Factor CEO Rob Gitelis on the Brand's Unique Approach
We caught up with the CEO of Factor Bikes, Rob Gitelis, to find out about the brand's singular pursuit of performance, and why every ride should be an experience.
January 11, 2025
visibility
INTERVIEW
The Shape of Speed: Designing the New Factor Monza
Factor's Industrial Designers Mike McGinn and Stuart Munro Talk Innovation, Utility and Bringing the Sexy to their new Everyday Racer, the Factor Monza.
We all know a nice-looking bike when we see it. The people who conspire to leave us lost for words when we see a beautiful shape are called Industrial Designers and you'll find them wherever physical products are made. At Factor, a brand that knows how to make a bike that speaks straight to the heart, there are two: Mike Mcginn and Stuart Munro. A few weeks before the launch of the Factor Monza, we got Mike and 'Stu' on the line and spoke about the making of the new model, a road bike created not for the pro peloton but for the passionate everyday racer — the kind of cyclist who rides after work, before breakfast, and still dreams of podiums. What followed was a candid conversation about design and the freedom to create, the tension between beauty and utility, and the unusual culture at Factor that makes it all possible.
The Design Philosophy Behind the Monza
Hey guys, thanks for finding the time to chat.
Mike: Our pleasure, Pete. Good to see you.
Stuart: Same here – thanks, Pete.
Let's get straight to it. Mike, before Stuart dialed in just now, you mentioned that he led the charge on the Factor Monza. Is that, right?
Mike: Yeah, we’re a small team, so pretty much any bike that’s come out in the last few years has been touched heavily by one of us. But yeah, the Monza was sort of Stuart’s baby.
Stuart: I picked up the Monza after we finished the Factor Slick Tri bike. Before that, I worked on the Ostro and the HANZŌ track bike. My role was to carry a consistent design language and apply the same principles across different categories. It’s about carrying that DNA through while adjusting each bike to serve its unique purpose.
The bikes you mentioned have very different applications. Does that help or hinder continuity in design?
Stuart: It helps. Mike and I are both industrial designers, so our training emphasizes maintaining a design language and ensuring every decision has intent. Even the aesthetic stuff usually ties back to performance. When it doesn’t, that’s where we bring in the Factor DNA.
Mike: There are always those moments in a project where we have freedom—where a feature doesn’t affect performance metrics too much. That’s when we can steer things toward Factor’s visual identity.
Stuart: And when you’re working on bikes in sequence like we are, you naturally develop a stronger, more cohesive design language across the line. Each project informs the next.
Giving the Monza Its Character
At what point does a bike "reveal itself" to you? When do you start sensing its personality?
Stuart: We do the planning, outline scope, and define our goals/targets, but we leave space for adjustment. We trust that the process itself will reveal what the bike wants to be.
Like a kid growing into their personality?
Stuart: Exactly. You try to guide it, but it develops its own thing. There’s a balance between intent and discovery.
What was the specific vision for the Monza?
Stuart: We wanted to build a high-performing bike that works for a wide range of riders. The term we landed on was the “everyday racer.”
Mike: These are people who take cycling seriously, but it isn’t their full-time job. They train at night and race at the weekend. They may have families and day jobs. The Monza is for them.
Stuart: So it had to be practical and approachable but still deliver serious performance. We adapted geometry a little, added downtube storage, and designed with compatibility in mind so it’s more standardized and easier to maintain.
Mike: It’s not a dumbed-down bike. It just has a different kind of performance ethos to the Ostro, for example.
Beauty and Utility: Finding the Right Balance
How do you keep a bike like that from becoming bland or overly utilitarian?
Mike: Honestly? That’s Stu. He makes the bikes sexy.
That needs to go on a t-shirt.
Mike: But really, Stu has a gift for form and flow. I tend to approach things from a pure function-first mindset. Stu brings the lines, the feel.
The Monza has that classic elegance. It reminds me of an iconic Italian race bike.
Stuart: That’s great to hear. That reaction is what we’re chasing—something that stirs a response. But it only works because we balance each other. And then there’s Graham.
Mike: Graham is our engineer. He has a scary-good eye for design. He’ll look at something and say, “Nope. That’s ugly. Try again.” And he’s almost always right.
Stuart: It’s rare to find an engineer with that kind of visual sensitivity. And the willingness to speak up. It makes the whole process better.
Practical Features, Real-World Thinking
You mentioned downtube storage. That feels like a shift in mindset for a brand like Factor.
Mike: It is, and it isn’t. We first explored it on our tri bike, where it made sense for nutrition and tool storage. Once we worked out the engineering, it became easier to introduce it elsewhere.
Stuart: We debated it for the Monza. But it aligns with the rider we’re building for—someone who races but also needs to bring spares and tools.
Mike: And we worked hard to make it clean. No rattles, no weird shapes. Aerodynamically efficient, structurally sound.
What about other future-proofing elements?
