| Industry | Cruiser bicycle |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2008 |
| Founder(s) | Fleetwood Hicks |
| Headquarters | Dallas, Texas |
| Area served | United States |
| Products | Cruiser bicycles and accessories |
| Website | VillyCustoms.com |
Villy Customs is an American lifestyle brand specializing in custom designed beach cruiser bicycles for adults.[1] Based in Dallas, the company was founded and is privately owned by entrepreneur Fleetwood Hicks, a former menswear fashion designer and health enthusiast, and it was chosen by Entrepreneur Magazine as one of the 100 Most Brilliant Business Ideas of 2010.[2] The focus of the brand is to sell unique custom cruiser bikes, apparel, parts, and accessories directly to the consumer through their website and through their custom cruiser bike boutique at eBay. According to a recent study by Leisure Trends and Bicycle Retailer & Industry News, the fastest growing segment of the bicycle industry is the “comfort” segment which includes the beach cruiser bike.[3]
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In 2006 Hicks discovered beach cruiser bike riding on Venice Beach while in Los Angeles on a business trip. After renting a beach cruiser for a scheduled one hour ride, he brought the rental back 6 hours later and was hooked;[4] relishing the simplicity, comfort and style of the bike and the fact that you could wear street clothes and look stylish riding. Two years later, Villy Customs was founded in 2008 and began as a brick and mortar retail store (selected by Daily Candy as “Sweetest Things” 2009)[5] specializing in sales of Felt Cruisers, Hawk Classic Cruiser bikes, specialty accessories and apparel. After experimenting with minor bike customization, Hicks soon realized he could infuse fashion, texture and unique color combinations to create a one-of-a-kind custom cruiser bike company. The Icon of the Brand is the owner’s Bullmastiff dog, named DeVille. The Brand is known for its unexpected product features,[6] including: brightly colored “balloon tires” (12 color choices), fender colors and pinstripe combinations (over 50 pinstripe colors and 16 fender colors), custom painted seatcovers (handmade), hand-made neck emblems (10 flavors to choose from), numerous rim choices, 8 different chain colors and luxurious screw on grips not typically seen on standard beach cruiser bicycles. Most big cruiser bike Brands design their bikes based on themes that the company creates, whereas at Villy Customs the customer can create their own designs based on color combinations and unique accessories.
Villy Customs is the first “fashion” brand of cruiser bike.[7] The idea came from Hicks, an apparel designer who translated his knowledge of fashion design to custom cruiser bikes, allowing customers to combine colors, materials, and textures to produce different looks with a 3D interactive website that uses flash technology, enabling the customer to see their “dream bike” before purchasing it.
The official company logo is a shield including a graphic of DeVille’s (nickname “Villy”) head wearing a starred collar. The color scheme is Gold, Black, Red and Silver. The company also offers logo’d t-shirts.
The company’s showroom, warehouse, and assemblage facility is located in downtown Dallas, Texas. The showroom is open to the public by appointment only.
a. Won the Sweetest Things Award for Dallas by Dailycandy.com in 2009
b. Selected by Entrepreneur Magazine as one of the 100 Most Brilliant Business Ideas for 2010 (June 2010 edition)[8]
c. National feature by Dailycandy.com in March 2010. The response was so incredible the site crashed for one day.[9]
d. Feb 2011 featured on national T.V. by NBC’s First Look[10]
e. Featured on local T.V. (WFAA) Good Morning Texas in March 2011 and also in 2010[11]
f. Featured on KTVT The 33 News in 2009.
f. Full feature by the Dallas Morning News as the Sunday “Entrepreneur” feature (Sept. 2010) business section[12]
g. AOL National feature story[13]
h. Kickstand Magazine
i. Modern Luxury Magazine (April 2011 issue, Page 121)[14]