A visit to the Origine factory: custom bikes down to the last detail

Origine is a recent brand, created less than 10 years ago. Yet, with its online sales concept, it quickly found its audience, sensitive to the custom bike concept. With success, this company, which claims both its northern French origins and a certain Made in France, is always looking further with new projects that are buzzing in the imagination of its creators. 3bikes went to visit its premises in Somain, which are becoming slightly cramped, but this is only temporary while waiting for a brand new building, currently under construction.

Text: Olivier Dulaurent – Photos: Origine

A sign of the Origine brand’s expansion, today no less than 50 employees work in Somain, in the Nord department. Each of them works on the concept developed by the three creators, bringing together three trades: design, manufacturing, and distribution. But unlike traditional sales networks, with the existence of a physical store, here the sales process is done remotely via the Internet.

However, for the customer, in addition to the possible choice of home delivery, it is still possible to come to the factory. To see the manufacturing of their own bike or to meet a representative. Thus, during our visit in December, Benoit Jolivet, a resident of Belfort, chose to visit the premises during a business trip to the region. For him, it was obvious to follow how his future bike would be made. Among the motivations that led him to Origine, he cited several aspects: “the custom configuration, of course, with the personal choice of equipment, the frame assembly made in France, and of course its quality.” A little further on, Amaury Montay explained that he was also attracted to the brand for “its excellent management of bike availability.”

This brings us to a real current issue that concerns the entire profession and consequently customers: the possibility, which is obvious in normal times, of receiving the ordered bike within correct deadlines.

But a certain pandemic has passed through, forcing all sectors of the global economy to adapt. The cycling industry is obviously affected, like others. However, as François-Xavier Plaçais, head of company development, explains, “the shortage is sometimes a convenient excuse and allows for delays to be swallowed. It is necessary to avoid blaming Shimano or Sram entirely. A significant portion of the workforce dedicated to supplying the bike to the customer is located here in Somain. We are thus freeing ourselves from a good part of the problem while some of our competitors suffer from ‘100% Asia’, with the same factory sometimes making components and paint. Conversely, for example, we currently have 250 Shimano DI2 groups in stock, and we are not putting pressure on the brands. We do not cut margins; we may even order from websites open to the general public like Alltricks, all to finish a bike on time and satisfy the customer rather than leaving the bike in a corner because a 11×30 cassette, as requested by the customer on the configurator, is missing. Although, to be honest, we also sometimes offer the customer to change a cassette precisely to provide them with the bike in one week rather than two months due to waiting for the ‘right’ gearing. But we therefore provide the bike rather than waiting for the component to be available. This shortage is mainly for complete bikes rather than for components themselves.”

This independence in the way of operating has also pushed Origine to develop its own wheel brand: Prymahl. Thus, while sanitary conditions have brought a lot of bad news on all fronts for two years, Origine can only observe very significant growth.

A competitor to the market leader?

When consumers think “bike bought online,” comparison with the industry leader is inevitable. François-Xavier Plaçais retorts on this point that “the difference is first and foremost in the customization of frames (colors) and in the assembly, for example, a customer who has been riding for 30 years with 44 cm handlebars, whereas the logic for their size would suggest a 42. We mount the 44 cm they want, as well as the correct stem length, crank length, and the saddle they usually use. Of course, it’s always possible to get a complete bike from our competitors, but to have the components to your liking, you would, for example, have to remove bar tape, disassemble the handlebars, sell them, order the handlebars, and reassemble everything. Certainly, conscientious bike shops also do this work, but it’s difficult for them to do it for the entire bike. Secondly, I would say that we are the only ones who can offer all the colors of the rainbow on all bikes. We can sometimes paint 25 different colors in a day.“

The brand’s choice is not a price battle but a quality battle, with details that offer marginal gains, such as sometimes mounting higher-end equipment than what the consumer will initially see, but which can make a difference in terms of performance or durability. Unlike other brands that also target the high end, there is no champion to pay here, which allows, for example, to focus on providing High Modulus frames across the entire range. Ultimately, the brand prefers to be compared to Colnago, for example, when the constraints and qualities of the ranges are compared.