Stuart: A big one is avoiding proprietary standards where we can. For example, we used a more conventional steerer setup. Easier to service. Longer product lifespan.
Mike: The seatpost clamp is another one. On the Ostro, it’s lighter, more race-focused. On the Monza, we made it more robust and easier to replace in case someone strips the threads.
Design Culture and Creative Freedom
Tell me more about the internal dynamic at Factor. How do you work together?
Mike: It’s super collaborative. We all have our lanes, but we overlap. Everyone weighs in. There’s no room for egos.
Stuart: We argue, we push each other. Sometimes we scrap whole bikes late in the process. But there’s trust.
Mike: Graham once told me, “That entire rear triangle? It’s not good enough.” He was right. We started over. That’s just how it goes.
Stuart: It only works because we all believe in the product more than we believe in our own ideas. That’s rare.
Mike: It also helps that we’ve all been doing this for decades. We’re drawing on a collective knowledge base that goes back 20 years.
It sounds like there's a healthy dose of honesty in the room when you're working on these bikes.
Stuart: Oh yeah. Graham will tell me to my face if something sucks. No explanation. Just, “Do it again.”
Mike: And it works. Because nobody wants to hear that, right? So we go back and fix it.
Stuart: We have this balance of “we respect each other” and “we also will absolutely call each other out.” It’s why we get better.
Mike: The best part is, even the harshest feedback doesn’t derail anything. It sharpens it. There’s no corporate fog, no endless meetings where ideas get watered down. It’s just: does it work? Is it beautiful? No? Fix it.
That's a pretty rare culture.
Stuart: Also, maybe slightly terrifying.
Mike: (Laughs) I’ve had entire concepts shot down after weeks of work. But that’s how we get bikes that feel dialed.
Stuart: It’s better than the alternative. We’re not building committee bikes. No Homer Simpson car designs happening here.
Mike: And honestly, a big part of why we can work this way is Rob (Gitelis – Factor’s CEO). He sets the tone. He trusts us and gives us the freedom to try things — even risky things — but he also knows what he wants the brand to stand for.
Stuart: Yeah, he’s not hovering, but he’s deeply present in the culture. There’s a confidence that flows from him, and it allows us to take design seriously without getting lost in ego or noise.
Mike: He’s the reason we can walk away from a nearly-finished bike and say, “Nope. Doesn’t hit the mark.” That’s rare.
The Ostro's Influence and Evolution
The Ostro feels like a benchmark for Factor. Does it still influence everything?
Stuart: Absolutely. It’s the older sibling—everything since has been learning from it or riffing off of it.
Mike: And every time we build a new bike like the Monza, we learn something new. That knowledge flows back into future Ostros or other designs.
Stuart: It’s the same in footwear, automotive, whatever. You don’t start from scratch. You evolve.
Aesthetics, Proportions, and the Truth in Design
What makes a bike look good?
Stuart: Proportions, for sure. How the shapes relate. Where transitions happen. It’s all about visual tension and balance.
Mike: I think honesty matters. When you’re designing from a place of purpose—not trend-hopping or marketing spin, the outcome feels more natural. More truthful.
Stuart: You can tell when a bike’s been over-designed or compromised. We try to make decisions that serve the rider first and trust that the beauty will follow.
Mike: Because we don’t have someone saying, “Make it cheaper” or “Use this existing part,” we get to do it right.
The Never-Ending Cycle
Do you ever get a break between bikes?
Mike: (Laughs) We said we’d take it easy this year. That lasted about a week.
Stuart: We forget the pain of the last 5% of a project. Then we start sketching again, and it pulls us back in.
Mike: It’s like amnesia. You forget how hard it was and dive into the next one.
What do you do when you're not designing bikes?
Mike: I’ve got a cave — drums, guitars, bass, 3D printer, my trainer setup. It’s like a music/design lair. When the snow’s bad, I just lock myself in there.
Stuart: (Laughs) It sounds like you’re preparing for the apocalypse.
Mike: Pretty much. But a very melodic one.
I tried keeping my guitar under the couch. My wife asked me to move it. I suggested hanging it on the wall. She gave me 'the look'.
Stuart: That’s when you know your rock star dreams have hit domestic reality.
Mike: Yeah, there are losses you just accept.
Stuart, what do you like to do away from work?
Stuart: I spend a good bit of time listening to podcasts. Part of getting older is realizing that the more we learn/do, the more we realize that we don’t know much! I find that podcasts are such a cool and convenient platform to hear information directly from the people that are putting in the work to find it. Much like I do at Factor, it’s a nice view standing on the shoulders of giants.
Love it. Thanks for your time, Stuart and Mike!
Mike/Stuart: Thank you, Pete!
FEATURED PRODUCT
Factor Monza Road Bike
Monza leads with searing pace, thoughtful design and inspired versatility. With race-proven DNA and design inherited from its stablemate, the Ostro, the Monza is the perfect gateway to the Factor line.
