Antymateria 2019
Last year was a time of intense change and difficult decisions for us. We focused on developing the Skolimowska location, developed new bikes, including a gravel bike, and the team underwent personnel changes. The Polish cycling market is changing, and Antymateria is changing with it, but we're certain of one thing: we want to follow our own path. Just like last year, we decided to summarize the past year with short interviews with each member of our team.
Andrzej - Chief Mechanic of Antymateria
Andrzej is our lead mechanic. He's responsible for keeping the workshop tidy and performing most repairs and maintenance. His experience and attention to detail guarantee quality, and his positive attitude and smile keep everyone around him motivated. -WHERE DID YOU GET THE IDEA TO WORK IN THE BICYCLE INDUSTRY? -(rolling a cigarette) After arriving in Poland, I got into cycling. I used to be a car mechanic, so retraining was a natural thing.
-HOW DID YOU GET TO ANTIMATERIA? "I don't know how to answer that question. Rafał invited me. I had other offers at the time, but I knew that here I would have the greatest opportunities for development and the best company." -WHAT WAS THE MOST DIFFICULT CHALLENGE FOR YOU LAST YEAR? -An old Indian production by the English brand Raleigh. A full metal chain guard integrated with the frame – only the small plate that exposed the crank was removable, and the bottom bracket shell was 78mm wide. The task? Replacing the bottom bracket. -WHAT WAS THE MOST PLEASANT SURPRISE? -That I figured out the answer to question number 3 without planning the shell. I put a 131mm bottom bracket on a single crankset, adding two extra bearings. -WHAT WAS THE MOST SERIOUS ACCIDENT THAT HAPPENED TO YOU AT WORK? If psychological trauma counts as accidents, then one Saturday after a party, I experienced the sealed bearings in my Shimano Ultegra freehub body. I've never suffered a physical injury at work. -YOUR DREAM BIKE? -Folding fixed gear bike. -ARE YOU CURRENTLY BUILDING OR PREPARING A BIKE FOR YOURSELF? -Yes. -DO YOU HAVE ANY HOBBIES OTHER THAN BIKES? -I like plants and Thai boxing. -THE SONG THAT'S BEEN ON MY HEAD LATELY IS… -"Under the Waterfall of Dreams" by Jauntix. -WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS FOR THE NEXT YEAR? -You will see the price list of our services.
Przemek Żebrowski - owner
Przemek co-creates the company's strategy and is responsible for financing and liaising with suppliers and partners. In his free time, he interrupts his colleagues in the workshop. -WHERE DID YOU GET THE IDEA TO WORK IN THE BICYCLE INDUSTRY?
After years of working in the marketing industry, I dreamed of developing my own brand. Choosing bicycles wasn't accidental. Before I took up cycling professionally, I read extensively about urban development, the future of transportation, and ecology. It was then that I became convinced that, ultimately, we're forced to choose other methods of transportation in cities than our own cars. The bicycle seemed, and still does to me, the best option. -HOW DID YOU GET TO ANTIMATERIA? -As usual, by accident... I met Krzysiek Najder and Sebastian Smyl, the first shareholders of Antymateria, thanks to the fact that my wife met the latter's then-fiancée. -WHAT WAS THE MOST DIFFICULT CHALLENGE FOR YOU LAST YEAR? "Antimatter is a development project (meaning I'm contributing my own money), which means I also have other professional interests. The hardest part for me is maintaining the often-necessary concentration and consistency when I have other responsibilities. I'd like to be able to dedicate 100% of my time to cycling. -WHAT WAS THE MOST PLEASANT SURPRISE? "The most pleasant surprise is the customer reaction. Of course, we don't always meet all expectations 100%. But sometimes we succeed, and the positive customer feedback—reviews left online, comments on Facebook, etc.—drives us to create ever-better bike designs." -YOUR DREAM BIKE? -Light Gravel. More or less the same as we'll be presenting this year. -ARE YOU CURRENTLY BUILDING OR PREPARING A BIKE FOR YOURSELF? -I'm waiting for my colleagues from the service to let me sit upstairs -DO YOU HAVE ANY HOBBIES OTHER THAN BIKES? I read compulsively. I travel, recently combining trips with furthering my education in art history. -THE SONG THAT'S BEEN ON MY HEAD LATELY IS… -Shallow – after watching "A star is born" I can't get it out of my head. -WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS FOR THE NEXT YEAR? This year, we'd like to begin work on a new customer service and bike ordering system. I'm planning a longer bike ride in Bavaria.
Rafał manages the shop, orders, and most of the work on the premises, and when he has time, he rushes to the service center. He designs, assembles, and repairs bicycles. He takes more joy in the cool ones, and more dedication in the ones bought on Allegro. -WHERE DID YOU GET THE IDEA TO WORK IN THE BICYCLE INDUSTRY?
