| Andrew Lumpkin, CEO of Spot Brand bikes announced today that they have hired Sky Yaeger for a newly created position as Senior Product Manager. Yaeger started immediately, working out of a Marin County, California office. The majority owner of Spot Brand is Wayne Lumpkin, having founded Avid in 1991 and, after successfully building the international brand, selling it to SRAM in 2004.
"This is a fantastic opportunity for me, as I have always admired Spot Brand and been a huge fan of Wayne and Andrew. After they acquired Spot Brand I was excited to see where they would take it and I am honored to be joining a company with such legitimate MTB heritage, and now huge potential with the Gates belt-drive system," Yaeger said.
Yaeger brought some of the first production single-speed mountain bikes to market in the mid-90s, while at Bianchi USA, and spec'd Spot hubs on those first bikes. "I go back with the brand and have always liked the simple, clean design and fun vibe."
Andrew Lumpkin added, "Sky is a trendsetter in the industry and will be instrumental to Spot Brand's continued trailblazing of new technologies."
For the past 4 years Yaeger has been working at Swobo Bikes, which was recently acquired by Santa Cruz Bicycles. She started designing the urban bicycle product line in 2006, and the line-up now includes 10 models currently in production. Before that she was VP of Product Development at Bianchi USA for many years.
The industry veteran will be responsible for a new line of Spot models that will incorporate the Gates belt-drive technology. "I think the future looks bright for alternative drivetrain options. I've always believed in simple, elegant solutions to complex problems. The internal hub is an old idea but it's been my mission, since I designed the Bianchi Milano in 1996, to get more people to appreciate the function and simplicity of internally geared hubs on modern bikes. Add a belt to that and you have an almost perfect drivetrain."
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