A new bicycle brand has just landed on the market. Guava, a startup born with the aim of being “fun and fresh”, as it states on its website, comes to the world of bikes to gain a foothold in gravel, a modality between the road and the mountains. He does it hand in hand with one of the most charismatic athletes in our country, former FC Barcelona player Andrés Iniesta, who has become one of the partners of the Catalan company.
Together with his former Barça teammate Bojan Krkic, the footballer from La Mancha is one of the investors in Guava, a start-up company founded by David Álvarez and Nacho Suárez, two bicycle enthusiasts with more than 25 years of experience in the sector. Iniesta participates in the project through Never Say Never, the company that brings together all the companies that are under the umbrella of the current footballer for Vissel Kobe, in the Japanese J-League.
Guava is specialized in gravel bikes, one of the modalities that is currently gaining the most popularity, due to the versatility it offers for pedaling both on asphalt and gravel tracks and paths. The name of gravel comes from the ease of riding on these types of roads, a specialty that is much more versatile than road and mountain biking and that has more and more followers.
One of the great fans of gravel bikes is the former Spanish coach Luis Enrique. The Asturian coach revealed this in one of his famous ‘twitch’ sessions during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. “If I could only choose one bike, by budget or whatever, it would be a gravel”, said the Asturian coach.
The company is located in Barcelona and all its bikes are designed, painted and assembled in the Catalan capital. On its Guava Spot bike, the startup defines it as a true ‘freedom machine’ that allows the user to go as far as they want, “with enough development to climb any wall”. Likewise, it indicates on its website that it is a “fast and efficient bike for long outings” and at the same time “agile and stable for descents”.
In its debut in the world of gravel, the Barcelona company offers for now a single bicycle model called Guava Spot, with a carbon frame and fork of its own design. Its price is 5,299 euros. Later, he plans to launch a second, more affordable assembly as it is made with aluminum components.
Although at the moment Guava has only one bicycle model, it offers users a wide range of customization possibilities. In its catalog there are up to 160 predefined combinations of frame colors and details. It also offers the possibility of opting for a completely personalized design.
Guava admits that one of the brand’s strengths is the possibility of “offering an excellent bicycle at a very competitive price”, which is why it eliminates intermediaries and sells its products only through its website. As a differentiating aspect compared to other brands, it allows users to carry out a test to see its characteristics first-hand.
To access the test, simply fill out the form on the website to choose the day and time to take the test. The appointment takes place in the Guava clubhouse located near the Collserola mountain, an ideal setting for riding on gravel roads. Soon the company plans to open a showroom to publicize its products, but it does not consider selling the bicycle in physical stores but through the internet to lower costs.
