Exploring Life & Business with Nate Woiwode of West LA Bicycle LLC & Mercantile Venice

Today we’d like to introduce you to Nate Woiwode.

Hi Nate, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I moved to Los Angeles in 2020 from Tucson and had a hard time really finding my niche in the west sides cycling community. I’d take the train over to the east side to ride with The Cub House and LoweLifes RCC.

Not knowing many people out here, I really spent alot of alone time on the bike exploring without guides. Which uncovered alot of things some folks might not have happened across just yet. We started West LA Bicycle as a way to show people cuttier routes that steered away from car-heavy LA-typical bike routes.

Consistently working on making new routes and working on cultivating a space where people felt comfortable both being themselves and pushing themselves a little bit as cyclists grew a very strong community. We collaborate with every likeminded crowd we can find to try and create intersections that will last longer than the bike rides.

After 4 years of riding, the community around West LA Bicycle was strong enough that we wanted to give it a clubhouse and a physical space for more people to be able to get on bikes. Through our shop we want to give people every resource possible to leave their house without a car and have a great day in Los Angeles.

We love Los Angeles, and we think a bicycle ride, walk, or skate through it is the ultimate celebration of this amazing place.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Showing up consistently every week to the same thing is not necessarily natural to my personal constitution – i have alot of interests and pursuits outside of bicycles. So hosting the rides every week and showing up week after week whether I was tired or not was absolutely not easy.

Any projects lift off will be impossible without some member of the mission carrying the burden of consistency and reliability.

So that was a little hard, but the joys from our gatherings with West LA Bicycle so greatly outweighed that burden that it’s been hard to call it work. I spent 90+ hours a week on West LA Bicycle. It’s the first and last thing I think about as I’m going to bed and waking up and I look forward to it every single day.

As you know, we’re big fans of West LA Bicycle LLC & Mercantile Venice. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
West LA Bicycle is an inclusive, community focused bicycle shop that offers repair, retail, and rental services. We carry independent brands to provide our customers with the highest quality products that are also in-line with our shared ethos.

We want our bikeshop to be a catalyst for healthy, active movement in our community. We staff expert locals and work with as many local brands as we feasibly can. For Venice – by Venicians. There are so many underwhelming bike shops in this area owned by people that aren’t engaged in our amazing and rich community. You can feel it when you walk in the door of their stores. We absolutely want the opposite from our space.

Networking and finding a mentor can have such a positive impact on one’s life and career. Any advice?
Don’t be afraid to show up. Keep showing up. Keep making space. There are more people around looking the same things as you than you think.

The world stops and starts for people that show up.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://WWW.westLABicycle.com
• Instagram: @westLABicycle
• Youtube: @westLaBicycle
• Other: https://www.mercantilevenice.com

Image Credits
I took all photos. Nate Woiwode.