Have you ever wondered who is the mastermind behind Spank products? Pinkbike gives a deliciously detailed account of the man behind the brand.
Gavin Michael Vos has an impressive bio. He was instrumental in introducing mountain biking to South Africa, and fostering a healthy MTB culture that still thrives there today. Vos has since focused his efforts on creating quality bike parts at approachable prices.
Excerpts from Pinkbike.com:
“A lot of the guys that were surfing began riding mountain bikes when there was no surf – and that’s how it all started.
From there, it led to the first South African mountain bike company being started, where together with my partners Neil Dorward and Steven Adshade, we grew what was a surf shop into Beachbreak Pro MTB. We also started up the first MTB club called Fat Tracks, which is still going today!”
“PB: Let’s talk about Spank products. After visiting the factory today, I was amazed by the quality and craftsmanship taking place compared to my previous vision of the brand. Do you often get bundled together with lower quality, off the shelf companies that just buy, brand and market?
Yes, I think we do get incorrectly bundled there, and there are a few reasons, hinged on stereotyping, that have led to that misconception. Maybe an ‘old school’ perception that shiny and colorful equals cheap and low quality. Due to the mass-market power of the big brands, there is also a misconception that your product is not ‘up to scratch’ if it’s not spec’d on complete bicycles. Then there’s also the age-old misconception that excellence must be expensive. Spank breaks all those ‘norms.’
The audaciousness of our brand name, and the choice of our color ranges reflect our energy and passion. Our products are also uniquely affordable for technology of this standard. We’ve invested hugely over the years in being able to deliver in-house design, production and quality control of, literally, the highest standards for exactly that reason – so that we can deliver World Cup level product at affordable pricing structures.”
“PB: What’s your most popular product to date, and are there any products you regret making?
Our early fame came from our wide rims, such as Spike and Oozy, although it was our first flat pedal, the Spike, which I think opened the eyes of the world to what Spank is doing. Most recently, our Vibrocore handlebar-damping technology has made waves as an innovation that seems to be setting a new standard in what a handlebar should be.”
“PB: Can we talk about the Fratelli Factory?
Yeah, the Fratelli factory was born mainly due to frustration after going through the five big rim makers in Taiwan and realizing that we couldn’t create what we were looking for – wide, lightweight, tubeless rims that can stand up to the requirements of the gravity genre.”
“PB: So, Fratelli produces Spank wheelsets. Does it make products for other brands?
Yes, we produce all of our Spank wheelsets, from scratch. I won’t say our customers’ names, just because I don’t think that they would like you to know. There’s no secrecy, but we’re making a lot of things for some of the world’s leading mountain bike and road brands. We handle the high-end alloy production and we help to design, develop, and engineer products specifically to their needs.”
“PB: It’s good to see some companies putting the money back at different levels, rather than supporting few of the elite.
Yes, aside from our impressive World Cup teams such as United Ride, legends of the sport like Darren Berrecloth, and FMB rising stars like Nicholi Rogatkin, we also have quite a substantial grassroots program, where we provide affordable product to young, aspiring riders that we feel have got potential but maybe need a little bit of support to get off the ground. Actually, a lot of our grassroots riders have evolved into professional competitors and we’ve been supporting some of these guys for ten to twelve years. It’s actually helped to foster new talents. We maintain relationships with these guys specifically to help grow our industry. We see that a big part of what we do is involvement and participation.”
Read the full article on Pinkbike.com
Learn more about Spank products at Spank Industries.com