Gloria Hwang rode her bike to work every day for years without a helmet. She thought it looked goofy. Then her career mentor died from a head injury sustained in a bike crash鈥攕ans helmet. Committed to shifting habits, she merged style and safety in a design that overcame all her reasons for not wanting to wear one. Thousand is the result.
Observe
鈥淐ommuting around Los Angeles, I would count how many riders were wearing helmets. It was only about 10 to 15 percent. For people riding a hundred miles a week, wearing a helmet is standard. For the recreational community, less so.鈥
Identify Problems
鈥淒esign isn鈥檛 just supposed to be beautiful. It鈥檚 supposed to solve problems. For example, people hate carrying helmets around, but they also worry about leaving them behind. So we designed a feature that lets you thread your bike鈥檚 U-lock through the helmet.鈥
Follow Through
鈥淚f your lid gets stolen when it鈥檚 stashed outside with our Pop-Lock system, we鈥檒l replace it. We also have an accident replacement policy. If you鈥檙e ever in a crash, we鈥檒l send you a new helmet for free. Since 2016, we鈥檝e replaced 389.鈥
Embrace Change
鈥淚 believe there is an authentic desire among people in the bike industry to attract diverse riders. But that requires more than a pipeline or good marketing. It means creating a culture that鈥檚 equitable and inclusive, where people feel valued and safe. Women, or the BIPOC and queer communities, might enjoy cycling. But if they always feel like outsiders, they won鈥檛 stay.鈥
Stand Out
鈥淎s a woman of color in the bike industry, I鈥檇 go to a trade show and never see anyone who looked like me. In the beginning, I tried to blend in. Later, though, a mentor told me that my otherness was the reason Thousand was succeeding. I had a different perspective on what the market wanted. Now I believe that outsider perspective is the most valuable thing I can offer to an industry I鈥檝e really come to love.鈥澛