[ibimage==37742==Original==none==self==ibimage_align-center]
Buying a bike can be oddly intimidating — and pricey. Really testing one out isn't usually an option, plus a few big brands dominate the market with far too many versions.
But today, there was good news for casual bikers on a budget.
Brilliant Bicycle Co., launched today in Santa Monica and is offering customized, stylish bikes starting at $299. The company also announced a $1.5 million seed round which they intend on applying to product development and testing. They insisted on keeping the round intimate as they tested their product and shipping.
The company offers a variety of designs and colors and ships the unassembled bike to the customer to build for themselves while providing instructional assembly videos on their website.
“People really enjoy building the bike, which has been a pleasant surprise,” CEO and co-founder Adam Kalamchi said. “In our world, everything is so digital that an analog, tactile experience is actually unique — opening up a product and grabbing a wrench, putting it together, and, at the end of assembly, loving it.”
Brilliant considers itself a disruptor of the bicycle industry. At such a low price, they've found a way to break down the production process while still maintaining handmade quality. The parts are currently hand-crafted at a state-of-the-art, wind-powered manufacturing facility in Taiwan.
[ibimage==37744==Original==none==self==ibimage_align-left]
“As we peeled back the onion and kept learning about the industry we had the moments like ‘wow’, we cannot believe it’s done this way,” Kalamchi said. “We thought, if we did it this way we could save a lot of margin. Part of the problem with the current industry is they focus on the hardware instead of the experience.”
Two different types of bikes can be ordered in three different speeds, which allows customers to customize the bike to their local terrain.
“We were founded in New York and we made the decision to move to California because it was such a natural home for this brand,” Kalamchi said. “We wanted our employees to ride their Brilliants to work everyday. It was really about building a team culture that centered around fitness and being active and healthy and LA is the perfect place to do that.”
Have a tip for us or know of a company that deserves coverage? Email us via [email protected]
