The Business of Cycling

Alberto Morgando is the CEO of the iconic brand Mavic. Alberto shares his fascinating journey from studying mechanical engineering in Turin, Italy to leading multinational companies and private equity turnarounds before taking the helm at the legendary French wheel manufacturer. Arriving at a precarious moment when Mavic was struggling with significant losses amid cycling's market downturn, Albert...

In this episode, we dive deep into the shocking news of YT Industries entering self-administration, examining what led one of the bike industry's most successful direct-to-consumer brands to this critical juncture. Our guests bring unique insights to this developing story: Raymund Bareuther, an M&A expert who was directly involved in YT's previous acquisition deal when founder Markus Flossman...

In this episode, I sit down with Greg Shapleigh, who came highly recommended by multiple previous guests as someone I absolutely had to interview. Greg's journey in the cycling industry is remarkable - he started as a shipping clerk at Giro after moving to Santa Cruz to pursue bike racing, but quickly found himself pulled into marketing and product development discussions. Over three decades, he's...

Stefan Reisinger is the Managing Director of Fairnamic which is the organization behind the Eurobike event in Frankfurt.  In this timely conversation, Stefan provides an insider's perspective on what to expect at this year's show in Frankfurt, including 1,500+ exhibiting companies, new industry innovations, and the launch of a groundbreaking global bicycle purchasing index.  With the cycling indus...

Wayne Brown's unconventional journey from child actor to London advertising executive, working with major brands like Apple and Land Rover, led him to an unexpected destination: becoming CEO of cycling's premier marketing agency. Despite not being an avid cyclist when he joined Shift Active Media, Wayne has helped build what many consider the industry's most influential marketing firm. In this can...

Wade Wallace's journey from a nuclear research town in Manitoba to building one of cycling's most influential media platforms was anything but conventional. As the founder of Cycling Tips and now Escape Collective, Wallace shares how a simple blog started during the 2008 financial crisis grew into a pioneering digital cycling platform. This conversation traces his path from accidental blogger to m...

Live from Cycling World 2025 Dusseldorf: In the discussion we dive into the future of cycling distribution with industry experts from Harmen van Es of Stichting DST & Dynamo Retail Group, Luca Bergliaffa of Assos, and Michael Scholz of SRM. Discover how digital integration, data sharing, and omnichannel strategies are transforming relationships between brands, retailers, and distributors in an...

The following is my conversation with Steve Smith. At the risk of sounding hyperbolic, he's among the most accomplished and interesting people that I've met in the cycling business. In addition to being a hardworking and genuine guy. Steve started his career at Nike in Oregon. His dream job was working for Nike, and after 10 years with the swoosh, he decided to pull up roots and move himself and h...

Felix Kuffner, is the creator behind "Felix Testet Bikes" and one of Germany's leading cycling content creators. Felix transitioned from racing BMX and working as a marketing manager to building a successful YouTube channel during the pandemic. In our conversation, we'll explore the business side of content creation in the cycling industry—from monetization strategies and brand relationships to wh...

I wanted to sit down with a leader in the industry and talk about the recent developments regarding the tariffs being put in place by the United States. I was really happy to talk with Stijn Vriends, CEO of Vittoria Group. This was recorded on April 10th, just one day after the 90-day pause was announced. I wanted to give just a quick snapshot of this moment in time. This is a little different tha...

Will Fripp is a UK industry veteran with decades of experience across all segments of the cycling business. Will's journey spans from his early days working at bike shops and Evans cycles to leadership roles at Madison, the UK's largest distributor and Shift Active Media. He is now the head of Extra UK, one of the country's premier cycling distributors, and Will offers unique insights into the evo...

My conversation with David Millar revealed the fascinating journey of this former professional cyclist turned entrepreneur. Based in Girona, Spain, David openly shared his path from professional cycling to founding the clothing brand CHPT3. With his Scottish roots and formative years spent in Hong Kong, David spoke candidly about the challenges of transitioning from professional cycling to becomin...

Max Von Singer is the founder of Berlin-Based Bicycle Brand Standert. From its humble beginnings as a small bike shop café during the fixed gear boom of the early 2010s, Standert has grown into a respected European cycling brand with a loyal following. Max, along with his wife and co-founder Ana, share their journey from selling 50 track bikes to developing a full lineup of premium bicycles, all w...