A big asset: the configurator

Among the strengths cited by customers, the configurator ranks high. For this, Origine did not hesitate to draw on the best practices of car manufacturers to offer the most powerful and constantly improved configurator possible. The goal is to obtain the best visual rendering, with pixel-perfect alignment of elements. Currently under development, the acquisition of 3D for the entire configurator is eagerly awaited, but as the designers themselves admit, who want nothing synthetic, this requires very long work between engineering and the final result. A team of three to four people is constantly working on the task to improve the service and potentially address certain frustrations. It is possible to notice that a specific area of a page may have recorded 10 click attempts, without result. This then allows a link to be placed precisely at that location to open a new page.

On the website, there is also a list of 300 approved centers in France that can repair or maintain an Origine bike. In these locations, customers are assured of not being “turned away,” because it must be said that this is generally a fear of some potential customers and unfortunately the reality at some bike shops.

In addition to these professional services, since December 9th, the blog has been launched. Named Origine Cyclist House, its purpose is to advise and inspire customers (but not only…) to support them in their practice. The blog has more than fifty articles (news, adventure stories, buying guides, tutorials, etc.): https://cyclisthouse.origine-cycles.com/

These tutorials are very useful for customers to perform maintenance operations themselves, either because they enjoy doing it or for those who live far from one of the approved centers, even if 300 points already provide good coverage.

Once the configuration is finalized

Some customers do not hesitate to travel across France to Somain, whether they come from Belfort as in the case mentioned above, from Toulouse or Nice, by plane, taking advantage of the stay to visit Lille for example or to ride on the cobblestones. Up to 300 to 400 km from home, i.e., including the Paris region, on-site travel is very frequent. Dutch speakers are also received by a Flemish Belgian who deals with them.

It should be noted that all customers have had at least one phone call to validate the configuration. Discussions may arise about configurations that seem strange, such as a frame equipped with a Campagnolo Super Record group and entry-level wheels. This can, of course, be the deliberate choice of a customer who already owns a nice pair of high-end wheels and is getting equipment here for training rides, but it may require confirmation. Questions related to frame size are also validated. Here again, by personal choice, a cyclist may prefer a size below (or above) while remaining within a certain limit. It should be noted that the brand highlights its “good size guarantee” during which (one month), the customer can change bike components: stem, saddle, or handlebars. This does not concern the frame, as this question has been carefully studied beforehand.

Ultimately, 75% of transactions occur without visiting Somain, and the initiative often comes from the customer, with 95% of them having made a phone call or sent an email themselves before placing the order. During this discussion, the consistency of the assembly is discussed, as well as the compatibility between the equipment.
Currently, annual sales correspond to 7000/8000 bikes.
The choice of the appropriate size is made through a postural study or rather measurement taking, with a size calculator that constantly evolves with the customer database. A videoconference system with an online agenda and a one-hour slot to discuss with the customer, not to mention the factory visit with the phone and a pole. On this point, it is true that the constraints related to Covid have changed the situation.

All frames are guaranteed for life, and if a problem occurs in a series, the designers’ estimate is well below 0.1%. In case of a problem, which may concern a part (groups, peripherals), a carrier picks up the bike from the customer, so the bike is in Somain the next day for the fastest possible re-shipment. In this regard, the location is also a Service Center, allowing one of the mechanics to perform an express 30-minute overhaul or any other maintenance (headset, cables, bottom bracket, housing).

Meticulous quality control and manufacturing

Origine emphasizes its quality approach with controls operated and verified by several people at each stage of the process, particularly at the frame level, which remains a brand’s calling card. Every reported error, no matter how small, is escalated to the relevant stage to prevent its recurrence. At the same time, staff must manage customer requests who obviously want to receive their bike within the allotted time. These are generally 21 days, which remains a feat given the personalized aspect of each bike and the global economic context.

Quality control can also concern parts such as a stem that is not mounted strictly straight or an “orange peel” effect on a frame, which only a trained eye would be able to detect.

As for the final production of the frame, it follows the classic procedure in order from the raw frame: primer 1, primer 2, sanding. For these three steps, 1h30 per frame is necessary. Then come the painting, baking, “transfer” (applying the brand logos), and finally varnishing steps.

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