Bike By Me, Custom Bicycle Design.

Swedish company Bike By Me based in Jonkoping, Sweden came up with a revolutionary concept, they let you design online your own custom bicycle at a very reasonable price (499€).

I always liked the objects that are somewhat personalize and not a product of mass production and canning of aesthetics, especially when I can personally intervene in their design. Bike By Me company decided that it was time for a creative intervention on bicycles. They created a website where one can design a bike of his own taste, order it at and have it delivered at home in 2-5 working days (for Europe).

Bike By Me bikes are elegant and of good quality, they are made (with special care) in Sweden and quality control is done on a one-to-one basis and not by random sampling. However the best part is that you can make wonderful color combinations, since even the tires and the chain have the color of your prefer.

In terms of mechanical set-up at the moment there is only the possibility of choosing the size of the frame and the fork to suit different body types. However with such a flexible platform at their disposal, we are hoping that the Swedish will soon offer more options for the technical aspects of the bicycle.

The customization or personalization of objects based on the user’s preferences is a trend of modern marketing, but it means much more, as it is a way of expression of artistic concerns.

With the aid of flexibility in production methods and better communication with the customer, it becomes increasingly feasible to create unique objects on order in minimum time and accessible by most people. I think Bike By Me is a notable effort to the right direction for those who want to escape the bandwagon-effect that is currently dominating western societies in the name of mass production and cost reduction.