How he made a career in the bike industry - PNW Components.

Last year I got to spend the day with Aaron of PNW components. We talked about how he first got into biking, breaking into the bike industry, and the challenges of creating his own brand.
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[@JackScalise]

I bought a post from these guys three years ago and was extremely impressed...but man, I just learned that PNW post, the best dropper I ever bought, was made in their first year as a company! That's a big thumbs up from me.

[@signalmountain2315]

Bought the pine 27.2 dropper and the loam lever from PNW and it has been awesome. The quality of the products are amazing!

[@TheCrashingDad]

This was a nice podcast style episode 👍🏼 listened to while driving.... Just gets me even more stoked on PNW 🤘🏼

[@themtnbikegeek]

Huge respect from me for PNW Components! I love all of their products, and they're just getting more and more refined as time goes on! 🤘

[@PNWComponents]

Thank you! You've been a huge supporter since day one!

[@jjr1314]

PNW is an awesome company with awesome droppers. We have one on mine and one one Justin's bike. Both work perfect. They even sent me the shifter style lever when mine came with the other style. Great Customer service

[@PNWComponents]

Thank you guys for the support, that's awesome you doubled up!

[@ShutUpandRideMTB]

In all seriousness, this is your best video yet. Great story, great format, great footage. BTW, leaving your helmets on for the interview is legit. Nice job Joseph, cheers!

[@TrailFeatures]

Thanks, man! Now shut up and go ride your bike.

[@PNWComponents]

Thank you so much! And I agree, I think interviews should be done with helmets post-ride more often :)

[@anttiharing]

I think that the best mountain biking companies are the ones founded by actual riders because they know what people want and know that the product has to exactly be like it should. Usually also warranties are better handled by rider based companies because they know how frustrating it is having to wait for a part that without you cannot ride. Great video!

[@TrailFeatures]

So true! It's one thing to be off the bike because the weather, but having a downed bike sucks because all your buds are out riding!

[@PNWComponents]

It's true! We've all been burned over the years with poor warranty support and/or unreliable products but we had a deep gut feeling things didn't have to be that way.

[@TrailFeatures]

Big thanks to Aaron again for spending the day riding! Do you have any questions for Aaron? How about your experience with a PNW Products? Let me know!

[@PNWComponents]

Thank you so much Joseph! And I have a question for myself, does my voice really sound that nasally? Jeez....

[@TrailFeatures]

@@PNWComponents it was all that moon dust we were breathing in. 😷

[@tdmjfountain]

Great interview. I will be purchasing items from them. Super interesting to hear the actual owner talking about growing pains. Customer service will win every time!

[@zachmoir]

Honestly this confirmed me on becoming a life long customer. This dream to reality is a beauty to witness and if I can help that dream remain alive, I'll do so. Great interview! + let's be honest, PNW makes some great stuff!

[@workhorsemtb7075]

I bought a PNW dropper instead of a Fox Transfer because of all the positive youtube love for PNW.

[@TrailFeatures]

Nice! Which one did you end up with?

[@workhorsemtb7075]

@@TrailFeatures cascade 170

[@PNWComponents]

Wow, NICE! Thank you for that!

[@pregardt]

U should have a lot more subs. Quality is good ur voice is good the topics are good. Keep it up! I subbed

[@mattj6676]

A great video highlighting the entrepreneurial spirit that you just have to respect. I wish there was a way to have these components and bikes manufactured in the US, but right now the best factories he can work with are overseas.

[@RiderDon]

Gotta love PNW components as I am a Northwestern too 😬 nice vid bro 👍🏼

[@1pho3nixmatt]

Nice interview. Actually pretty interesting!

[@ieuanwilliams5664]

Sick! I've subscribed!

[@jjr1314]

I cant wait to see the new products coming out! Glad to see their company doing so well! Aaron makes me want to apply for a job for PNW. Lol.

[@PNWComponents]

Thank you! We're doing our best against some pretty large and funded companies but the support we're seeing is absolutely incredible, very thankful for everyone out there supporting us!

