GOLDEN, CO (BRAIN)—Spot Brand has hired Sky Yaeger as its senior product manager. She's working out of her Marin County, California home.
"This is a fantastic opportunity for me, as I have always admired Spot Brand and been a huge fan of Wayne and Andrew," she said. "After they acquired Spot Brand I was excited to see where they would take it and I am honored to be joining a company with such legitimate MTB heritage, and now huge potential with the Gates belt-drive system."
For the past four years Yaeger was working at Swobo Bikes, which was recently acquired by Santa Cruz Bicycles. She started designing Swobo's urban bicycle product line in 2006, and the line-up now includes 10 models currently in production. Before that she was vice president of product development at Bianchi USA for many years.
Yaeger brought some of the first production single-speed mountain bikes to market in the mid-90s while at Bianchi USA, and spec’d Spot hubs on those first bikes. “I go back with the brand and have always liked the simple, clean design and fun vibe," Yaeger added.
The industry veteran will be responsible for a new line of Spot models that will incorporate the Gates belt-drive technology. “I think the future looks bright for alternative drivetrain options," Yaeger said. "I’ve always believed in simple, elegant solutions to complex problems. The internal hub is an old idea, but it’s been my mission since I designed the Bianchi Milano in 1996 to get more people to appreciate the function and simplicity of internally geared hubs on modern bikes. Add a belt to that and you have an almost perfect drivetrain.”
Spot Brand CEO Andrew Lumpkin said Yaeger has always impressed the brand both personally and professionally. “Sky is a trendsetter in the industry and will be instrumental to Spot Brand’s continued trailblazing of new technologies," Lumpkin said.
The majority owner of Spot Brand is Wayne Lumpkin, having founded Avid in 1991 and, after successfully building the international brand, selling it to SRAM in 2004.
