The old saying is “it takes twice the person to ride half the bike”. So today we’re representing unicyclists everywhere with my guest, the general manager of unicycle.com, Joshua Torrans.
Unicycle.com is where I bought my first unicycle many many years ago – I was *always* super cool, didn’t you know?? – and today they are a thriving e-commerce store that serves the unicycling community. Joshua is extremely passionate about what he does, and this episode is proof that you can build a sustainable business around your hobby and passion!
Ep. 24 – Joshua Torrans Show Highlights
1:51 – “So [John Drummond] made a little informational site, because as he was riding his unicycle back and forth from work commuting, people would ask him about it. And he’s like, ‘hey, if people have these questions, other people will probably want to know’. So he made a resource with kind of the idea of reselling, but not even completely there.”
4:29 – “I said… it’s an OK job, it’s a great skill, but I want to do something that I really love and enjoy. So after brainstorming, I was like, you know what? …I had the most fun when I worked at a bike shop.”
10:54 – “I think it was two full time employees. And then at that time, unicycle.com was about educating people regardless of where they were at. So we did a work-to-school program through the local high school. So we had, I think, about four part-time kids that would come in and prep the cycles.”
14:18 – “We do have franchises, and the franchises are actually individually owned and operated, but they give us buying power.”
23:21 – “The bicycle is the most efficient human-powered device ever invented by man. And then you flip the quarter and you go to a unicycle. And according to his words, it’s the most idiotic form of transportation ever invented when it comes to efficiency.”
38:29 – “Setting that up, you want to get a game plan and say, ‘what do I want to do with my hobby?’ What do I want to do, focus wise? And run with that. Essentially, that’s where the mission statement would come up. And that mission statement is one of the pieces you need to convince the bank into giving you money, if you don’t have any kind of money to start with.”
46:14 – “[Our suppliers] are like a part of our family. So if there’s an issue, we don’t say, ‘oh, we’re done with you, we’re going to a different manufacturer’. We’re like, no, let’s see where the problem is. Let’s fix this problem. Let’s work with you, because we we both need each other.”
54:12 – “If you’re not good with accounting, if you need somebody that’s key – that can do the accounting – because that honestly is the underdog that really makes or breaks the company.”
58:40 – “I grew up on a farm, and so I work hard, I play hard. And I try and stick to that as much as possible.”