Rafał Kuźma - shop manager/mechanic
Rafał manages the shop, orders, and most of the work on the premises, and when he has time, he rushes to the service center. He designs, assembles, and repairs bicycles. He takes more joy in the cool ones, and more dedication in the ones bought on Allegro. -WHERE DID YOU GET THE IDEA TO WORK IN THE BICYCLE INDUSTRY?
"I had no idea. I wanted to help a friend working in the workshop in need and learn something new along the way. And somehow I stayed. That workshop was Antimatter." -HOW DID YOU GET TO ANTIMATERIA? -See question number one. -WHAT WAS THE MOST DIFFICULT CHALLENGE FOR YOU LAST YEAR? -Not so much the hardest challenge, but the thing I was most worried about was assembling a new, good team that I could rely on and with whom I would enjoy working. It worked. -WHAT WAS THE MOST PLEASANT SURPRISE? -May salary. -WHAT WAS THE MOST SERIOUS ACCIDENT THAT HAPPENED TO YOU AT WORK? -Hangover. -YOUR DREAM BIKE? I don't have one dream bike. Currently, I'm dreaming of finishing my Cinelli. It's the one I was talking about last year . It's going to be a total blast. -ARE YOU CURRENTLY BUILDING OR PREPARING A BIKE FOR YOURSELF? -Yes, see question above. -DO YOU HAVE ANY HOBBIES OTHER THAN BIKES? -A lot of it, I'm a bit into 3D graphics, Arduino, and generally doing interesting things (I'd like to build a pool table someday). -THE SONG THAT'S BEEN ON MY HEAD LATELY IS… -"Under the Waterfall of Dreams" by Jauntix. -WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS FOR THE NEXT YEAR? -Don't go crazy with Maciek and Andrzej.
Maciek is responsible for the virtual side of our business and customer relations, but you'll also find him at the workshop. He's most passionate about mountain bikes and time trial bikes. -WHERE DID YOU GET THE IDEA TO WORK IN THE BICYCLE INDUSTRY? "I used to commute to college on an old Peugeot road bike. Due to the distance and the bike's condition, I had to adjust the bottom bracket, tru the wheels, etc. every week to keep it running. I really liked it, so I started repairing friends' bikes in the garage, and from there it just went from there."
Maciej Ataman - mechanic/marketing specialist
Maciek is responsible for the virtual side of our business and customer relations, but you'll also find him at the workshop. He's most passionate about mountain bikes and time trial bikes. -WHERE DID YOU GET THE IDEA TO WORK IN THE BICYCLE INDUSTRY? "I used to commute to college on an old Peugeot road bike. Due to the distance and the bike's condition, I had to adjust the bottom bracket, tru the wheels, etc. every week to keep it running. I really liked it, so I started repairing friends' bikes in the garage, and from there it just went from there."
-HOW DID YOU GET TO ANTIMATERIA? "I was getting a bit bored with my previous job and sending my CV to a lot of shops and services. A friend told me about Antymateria. I was thinking about a workshop focused on time trials or mountain biking, but I figured it wouldn't hurt to give it a try. Przemek immediately invited me for an interview and offered me a part-time job at the workshop. The other half would be spent on online marketing, the online store, and content writing. It was such a strange proposition that I practically agreed immediately." -WHAT WAS THE MOST DIFFICULT CHALLENGE FOR YOU LAST YEAR? -Switching to working partly on Skolimowska Street and partly from home. I'm still a bit chaotic about it. -WHAT WAS THE MOST PLEASANT SURPRISE? -The fact that Rafał doesn't shout when I screw something up. -WHAT WAS THE MOST SERIOUS ACCIDENT THAT HAPPENED TO YOU AT WORK? I stuck my finger in a spinning brake disc during a thankless adjustment. The price was a toenail (it grew back). I do not recommend AVID/SRAM brakes. -YOUR DREAM BIKE? -I'm starting to miss spicy food, so maybe... -ARE YOU CURRENTLY BUILDING OR PREPARING A BIKE FOR YOURSELF? -This season I would like to assemble a gravel bike on our frame and full Sram Apex components, necessarily with hydraulics. -DO YOU HAVE ANY HOBBIES OTHER THAN BIKES? I play bass, collect CDs, and always read several books at once. To make life more difficult, I'm studying Information and Library Science part-time. I also like beer. -THE SONG THAT'S BEEN ON MY HEAD LATELY IS… -I wanted to write some doom metal song here, but because of the guys the truth is different. "Under the Waterfall of Dreams" by Jauntix. -WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS FOR THE NEXT YEAR? -Stuff a microwave into Antimatter.
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