littlebig-bike(1)
simon

The LittleBIg bike(top) and its inventor Simon Evans (above), during a round the world cycle in 2010

He came home tanned, Zeus-bearded and bottom-sore.

With a fresh perspective on life.

And no job.

But Simon Evans had a big dream about a little bike (that can be made bigger).

He explains:

Broadsheet featued an article on my business when it was pre-startup. We’re now up and running and I wanted to share with your readers our journey.

In 2010 I completed Revolution Cycle, the first Irish circumnavigation of the world by bicycle, covering 31,000km and 30 countries over 18 months.

When I came back I found myself jobless (I’m a structural engineer) and in a totally different Ireland to the one I left in 2008.

I found temporary work in a local bike shop and while working there I spotted a potential opportunity for a growing kids bike. I thought to myself, kids won’t ever stop growing, so why not make a bike that can.

The LittleBig begins as a pedal-less balance bike for kids age 2+. No need for stabilisers, balance bikes allow kids to glide along effortlessly while quickly developing their coordination and motor skills. After the child has grown out of the small balance bike, the rear of the bike can be inverted, resulting in a bigger balance bike that accommodates for the child’s growth.

It took about 2 years to setup the business, develop the bike and locate a manufacturer that could achieve the high quality we were looking for.

Starting LittleBig bikes had even more ups and downs than pedaling around the world for 18 months, but now I’m absolutely delighted to have kids learning to cycle on a bike I’ve designed.

And I wanted to share that we have since had distribution requests in the four corners of the globe including the Caribbean Antilles, South Africa, South Korea, Japan and the USA, so it looks like I’ll be back traveling again. Thank you.

Mmmf

LittleBig Bikes.

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20 thoughts on “Quite A Ride

      1. martco

        Simon
        congrats, outstanding idea
        u may have already thought of this one but anyways make sure you talk to special needs cycling clubs, they normally start the smaller kids on normal bikes BUT with the pedals removed as a strider for a while then re-adding the pedals and so on….your bike looks bang on fit for that scenario too

        1. Simon Evans

          Cheers for the suggestion. I’ve been contacted by quite a few parents with kids with special needs. Hopefully we’ll develop an even bigger one to allow kids even more time to learn without the pedals if need be.

  1. Manolo

    Pity my kids are just over the target age. I would definitely buy, price is fair and the longevity is a strong argument. Best of luck, Simon!

    1. Simon Evans

      I had a pretty basic wire lock. Main thing is to keep an eye on it where possible, but really most people are kinds and don’t want to nick a dude’s bike.

  2. Swoon

    An idea for you…

    Handlebars & saddles that can be risen (and lowered)as child grows up.I think your idea only addresses children getting fatter.

    1. Simon Evans

      Thanks for the suggestion, the bars and saddle do move….. : )

      As you flip the frame over, the saddle moves upwards by 100mm, and the reach increases by 50mm to account for longer arms. You can see this on an overlay here: https://www.littlebigbikes.com/sizing-geometry/

      Also, the saddle is adjustable like on your normal adult bike so can go up by a further 100mm, and the bars can be raised 30mm by moving the spacers under the stem.

  3. Gers

    It already exist and its called a BMX. You higher the saddle as the kid grows …. besides, taste in kids to teens changes dramatically so if this has a market I cant see it been all that big. And at the rate bikes are stolen anyway you probably wont get to keep it that long!

    1. Simon Evans

      @ Gers Yes BMX’s are great, I still use one myself : ) But the LittleBig is for a much smaller kid (from age 2-7) where BMX’s are normally for bigger kids. Also the LittleBig starts without pedals to allow the child to learn their balance.

  4. Spaghetti Hoop

    Good luck with the business.
    With all the robbin’, it’s time for a re-design of the fold-up bike.

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