Ep 562: Low Maintenance Scaling: How Priority Bicycles grew to 25k units/year
DTC Podcast
Intro
Eric introduces Connor and frames the episode focus on Priority Bicycles' growth and strategy.
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Connor Swegle co-founded Priority Bicycles to build bikes that look good, ride great, and don’t require you to be a mechanic. From a Kickstarter that sold 1,500 bikes to 25,000/year today, he’s grown a DTC brand that rides differently — literally and strategically.
For DTC founders scaling from ~$5–50M looking to tighten marketing funnels, reduce wasted spend, and build real community.
Launched with a $565K Kickstarter campaign that validated product and story
- Built a brand around low-maintenance belt drive bikes — a real differentiator in a crowded market
- Why they ignore most attribution data and focus on 3 things: product views → add to cart → purchases
- Slimmed down Meta spend and saw ROAS increase by tightening targeting
- How community-led R&D helped launch the Bruiser with built-in demand
Who this is for: founders and marketers growing DTC product brands with real AOV
What to steal:
- Don’t run campaigns unless your audience is already in a buying mindset
- Measure funnel performance with just 3 steps: view → add → buy
- Involve customers in product development, but don’t let them pick the color
Timestamps
00:00 Why Priority Cycles was created
03:00 Launching on Kickstarter and early traction
06:00 The low-maintenance bike differentiator
09:00 Building DTC trust through customer service
12:00 Simplifying brand positioning and wayfinding
15:00 Crowdsourcing product ideas and community involvement
18:00 Using customer insight vs platform data
21:00 Meta downshifts and rethinking paid efficiency
24:00 Incrementality, ROAS traps, and smarter funnel design
27:00 Understanding real customer motivations and tradeoffs
30:00 Entering the mountain bike market
33:00 Working with creators to co-develop products
35:00 Growth outlook and category expansion
Hashtags
#dtcpodcast #prioritybicycles #ecommercegrowth #marketingstrategy #dtcbrands #digitalmarketing #customeracquisition #growthmarketing #brandstrategy #directtoconsumer #bicycleindustry
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