Welcome to podcast episode 22! In this episode Jarrad heads to 7mesh headquarters to chat with founders TJ and Ian. For those unfamiliar with the brand, 7mesh are a high performance cycling apparel company, focussed on bringing the best technology available to the world of cycling clothing.
7mesh had an interesting start - TJ and Ian moved over from high end outdoor clothing company Arcteryx where TJ was CEO and Ian was the principle designer. 7mesh was formed when they both saw that despite the improvements in outdoor clothing in general, much of those improvements were not making their way into cycling clothing. Taking what they had learnt from Arcteryx, they quit their jobs and started 7mesh. Based in Squamish since 2013 and still a relatively small team, their office is filled with passionate cyclists, their R&D lab being both the office and the amazing backcountry surrounding them.
We've been 7mesh supporters from the start and they have truly gone from strength to strength. Amazingly in their first year they managed to get together a catalogue of 13 products, half of which included women's items. TJ and Ian like to be hands-on when it comes to building new products, and that's one of the key reasons that they produce such incredible technical wear. Since the start one of their big missions was to produce comfortable high performance women's wear, which admittedly has been one of their biggest challenges and something they're still focussed on. With over half their staff now women, it's clear that it's a commitment that they're sticking to.
Most of all, the folks at 7mesh's main mission is to produce awesome technical wear that enables us to do what we do best - to get out there and explore the world on bikes. 7mesh is a celebration of the activities that they love, of having great times outdoors and learning and experiencing the world. Cheers to that!
