Following the Bici Bankruptcy, many local teams were stranded: no clothes, short on budget, the season right around the corner. Instead of taking advantage of the situation, Hincapie Sportswear stepped in and offered several teams (including mine) very competitive pricing and rapid turnaround. We spoke to company president Rich Hincapie.

@##=#<6,L>@##=#NYVC How did you get into cycling?

RH I started when I was 9 years old (24 years ago). My Dad got us into it, and ever since I can remember I’ve been going to races with him. My parents are Colombian, so for my dad growing up it was like someone playing football here. It has been great to live my passion with my family involved.

NYVC What was the junior scene like?

RH Back then, the junior scene was at its peak. Looking at USA Cycling membership lists, you can see that the junior membership high was right around 1987, which was my last year as a junior rider. It was not uncommon to have 100 plus riders in the junior fields back then.

NYVC That’s a shame. You’d think with the success of you-know-who there’d be more participation now. What was it about that time that made the junior scene so active?

RH I think really it was the 1984 Olympics in LA that started that wave going. There was so much attention after the Olympics that year that I think we saw a big effect for a few years after. The ‘Lance effect’ has been helping the sport along and I truly feel we’ll get back up to that high level within the next few years.

NYVC Do you have any good stories about our local stalwarts?

RH I could probably spend days with stories. I grew up racing with Charlie Issendorf and we’ve been friends for a long time. Mr. “I” would take all of us to races including George (as you may know Mr. “I” is a big cigar smoker) we would always put George in the seat directly behind Mr “I” ’cause that was known as the smoking section. Normally he would drive with the window open so the car would not fill up with cigar smoke (not ideal right before a race), so you would either freeze, be too hot, or on occasion if it was raining you would get wet. All the while having cigar ashes blown on you. George would never say a word though, maybe all that smoke and having to deal with the elements helped him. Must have since he’s the only one in the car with us who is doing the Classics. Maybe I should have considered the smoking section?

@##=#<3,r>@##=#NYVC What kind of a rider were you?

RH One who particularly didn’t like to suffer much—ok I’m kidding. I am still sort of the same. I never won much but was always there in the end. I was fortunate to grow up in the global cycling scene in NYC and learned from the best of them. NYC may not have the best riders but certainly they are some of the smartest and savviest around. In my opinion, George and I really learned from the best at the track and park races.

NYVC What level did you reach as a racer?

RH I didn’t reach a very high level. I raced in Europe a bit but mostly the national scene. I wouldn’t trade it for anything. It really relates well to the business world, as the more you put into it, the more you get out.

NYVC How did Hincapie Sports come about?

RH I’ve been involved in the sport for so long it just seemed like a natural step, although it wasn’t exactly planned that way. I’ve promoted races in the south for about 12 years and have run a regional cycling team for about 4. I was always fortunate enough to live only a few miles from George. Whenever he got his new pro team kits, I would compare them to mine, and I was never quite satisfied. I decided to figure out a way to make custom clothing on a retail quality and performance level. We certainly have a niche since we focus on the high end of quality and customer satisfaction. Having George as a partner really gave the company a huge jump start. We started the company with an established brand name, so the growth rate has been great. George gives us a bunch of input and feedback on what works for him and we use that directly in our manufacturing.

NYVC What made you leave New York?

RH I was actually going to college in NY but would only go the fall semester. I usually traveled down south in the spring to train and race. After a few years I decided I wanted to finish college in less than the 9 years or so it was going to take at the rate I was going. I still wanted to race on a high level, so I decided to go to school down south at UNC Charlotte and do both. It worked out great! I would take classes and then pack up my VW Jetta on Thursday nights and drive to a race.

@##=#<4,L>@##=#NYVC How do you like South Carolina?

RH We love it here. I think it’s one of the best places in the country to live and train. George and I live right downtown and we can be in the mountains on our bikes in about an hour. We deal with minimal traffic and have great weather, and that’s hard to beat as a cyclist. Since George moved to town, the popularity of the sport has really gone through the roof. Most of the time, when we are getting honked at these days, the people are waving at us.

NYVC Clearly, one of your company’s biggest assets is the Hincapie name. What else differentiates you from all the other clothing companies?

RH Sure, the biggest asset was the name and still is to a point, but that can only take us so far. I often tell people it’s the same in any industry. We could be selling widgets but still have to keep the customer happy and treat them fairly. So yes, starting out we had a lot to live up to with the name. There was a lot of pressure on me, since I could hurt the Hincapie name rather then help it if I wasn’t careful. There is a lot more at stake than just selling clothing. The company was started with George’s future in mind. We plan on transitioning him into a bigger role here when he decides it’s time, although it may be a while before that happens.

NYVC How much time do you spend in Italy? How do you keep up on production and quality control?

RH I go to Italy a few times per year to check on things. We have a couple of partners there, but we are unique for a few reasons. One is that we have someone who lives there who works for us and can check on all aspects of production, which keeps everyone on their toes. Two, the factories have grown with us, so we are a huge part of their production and we have more control over what is taking place.

NYVC What are the advantages of having production in Italy (aside from the almighty dollar)?

RH When we started the company, the dollar was a huge advantage. That advantage has totally disappeared now with the current exchange rates, but hopefully that will turn around for us. Italy is a large player in the fashion industry, and cycling also has a great history there. The Italians are known for their high quality manufacturing, especially in cycling apparel. When I started the company, the focus was, and still is, on quality so it was a natural place to go to create our premium apparel line. We’ve had huge success manufacturing Hincapie apparel in Italy.

NYVC How’s your retail line of clothes doing? I imagine it’s hard to break into a market with so many established brands already out there.

RH The retail line is doing great! We started it last year and it has really taken off. Sure there’s competition out there, but our products have a great niche since they focus heavily on style. They’ve done well because of the name recognition, but our designs are cutting edge as well. It’s a great combination. Breaking into the market has its challenges, but our formula works. We please the racers with top quality custom apparel which trickles down into the shops and helps sell the retail product. It’s a strategy that not too many people have used. Some companies out there have retail lines, but they don’t focus as much on the custom side. If they do custom, they don’t work as much on the quality of the apparel, which in turn becomes a barrier to get into the shops.

@##=#<7,r>@##=#NYVC So, the custom side acts as a sales tool for the retail side, and vice versa?

RH Oh for sure. We treat all clothing at a super high level, and yes it does act as a sales tool. I feel that the teams riding in our clothing have the highest influence in the local cycling community. It’s almost like an advertising tool for us. Word of mouth is a very powerful marketing tool. We spend a bit more on the quality and in my eyes that goes much farther then any ad. It’s been working well for us.

NYVC You really bailed out quite a few local teams following the Bici bankruptcy. I guess you still have a soft spot for us New Yawkers?

RH You know the NYC teams have come up quite frequently here in meetings. We feel like we are still part of that community so for us it was just like helping out our very own people. The situation for the teams in NYC this year was very unfortunate. I have run a team down here for the last few years, and I can feel their pain. We tried to do whatever possible to lessen the burden. That was a very unfortunately situation for all involved and we did what we could to help.

(Apparently Rich has a brother who’s into cycling as well. You can read about him here.)