Loose Cycles or cycling adventure

“We specialize in gravel bikes, bikepacking and made-to-measure,” the co-owner tells me. It was enough for me to spend more than two hours in this small shop in Ljubljana, the Slovenian capital.

This article first appeared in the excellent Vélo Mag, May 2022 edition.

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Not far from the city center of Ljubljana is the Loose Cycles shop. On their instagram account, each of the bikes makes any cyclist with an adventurous spirit salivate. “We're not in competition with the big chains,” co-owner Marko Šajn (pronounced Shawn) admits to me right off the bat. “We specialize in gravel bikes, bikepacking and in tailor-made. After having entered the store to rinse my eyes, I ended up spending almost two hours with the friendly owner.

Before the store opened in September 2020, the Slovenian, a graduate of the Academy of Fine Arts and Design at the University of Ljubljana, spent five years with the German bicycle manufacturer bombtrack. It was he who designed the graphics for the entire range from 2019 to 2021.

Marko Šajn and mechanic Miha Fišthrough.

Her attention to detail sets the tone for her boutique. They offer me excellent coffee, and I take the time to admire the products presented there. High up on the walls are highlighted precious relics bearing witness to cycling history. A 1983 Peugeot Crazy Horse is particularly eye-catching. “The first production of this mountain bike in France,” Marko Šajn tells me. Also, rather than throwing outdated bicycle components in the garbage, they have been placed in a glass counter, which has become a nice miniature museum.

“Brexit has greatly affected bicycle businesses,” my interlocutor tells me. The small Slovenian market of just two million people was buying from the many British brands before the increase in customs fees. In particular, the shops had to compensate for the lack by turning to American brands. But since customs fees are almost ten times higher for a complete bike than for its components, a good part of the frames sold here are therefore assembled on site, and made to measure.

"The closest store that looks like us is in Munich, two countries further north and more than 400 km away," says the co-owner. According to him, there could be more, since Slovenia is a real paradise of mountains, hills and forests to discover on two wheels. Fortunately, the local market is growing more every year. After having traced his creations on the frames of many bicycles, Marko Šajn now gives his color to all adventure cycling in the Balkans.

Ljubljana, with its local pride, green ambitions and several innovative projects in the pipeline, is certainly on the right track.

The photos of the bikes make your mouth water the Loose Cycles instagram account.

Gravel or mountain, the cyclist can get an eyeful even from afar!