Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Andrew Finesilver. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Andrew, appreciate you joining us today. What was it like going from idea to execution? Can you share some of the backstory and some of the major steps or milestones?
I started riding my bike in mountain bike and road bike competitions when I was in Highschool. I loved riding and my team and I rode hundreds of miles each week for training. Eventually I enlisted in the Air Force but I kept riding. I had the thought to start a bike shop but while in the military I did not have time or opportunity. When I got out of the Air Force in 2022 I kept thinking of opening a bike shop but didn’t know how well it would do, so I started an LLC and advertised for bicycle maintenance while working out of my garage. The first year in the garage proved that there was a need in the area for bicycle repair. A friend of mine who was a pastor at the church we attended suggested that I open a commercial space for the bike shop and rent some of the building space to the church as a counseling office. This seemed like a good idea and a way to help with the commercial space mortgage so we purchased the building and started a 4 month long renovation. We tore down most of the walls, and ceilings inside, and the facade outside. We hauled away over 7000 pounds of junk and used some of the wood to build counters. Once we opened the bike shop we saw immediate success that we did not anticipate and we drew business from places as far away as St. Louis, and Springfield, Missouri. We love our community and are excited to bring bicycling to everyone.
Andrew, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I started riding bicycles as a child, eventually leading to racing competitively igniting a passion for the sport and for working on my own bike. The passion developed into an opportunity to serve the community by encouraging fitness, fun and involvement. We sell new and used bikes and we will fix anything bicycle related and then some. We cross over into electric scooters and electric motorcycles sometimes because these unique platforms do not have dedicated shops for them so the bleed over into bicycle repair. The basic concepts are the same and since part of our mission is to get people out of the house to get them moving, we want to provide those services. Many customers come in thinking their old bike is not worth fixing so we provide simple and inexpensive solutions to salvage what they have and get them back riding. We are most proud of the way the community comes together for something fun, and rewarding like bicycling. People from all over the world come here because of the military base and we benefit because everyone likes bikes. Our brand is one born of the California style that I grew up in. I loved surfing, skating and riding bikes so those were the vibes I shared with my nephew who is a graphic designer and he came up with a super rad zombie biker and some vintage yet modern logos. We are proud to represent all types of riders from small children on balance bikes, to avid racers and die hard adventurers who travel across America on their bikes. We love riding, fixing and everything in between about bikes and community.
Can you open up about how you funded your business?
When looking to finance the purchase of the commercial space and move out of my garage, we needed a certain amount for the down payment to get the loan approved. I called my Dad who lived in California at the time and asked if he would be willing to fund the endeavor. He was excited and told me that he wanted a return on the investment and not a pay back of the money. The return he was looking for was in the form of success. So he gave us a gift and enabled us to launch the bike shop. The rest of the money came in the form of support from friends who gave of their time and resources to renovate the office building into a bike shop. Our church family also came alongside us and donated time and money to the renovation. One of our friends at church was part of the Honor Guard at Whiteman Air Force Base so he was able to get them to volunteer time to tear down the old facade on our building. My brother in Christ, Darryl Smithson spent 4 months working almost everyday with me to get the building ready to house bikes. In the end I could not have done it alone. The time and money it would have cost would have been too much, but when a community comes together, a bike shop is born.
Can you talk to us about how your side-hustle turned into something more.
When I got out of the Air Force, I didn’t know what I wanted to do but I knew I didn’t want to work for someone else. I didn’t have a plan though, so I had to settle for driving a school bus while I figured out what I wanted to do. The bus gave me time to think, and the realization that I didn’t want to deal with screaming, wild children on a bus for too much longer. I thought about how starting a bike shop would be the one thing I would really enjoy and be able to use my talents with all the while benefiting the community. While I was still driving buses I decided to start an LLC and advertise bicycle repair out of my garage. So I would drive a bus in the morning, go fix bikes in my garage and then drive a bus in the afternoon. The time I wasn’t driving, I was fixing bikes. Eventually my garage was too small to house multiple bike repairs at one time so I started thinking about moving to a commercial space. Once we found the right location, got the funding and support, and took a huge leap of faith, we moved into the commercial space and business blew up. When I was in the garage all I could sell was used bikes. But once I moved into the commercial space I was able to team up with Trek Bikes and I started selling new bikes and parts and accessories. It was a huge step up from my garage to be in the downtown area of Knob Noster with the ability afforded by Trek to sell bikes and parts for profit. In my garage I wasn’t making much money, but once I scaled up to the commercial space so many doors were open for progress.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.drewsbikeshop.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drewsbikeshop/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/drewsbikeshopllc/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@AndrewFINESILVER-n3p
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/drew-s-bike-shop-knob-noster-2
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@drews.bike.shop
