The story of how Brompton, the iconic folding bicycle that you can
take anywhere--and that can take you anywhere--grew from a small cult
bike company to a multimillion-dollar business
Lightweight, compact, distinctively styled, and now, electric: The
Brompton isn't the only folding bicycle--or even the first. But everyone
who has been on one will enthusiastically testify to its marvelous
design (virtually unchanged over decades) and the particular joy of
riding it.
Will Butler-Adams, CEO of Brompton Bicycles, has been at the company for
twenty years. Initially, he worked as an engineer for Andrew Ritchie,
the bike's brilliant inventor and the business's founder, before taking
the helm in 2008. Butler-Adams's heartfelt mission is to grow and
promote sustainable urban transportation and to improve city-dwellers'
lives everywhere.
Under his leadership, Brompton has grown from making a few hundred bikes
a year to over 90,000, with revenue of $130 million. But progress hasn't
always been easy: There have been boardroom struggles, supply-chain
problems, and conflicts with founder Andrew Ritchie. In The Brompton,
Butler-Adams brings to life what it means to grow a company to global
scale. He also tells the stories of the people who make the Brompton and
the people who ride it. And he explains how customers all around the
world fell in love with a brand that never set out to be a brand.
