An Interview with Joel Smith of Tomac Bicycles

Take a moment to imagine the following scenario: A man with a vision, ambition, and a business plan happens to be in the right place at exactly the right time. Due to his determination, a failed bike brand is given a fresh start.

Joel Smith happens to be that man and here is what he has to say about breathing new life into the Tomac brand.

I was working at Answer Products for the past 8 years. I started there as the Marketing Manager and by the end worked my way to be Direct of North American Sales and Brand Management. Basically what that means is that I was in charge of US and Canada OEM and Aftermarket Sales, Marketing and Product Development.

That's a long time to be in one place and I began thinking of opportunities within the bicycle industry. Because of our friendship, I had been talking with Johnny (Tomac) about what American Bicycle Group was doing with the brand and what he wanted it to be. It turned out that the two of us were strategically in sync about what the brand stood for and it's potential. This was almost two years ago.

Then, a few years ago, I found out that ABG was considering giving up the license. That got my wheels turning, but thinking about something and making the huge leap, to leave a solid, satisfying job and start up your own business, are two different things. But as time went by, I began to think about it more seriously. After all, I was a huge Tomac fan from back in the day, and I though the brand could succeed if it was given the right fuel and the right people were involved. That's one of my strongest beliefs. If the right people are involved, it doesn't matter what you do, it will be a success.

So, I started to put together a plan to do what I always wanted to do: build a company around a great brand. It took me about six months of planning to just get everything on paper. I took almost three months working on the written part of the business plan alone. By the time it was all done, I had a pretty good strategic plan for making a go at it. I talked with Johnny about it, and pretty quickly we worked out a licensing deal.

Forward to the present, and I am at the onset of rebuilding the brand from scratch. I thought Tomac needed to new start, so it's a new website, new bikes, new logos, basically a new strategic plan that I am now in the execution phases of. The main thing I am proud of right now is that I found a way to make it happen. I really want to build a company that is true to Tomac, the man and the brand.

The focus will be on the high end market. Trying to make lower end bikes isn't right for the brand, and there are too many sacrifices you have to make on the bikes to meet price points. I am trying to make bikes that Johnny T would love to ride. Johnny and Doug will continue to be heavily involved in the company. It just wouldn't be right for them not to be.

At the moment, I have Doug working on a few new bike designs, while Johnny is the person who I discuss daily company strategy with. Johnny is an amazingly astute businessman and a smart guy in general. He is my second set of eyes and ears to ensure that the brand is staying true to itself. When we get bikes, they have to be Johnny T certified, so a lot of ride testing will be involved for him. Unfortunately for me, testing riding with him is a brute. Somehow, his World Cup legs come back in three days regardless of how much he's been riding.