With a mission to inform, empower, celebrate and advocate for British Columbia's current and aspiring business leaders, BCBusiness go behind the headlines and bring readers face to face with the key issues and people driving business in B.C.
Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/1515520
58 1. @ d r e a m _ b r a v e l y B C B U S I N E S S . C A M A R C H 2 0 24 HELMET HEADS Gear up for cycling season with bikes, apparel and accessories from B.C. companies by Alyssa Hirose I N V E N T O R Y 5. Framing Device Bikes incorporate plenty of functional features, but storage is not one of them: if you want to carry the always-important rst aid kit and tire repair kit with you, you'll have to acces- sorize. Shaka Packs, founded in Kelowna by Julian Vicente in 2020, makes custom frame bags to order— these trusty triangular packs t perfectly within your bike's geometry, and the mount style, fabric and zippers are all customizable. shakapacks.ca 2. Pedal to the Metal The province is crawl- ing with bike shops, but there's no short- age of bike manufac- turers, either—and North Shore Billet is a local legend. Found- ers Chris Allen and Peter Hammons rst got rolling in 2003, so the Whistler-based company has been making bike parts out of aerospace- grade aluminum for over two decades. Find pedals, pulleys, chainrings and drive- trains here. northshorebillet.ca 4. Hot Pocket Traditional musette bags are over-the- shoulder packs used primarily to carry food while riding—but after Mike Preston and Jannah Wilson saw racers struggle to unwrap energy bars during the Whistler Fondo in 2018, they designed a silicone pouch that's much more user-friendly. Vancouver-based Doma Cycle's food- safe pocket musettes t into a jersey pocket, helping to swiftly feed cyclists and also pre- vent wrappers from ending up on the road. domacycle.com 1. Shorts Changed Most bike apparel is designed for men; in turn, this makes bik- ing more comfortable for men, leading more men to bike, causing more men's bike apparel to be made. But that's a cycle that Vancouverite Janet Hiebert was determined to break when she founded her female-focused performance-wear brand in 2016. Samsara Cycle offers shorts, jerseys, jack- ets, vests and more that are speci cally designed for women and feature art from local creatives. Who bikes the world? Girls. samsara-cycle.com 3. Tight Club After his move from Edmonton to Van- couver, Lycra wasn't cutting it for Andrew Gonzalez—that syn- thetic stuff couldn't stand up to the unpredictable coastal weather. So when he founded Pillar Heights in 2017, Gon- zalez focused on natu- ral materials: hemp and merino wool. Pillar Heights' custom jerseys consistently receive rave reviews— "which is amazing considering cyclists are known for being the nickiest folks in sport," says Gonzales. "Don't get us started on bike lanes." pillarheights.com 6. Life Cycle Owen Pemberton just launched his mountain bike brand Forbidden Bike Com- pany in 2019, but the Cumberland-based biz has long ditched the training wheels— it's established a faithful customer base, an engaged so- cial following of over 90,000 people and an employee team that has expanded to the United Kingdom. The company is named for the Forbidden Plateau (a popular haven for mountain bikers on the Island) and sells trail bikes, frame kits, parts, apparel and accessories. forbiddenbike.com 2 3 4 5 6 1