With travel now back on the agenda, we recently caught up with Tom Sturdy from Sturdy Cycles in the UK in his new workshop in Frome, Somerset. We’ve had many online meetings in the past, and it was great to meet him in person and find out what’s been happening in his world.
Meet the team – Tom, Omar and Albert (the poodle, who apparently is in charge!)
There was a cycling boom during COVID in the UK, as people weren’t able to spend their spare cash on much else. Cycle to Work Schemes became popular, offering employees a tax incentive to buy a bike and get fit. (Effectively your employer buys the bike, and you lease it from your employer from your gross pay. So you save the tax that you would have paid on that money.)
During this time, Tom’s customer base remained loyal. He also started to attract new customers, but it wasn’t without its challenges with supply chains. The raw materials he needed could still be sourced. But third-party bits, like brakes and gears, that he doesn’t currently manufacture, created cash flow and logistical nightmares for him. He had to source many of the parts from all over the world. In some ways it was “a blessing and a curse and it did make life more difficult. But it was really positive in getting more customers and that hasn’t subsided.”
A look inside the Sturdy Cycles workshop
Tom is now producing two bikes per week. Which is the reason he needed a new workshop, and a second pair of hands, that he now has in Omar. We asked him if he is planning to step up his production; he feels it’s something he will consider. But he’ll need to think about hiring a third person, which could allow for increasing production capacity to 3-4 bikes a week.
The Sturdy Cycles bike fleet
The Road Race, All Road and XC have been rebranded as the Fiadh, Cilla, and Tara. Tom tells us there are a few new ones coming, that need to be finished and then launched. There is a more racy road bike, an aero road bike, and a time trial race bike. (Time Trial riding is popular in the UK and appeals to a very specialised market. Tom is keen to pursue this because of his love of Triathlon.) He’s been developing the new bikes for some time, but the bad side of COVID was they should have launched last year, but he just got busy.
To 3D or not to 3D — that is the question…
We asked Tom if he thought the 3D printing aspect part of his bike production had added to the popularity of his bikes. His response was he doesn’t want his bikes to be sold purely on the basis that they are 3D printed. He wanted a way to offer a unique product at the forefront of technology, and that’s what he believes his customers enjoy. He feels his work is fairly recognisable, and people are attracted to Sturdy Cycles because of the 3D printing element. But he still doesn’t want that to be the only reason.
Tom has learnt so much over the years from pushing the boundaries of 3D printing. From having to do reprints and change design; it is all part of the learning process. A combination of reprint, dimensional accuracy, and the strength of the part when it is in use in the final product. Tom is a great advocate for metal 3D printing because he feels this technology allows him to create designs and structure that couldn’t be manufactured any other way. Additive Manufacturing is the best way to achieve exactly what he wanted to achieve.