[@jjr1314]

@@PNWComponents wow! That's what I call a responsive customer service! You've earned my business for sure (I will ask my son to shout out his dropper post manufacturer in his next video...Lol) Thanks for the reply! Keep quality products coming and keep up the awesome work!

[@HindsightFPV]

I'd love to see a company like PNW take on the OVERPRICED fork market. I know there's a ton of R&D that goes into suspension but there's got to be a better middle ground with forks. P. S. I love my PNW dropper 170mm FTW!

[@TrailFeatures]

Ooof... Unfortunately the bike marketplace is a minefield of patent issues. Ever wonder why Rockshox has sag markings printed on the side of their stanchions, but other companies don't? Rockshox patented it. 😑 Big companies spend big bucks to make sure their intellectual property is protected which is only fair, but it can make It extremely difficult for small companies to enter the space. That's why you're seeing a big push to linkage forks, it's basically one of the few areas that hasn't been overly saturated with patents.

[@PNWComponents]

@@HindsightFPV Yeah man, tell me about it! Unfortunately forks are a really tricky one. Lots of patents, super expensive tooling and the big brands have a pretty aggressive stranglehold on the supply chain side of things. We're going to stick with cool cockpit components where we can put our own opinions on how they should function in the meantime.

[@craighenry7915]

Awesome video, just put one of there dropper lever on my fat bike.

[@BigVanLittleAdventures]

I'm really enjoying these smaller companys that are making quality components and bikes. Investors or even worse publicly traded companys dont give a crap about the product or its employees.... needless to say ill be supporting them next bike i get.

[@TrailFeatures]

The customer service is a big reason why I point people towards PNW. There are cheaper products on the market, but I know Aaron will take care of people if a problem does come up. 👍

[@PNWComponents]

Well I appreciate that! We strongly believe that treating people well and delivering reliable products is what will continue to set us apart as larger companies continue to receive more pressure to focus on profit margins. But who knows, maybe with time it'll turn out we're crazy and this will never work?! :)

[@MTBZenMaster]

Solid. It's nice to learn the business of the business and get to know some of the good passionate folks who lead them. -Sam

[@TrailFeatures]

There's so much that goes into making a product, really eye opening!

[@PNWComponents]

Thank you Sam! Being passionate about something definitely helps keep us focused on what's important

[@GoodTrails]

Great audio!

[@rogerarmendariz7633]

Cool.

[@carlosgomezzzzzzz]

I bought a dropper post from them thinking and accepting the weight of my bike would dramatically increase, it turns my bike weights less with the dropper post than with the regular alloy post it came with from the shop... Love this company, but I don't know what else to buy from them since Im a XC racer mainly

[@tinkeringcyclist9314]

He mentioned pedals were coming, I still don't see those on the site. What happened to that project?

[@wyattsalas3901]

I'm curious where in the silicon valley are you from, I'm from Sunnyvale, keep up the great work man I love your videos (:

[@TrailFeatures]

Ah! My bad, Man! I meant to say that I work in technology. I'm actually from the North East coast. 😅

[@TrailPOV]

Took a look at your website and there can't just be the two of you running this comp as you must have a mech design team....where are they located and are they full-time employees or contract design?

[@PNWComponents]

Great question! This was actually filmed over the summer and quite a bit has changed since then. Since day 1 we've contracted with trusted engineers I've worked with in the past and also with our factories which is a great way to deliver products to market at lower prices than having full time engineering staff before we were ready to support such high salaries. We now have 5 full time employees including Emily and myself plus. Pretty exciting times!

[@TrailPOV]

@@PNWComponents Thanks for the detailed reply. Reason I ask is that I recently actually resigned from my engineering job that I've been at for the last 10 years to pursue more interesting and fulfilling endeavours....one being KZbin, the other being a contract engineer. It would be fantastic to find a company in the bike industry, so always have my ears to the ground incase I find one who could use my services.

[@FoVision]

@@PNWComponents PNW is amazing. I hope I can work for them one of these days

[@jma64930]

Pnw...there is no reason to buy another dropper!!! Reliable, and reliable, and cheap, and reliable.....and Aaron replies to your emails/questions personally still!!!