Rick's Motorcycles, 25 Years of Rock'n'Roll
What do Harley-Davidson , Amazon , Apple and Rick's Motorcycles in common?
Rick's connection to the most famous American motorcycle manufacturer should be obvious with a Harley-Davidson dealership.
First company address: A small garage
All of them were actually founded in some, more or less fancy, garage . Almost exactly 25 years , Rick turned his passion for modifying motorcycles into a career.
From 1994 onwards, custom parts and complete custom bikes were created in his parents' garage, then still in Rastatt.
From today's perspective, what was initially supposed to be a sideline job with a trade license was only given an official coat of paint, but from today's perspective it was the starting signal for a success story that was not even remotely foreseeable in the mid-1990s.
Official Harley-Davidson dealer since 2010
What was once a garage has long since become a stately company whose custom parts are now in demand worldwide. We have also been an official Harley-Davidson dealer .
Rick in an interview with Harleysite
We met Patrick (Rick for short), the company founder, for an interview to find out the secret of success.
Harleysite (HS): Rick, nice that you took the time for us...
Rick (PK): Thanks for stopping by.
HS: In these weeks your company will be a quarter of a century old. This makes Rick's Motorcycles one of the old hands in the European custom scene...
PK: Yes, that's true. I have seen many so-called customizers come and go. Unfortunately, in the last ten years more have left than have been added.
HS: If others complain that things are going so badly at the moment and you keep hearing about business closures, then why does the success story of Rick's Motorcycles only show an upward direction?
PK: That's not entirely true; the last 25 years have not only seen success. I could lecture you about failure for two hours now.
HS: What is the secret of your success?
PK: You see, that's exactly the point... first of all, there is no single formula for success. Maybe part of the answer lies in the previous question about how to deal with failure. All I can say is how I deal with it.
I don't dwell on failure for long and I certainly don't let it bring me down. I see what I can learn from it and look forward. I have to deal with failures almost regularly when working with our development team.
I employ product designers and engineers with whom I work very closely. But not every new part that we come up with will be a success. On the contrary, much of it will never be produced.
And yet you still get something from everything. The realization that something cannot be produced in small series will ultimately help you move forward. This knowledge flows consciously or unconsciously into the development of the next parts. It's not bad to make mistakes, but repeating them and not learning from them is reprehensible...
HS: If you know a little about the custom scene and the sub-market, you can quickly find out your products among all the others... why do you think that is?
PK: You're a real truffle pig... no, seriously. I attach great importance to maximum perfection and of course that each piece has its own signature. Many Rick's designs have been around almost since the beginning.
We have continually refined these, but the design concept has always remained the same. For example, if you take one of our custom bikes, you will notice that their age is insignificant. Even with a 15-year-old Rick's bike, you still don't have to hide today.
HS: Why is that?
PK: Because in addition to perfection, I attach particular importance to timeless design.
HS: And you are not subject to fashion trends?
PK: Only limited… when it comes to colors, for example, or the choice of model. These are specifications that customers give us. A while ago the color of a bike didn't matter as long as it was black.
At the moment they all want gray in a variety of tones. But when it comes to the shape and lines of our pieces, including those that will later be painted, I don't make any fashion concessions. I'm happy to leave this nonsense to the competitors.
HS: You don't think much of your competitors?
PK: Yes, depending on the situation, there are already very capable entrepreneurs there. But with some bikes I wonder whether they were designed to match the design of the Christmas tree.
HS: Do you actually have any role models?
PK: No, not in the classic sense. So I'm constantly looking at what my colleagues around the world are up to and of course what I see also influences me.
If you take Hazan Motorworks for example, what the boy is doing is real art, I take my hat off to him. None of this could be transferred 1:1 to Rick's. But I can still learn a lot from how he implements shapes and lines.
Thank you for taking the time, I think we can look forward to seeing what you come up with in the next 25 years!
Further information about Rick's Motorcycles can be found at www.ricks-motorcycles.com
