About Us
(If you like reading CD jackets, this section is for you.)



From Left: Pete, Kess, Lori, Jack, Bernie, Wayne, Ben, Dave.

WizWheelz, Inc. has been in business since June of 1996.  We are a growing company based in Kentwood, Michigan USA which prides itself on outrageously good customer service, the highest quality craftsmanship in the industry, and green products that are part of the solution. Our TerraTrikes promote healthy living and a healthy planet. Every year more and more people catch on to the TerraTrike lifestyle.

The idea for WizWheelz was conceived on the winter solstice in 1995. At a Christmas party at Jack Wiswell's parents house in Hastings, Michigan that night, Jack hooked up with a couple of old high school buddies (Peter Dolan and myself - Wayne Oom) who were back in hometown Hastings for the holidays. Jack sketched a concept on a cocktail napkin and the TerraTrike was born. The following June we met at the 28th Street Chili's restaurant in Grand Rapids and officially decided to join as equal partners and bring the TerraTrike to life. Peter pointed out that this meeting coincidentally happened on the summer solstice which was a good sign that the WizWheelz planets were properly aligned (or something like that).

The following June, we pooled $1,000 each from our personal savings and decided to see just how far we could take this idea. We had no investors, no venture capitalists, no bank credit line, and no mentor to point us in the right direction. We decided early on that we were not going to sell out shares of our company. None of us were comfortable asking family or friends for money either. We wanted to start this without debt and without help even though it meant that our limited cash flow forced us to take things very slowly. Translation: we had no income for a lonnnng time! Our friends thought we had lost our minds when we dropped everything in order to make tricycles for adults. Thankfully, our wives have always been unconditionally supportive especially considering we each quit well-paying careers to do this project! We truly owe any success we may have to the support and dedication of our loving wives.

Eventually we sought bank loans for the cash flow needed to fund larger production batches but that initial $3000 investment and a used napkin constituted the total assets of WizWheelz, Inc in 1996.

We welded the first two prototype frames together in Jack's garage. It didn't take long to realize that we were terrible welders so we quickly decided to hire professionals to do the important work.  We truly started from scratch and bootstrapped through those first couple years without taking a paycheck until May of 1999. Warning: a trike company is not the easiest business to start - take our advice and choose something else!  We've had our share of trials and struggles including having a seat manufacturer go out of business - running away with our large deposit check and our materials.  Another tough hurdle occurred when our local bank had to let us go. We doubled our production between 1999 and 2000 but our bank chose not to grow with us. We soon found they weren't the only bank unwilling to lend over a hundred thousand dollars to an internet based company. After the dotcom bust of the late 90's it's tough to blame them. We had a plan and tons of confidence but with no real collateral assets we were too high of a risk for them. So there we were without cash to fund our largest production run ever. Components were already on their way and bills were coming due. It was frustrating because we were convinced that we had a product that would sell but we couldn't get it to market without the proper funding. We had to find working capital immediately or this company would die.

After a madcap search of banks, government programs, venture capitalists, and individual investors, we found Beth Plugge at Comerica Bank. Instead of just looking at our financial reports and brushing us off like every other bank had done, Beth traveled to Hastings, toured our facility, met the cast and crew, and sincerely listened to our story. She believed in us and despite plenty of her own professional risk, she convinced the management at the bank to take a chance on this crazy, internet-based, tricycle business and they have been rewarded with our continued loyalty. That boost was all we needed. Once we had the credit line to work with, the parts were purchased, our welding shops were paid, orders came in and were filled, and we paid off the bank earlier than planned. We continue to use Comerica for all of our cash flow needs, we highly recommend them for small businesses.

We found out first hand why the business textbooks say "cash is king"! Without enough working capital, a company with a successful product can be stopped dead in its tracks. We've learned a lot over the years - the most important piece of advice we could give from our experience is 'believe in what you're doing and don't quit!' There have been many frustrating times where it would have been easy to quit but we believed in our products and we had tenacity, vision and a passion to make this thing work and along the way we developed a company mantra which carried us through those tough times: "Failure Is NOT an Option".

We've also had a number of things go right for us so it certainly hasn't been all negative. The best moves we've made have been in our hiring of employees. We are very cautious and deliberate in this area but we've also been lucky. Each one of our employees has been an exceptional addition to this project. We love our team which makes coming to work a fun experience every day.

We take a corporate retreat each fall and set out to tackle a new adventure each time. We have hiked and camped in deserts and canyons in Utah, Arizona, Nevada and California, climbed a 14,000 foot mountain in Colorado, camped on a snow-covered mountain, surfed in the Pacific Ocean, and hiked into the Grand Canyon where I narrowly dodged a rattlesnake bite (don't tell my wife). Future plans include repelling into slot canyons, sea kayaking, whitewater rafting, spelunking, and whatever else sounds interesting. The trips are an effective tool for us as they take us away from our daily tasks and free our minds to dream up the next model, product, or direction for the company. Several of our trike models have been developed as we sat around a campfire in some remote region of the Utah desert while gazing at constellations and listening to coyotes howl. For us, it doesn't get any better than that. Check out our latest and most unique desert-inspired creation here.

Discovered this in a remote area of the Canyonlands	Hiking in Moab
The summit of 14,000 foot Mount Sherman in Colorado	Rental car

We are proud to be part of the Kentwood community. We utilize the services of several job shops and businesses in West Michigan. We enjoy the personal relationships we have with our suppliers, dealers and customers - the stories we hear from our customers who are "getting out there again" are incredibly inspiring. We absolutely love what we do and we'd love to have you join our ever-growing family of trikers - you'll be glad you did.

Wayne

What The Logo Means To Us

The WizWheelz logo is called the Tri-Circle. Jack created this logo very early on in the life of WizWheelz - it symbolizes teamwork and reminds us of our humble beginnings. We began this company as three equal partners with a meager three thousand dollars to work with and a vision to create the most exceptional three wheeled human-powered vehicles the world had ever seen. The three sides of the triangle represent our three-wheeled creation. The three corners of the triangle represent the three partners that were the cornerstones of this company. Finally, the circle represents two things. First it reminds us that the three original partners were an equal team with neither holding rank over the others. As we continue to add more people to the group, we strive to keep this teamwork philosophy alive whenever possible. Each employee's thoughts and ideas are very important to the team as a whole. Secondly, the circle symbolizes how we view our relationship with the environment. We try to give back more than we take from the planet and humanity in general. Our people take pride in the fact that we make a vehicle that doesn't create air, noise, or sight polution. Our products are healthy for people in that they promote excercise, build strength, and relieve stress. WizWheelz wants to be part of the solution, not part of the problem. We are fortunate and thankful that our customers make this possible.

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