary, Seven’s first founder, Rob Vandermark, looked up from his latest pile of prototype parts and sketches and said, “What? Who’s anniversary?”
Regardless of Rob’s confusion, we’ve had an unbelievable journey so far. We might share some of the less embarrassing memories throughout this season. For better or worse, we’re still crazy after all these years because we’re pretty certain we’ll accomplish our original goal within the next 24.
Stay tuned.
Your Seveneers