Team Bearpope
Team Bearpope is an unofficial cycling team consisting of around 350 members across 15 countries around the world. The name was birthed from a joke and it spawned an exclusive cycling clothing line that has sold around 1000 full sets of kit, and even more accessories.
It started in 2014 when a small group of friends decided they were tired of the over branded, black on black, dull, and unimaginative cycling kits. We wanted to make something that we wanted to wear. So we came together and brainstormed the most in your face color scheme and patterns that would be sure to grab people's attention no matter where we rode.
Team Bearpope 1.0
I created the first design late at night or on weekends over the course of 3 weeks, collecting feedback from about 20 people, ordering swatches, kit samples, lab dips, and eventually test fabric printed with our first design. It was wildly successful and sold nearly $11,000 in the very first order.
Photo credit, Earl Bryan Photography
Gulfpope
With the success of the initial Bearpope design, we had an influx of team members join up and start asking for something more ridiculous. In 2016 I came up with a new version of the design, with blue and orange, and thus Gulfpope was born. While less popular than the original, we still sold about 30 units and shipped them around the country and they still consistently sell a few units a year.
Minimalist Bearpope
With the popularity of brands like Rapha on the rise, our members wanted something a little less loud, and a little more subdued. In 2017 I came up with the Minimalist Bearpope kit that came in two different colorways, pink and chartreuse. This was our most popular kit to date, and has surpassed Bearpope 1.0 in overall sales.
Vaporpope
In 2018 I decided it was time to embrace the vaporwave movement and come up with a loud new retro '80s style kit. With its first launch in 2019, it nearly tied the Minimalist line in sales and will probably surpass it next time the store opens in October of this year.
