A.
DN: Believe in yourself. I know this might sound a little corny but it's true. Humans are resistant to change - when we disrupted the industry with the Ventum One, with its completely unique frame, we had a lot of doubters/resistance. I remember trawling through negative comments on Slowtwitch late into the night, after months and months of sacrifice to bring that product to market. I had to develop a thick skin very quickly and truly believe that we were on the right path just to keep going. Sure enough, most of those doubters are riding Ventum’s today…and yes, that feels good. Had I succumbed to the initial pressure and doubt, Ventum would not exist today... and I would have had a lot more sleep over the last few years. In all seriousness though – believe in yourself.
ON: Don't ever let naysayers dictate your actions. One of my favourite quotes is "The difference between a genius and an idiot is in the outcome". If you’re trying to shake things up, you have to do things differently from everyone else… or else you will end up with the same outcome as everyone else.
When you step out of that groove of comfort, it not only feels strange to yourself but your actions become an easy target for others to point out as "different" and "different" scares people. If your actions yield a positive outcome, you are a "genius". If these very same actions yield a negative result, you are an "idiot" for having stepped out of the norm. Starting a bicycle company in a saturated market and going against billion-dollar entities might not seem like a "wise" thing to do, but based on our success thus far, we are carving ourselves a beautiful segment of the market that cares not only about excellence in quality but also experience. We are ushering in a new era for cycling with the conveniences of the digital sphere merge with a tailored, comfortable and personal customer service experience. This reinforces my belief that you should make your own decisions, forge your own path, set your own goals, no matter how ludicrous they may seem, and pursue them ferociously until you make them reality and become a “genius".