Diego Colosio is one of the most experienced sales executives in the cycling business today. Diego's journey spans over three decades from building frames in a small Lombardi area workshop to leading global sales for iconic brands like 3T, Cinelli, Colnago, Bianchi, and now Pinarello.  We explore his remarkable career, the evolution of the industry and his unique perspective on leadership shaped b...

Nicoletta Sartore is the CEO of Elite. Elite was founded in 1979 by her father Amerigo and has grown from a small family business to a global leader in cycling equipment while maintaining its Italian roots. From its headquarters in Fontaniva, Italy, Elite combines innovation with tradition. Nicoletta shares her remarkable story of navigating Elite through COVID-19, where their indoor training prod...

Stefano Migliorini was a professional bike racer in Italy and BMX World Champion in 1986. He was one of the pioneers of downhill mountain bike racing in Italy. Stefano had a successful 20 year career in the bicycle industry working with top brands like Cinelli, Kona bikes and Marzocchi suspension. A turning point in his life came when he met Livio Suppo, who was the Moto GP team manager for Ducati...

Piet van der Velde is a veteran product developer and entrepreneur in the cycling industry. His fascinating journey began as a competitive cyclist in the Netherlands before he became one of the industry's most respected product innovators, ultimately founding the premium components brand ERE Research. Having worked with major brands like Specialized, Cannondale, and Velo, Piet offers invaluable in...

2024 has been an amazing year and I want to thank everybody that has a subscribed and listened to as well as the guests that came on to the show. We've had some amazing growth and we couldn't have done it without all of you. I also wanted to take a minute and just look back at some of the conversations that we had over the course of the year. Thanks everyone again for supporting the podcast and we...

 Wolfgang Hohmann is the founder of Wolfi's bikes in the United Arab Emirates. From selling bikes from a corner of his brother's garage in Germany's black forest to building one of the middle east's most prestigious cycling retail operations, Wolfi's story is a testament to the power of persistence.  What started as a side hustle while working as a chef eventually grew into a cycling empire that c...

Nicolò Ildos is a seasoned industry veteran who has worked for some of cycling's biggest brands, including FIZIK, Campagnolo, and Pirelli. In the episode, we dive into the intricate world of sports marketing in professional cycling.  From his early days as an amateur racer and product tester to global sports marketing manager, Nicolo shares his insights on what makes successful sponsorships work....

Claudio Masnata is the Global Marketing Manager at Bianchi. We dive deep into one of cycling's most iconic brands, from his early days as a competitive cyclist to leading marketing at the 140-year-old brand, Claudio shares fascinating insights into managing the iconic brand in the digital age. We explore the delicate balance between tradition and innovation, the challenges of expanding into new ma...

GFNY is the world's largest endurance sports marathon series with over 30 events held in 15 countries. The story of Ulrich Fluhme and his wife Lydia starting the GFNY is nothing short of remarkable. Uli had a job in finance at a Swiss bank in Manhattan. When he and his partner Lydia literally took a leap into the abyss when they decided to start the GFNY. This Is a tale of two highly driven people...

Anne Hed is CEO and Co-founder of HED cycling. Anne's journey is one of perseverance, innovation and family legacy. Anne is a native of Minnesota and shares the remarkable story of HED cycling, which she founded with her late husband, Steve Hed. In this conversation, we hear how she and the company have weathered personal tragedy and technological shifts to remain relevant in the incredibly compet...

Travis Erwin has extensive experience in the US cycling market. He began his career in various bike shops, working his way up to become a store manager at Performance Bicycle in Scottsdale, Arizona. In the early 2010s, he progressed to Regional Sales Manager for Pivot Cycles. Travis then moved on to help build Reynolds Cycling's OEM wheel business, eventually becoming the Global Sales Manager in 2...

John Harrison is an entrepreneur and angel investor. He purchased the US bike brand Parlee in 2023, after it ran into trouble during the post COVID inventory glut. This conversation is exploration of how a relative outsider of the industry is bringing experience and knowledge of operations to right the ship, and relaunch the premium bike brand. Read the latest 'The Business of Cycling' Blog Sign u...