Before we built our first bike, before we even settled on the name Seven, we asked ourselves why we would start a new bike company. What did we have to offer that wasn’t already available? What could we do that was both wholly different and highly valuable to the cyclists who might work with us? It is too simple to say that we decided that building custom bikes on a short timeline was the answer. In many ways, those things were just by-products of the actual answer, which is that we decided to build exactly the bikes people wanted, rather than building the bikes we liked and trying to convince riders they were cool.
Custom builders had been doing something like this for more than a century, but had confined their consultation with the rider primarily to measurements. They focused on fit. What we set out to do started with fit but extended to things like ride feel, handling, comfort, options, aesthetics, a full collaboration with the rider. No other custom builder had conducted such systematized interviews.
And, the design interviews we conduct with our riders are more, for us, than just a consultation about a single bike. Together they form a massive research project that allows us to understand not just what people buy, but what they want. By sharing their vision with us, our customers make it possible for us to react very quickly to new trends and ideas. The interview lets us build them their perfect bike, but their input helps us build our perfect company, one that builds fully custom bikes for real people on a short timeline through a unique collaboration. It’s the interview that lets us be more than a bike company, but a real rider company.