You could say WA Bikes Organizational Member Andrea Lieberman discovered the model for her bicycle company by pure accident. Not bike accident, but an accident of timing.

Andrea in full gear at Biking Billboards headquarters across from U Village in Seattle.

Andrea, her husband and two children have always enjoyed biking together as a family. In 2009 Andrea’s father, who in the 1980’s and 90’s found success in real estate development, unexpectedly died, leaving her and her sisters the heirs to East Side condo developments that opened at the height of the financial downturn in 2009 and  remained vacant.

The family tried to figure out how best to reach potential buyers and deducted nearby St. Michelle Winery in Woodinville attracted the sort of person –educated, good income, interested in the arts–who would live in the condo developments they were trying to fill.

With an audience of thousands of concertgoers at their fingertips, Andrea and her family thought a pedicab might offer the best vehicle for reaching them. However, they had a difficult time locating a pedicab company in Seattle, and when they finally reached one, the owner stood them up.

Andrea’s sixteen-year-old son Jace took matters into his own hands. The last weekend of concerts at St. Michelle he grabbed plywood sandwich board signs and attached them to a trailer on the back of his bike. He rode through the crowds and attracted interested homebuyers back to the condo sales office to tour the units.  The next six weeks traffic to the condo units tripled compared with pre-bike-billboard sales. Her son told her he wanted to start a business, built a website and hired a few riders. Andrea eventually stepped in as the business started to grow, and Jace’s focus turned to college applications. Biking Billboards is a family-owned venture with Andrea, her husband, daughter, and son as equal partners.

Founded in 2010, Biking Billboards moved into a permanent office space across from University Village in 2012.  As of 2014 the business employs two full-time employees, two half-time employees, and a crew of riders as needed.

Most of the riders are enthusiastic college kids. Jet City Improv has offered trainings for riders. “We remind them to smile and show your teeth,” Andrea jokes. “We’re a perfect vehicle for under-employed actors.”

When asked what is the most challenging factor in her business she quips “the weather,” even though she points to a successful T-Mobile campaign that took place in the snow. “More people noticed the riders,” she laughs.

The most gratifying moment for the business? Andrea smiles and says “When we execute a campaign that is so successful the client is blown away. The fact we are human, eco-powered, and doing our best is so rewarding!”

Biking Billboards has served over sixty-eight clients and at least half returned to use them again. They include: T-Mobile, PEMCO Insurance, Blue C Sushi, Boom Noodle, Portage Bay Café, Woodland Park Zoo, Seattle Symphony, Windermere Real Estate, Eltana Bagels, and Anheuser Busch.

“We fill a niche,” Andrea says. “We can reach people in a crowd like no other media can. We pitched and won the business to promote the Washington Health Plan Finder website, a portal to health care guaranteed by the Affordable Care Act, to 18-34 year olds. I told the interviewers “you need real live people to make this more human and warm. We won the business and had a presence at concerts around town from Miley Cyrus to Kings of Leon to Lady Gaga!”  Andrea believes this message resonates with companies that appear too big and untouchable. “We can make them more Seattle-like.”

Andrea on bike with trailer. Ready for a promotion!

When former Board President Dennis Madsen first joined NOWBike in the early 1990’s, he was drawn to the passion of the people—staff, board, and volunteers—who would continue over two decades to build an organization committed to improving bicycling in the Northwest.

Dennis Madsen, April 24, 2014, reflecting on his two-decade association with WA Bikes

In a café in downtown Seattle, Madsen reminisced about the little engine that could, which eventually grew into Bicycle Alliance of Washington and more recently Washington Bikes. “The organization may have changed its name but the passion is still there,” he said. “It’s more than the activity of biking. WA Bikes helped create the infrastructure, influence the laws, and shape the programs that would encourage everyone, school-age kids included, to get out and bicycle. We’ve made a difference.”

When founder Amy Carlson approached him about getting involved, he’d never heard of the statewide advocacy group. A participant in several Cascade Bicycle Club rides, he agreed to attend a NOWBike board meeting to learn more. “Everything starts with an ask,” he chuckles.

Madsen soon realized Washington Bikes put more value on improving the statewide climate for bicycle riders than taking credit for progress made or chasing headlines. He is most proud of Washington Bikes’ work inspiring youth through Safe Routes to School (SRTS).  “I’m an environmentalist and a bike rider,” he confides. “Both bicycling and environmental activists must cultivate the next generation of leaders, enthusiasts, and stewards of place, whether it’s creating safe communities to bicycle or protecting open space.”

He recalled the thrill of his first bicycle. “My father bought me my first bike from Sears–a 26” J.S. Higgins with coaster breaks, single speed, and way too big for me. I grew up in West Seattle and participated in high school bicycle rodeos, where kids decked out their bikes with balloons, crepe paper, and cards in their spokes. I rode my bike everywhere within a five-mile radius of my house.  I loved the freedom.”

For Madsen, cycling became a big part of growing up and a first step in discovering the bigger world.  His hope is that Safe Routes to School can inspire and engage a new generation of kids, just like his bike rodeos and exploration inspired him in the 1950’s.

The biking landscape has changed in large and small ways since those days of his boyhood in West Seattle. “Washington Bikes has a history of making an impact where it counts. We’ve partnered with organizations across the state to get people on bikes riding on safer and well-marked roads. We’ve facilitated strategic planning and influenced behavior, like insuring bike racks were installed on Seattle buses in the late 90’s, and we’re working to engage the next generation of health-conscious and environmentally aware riders.

Philanthropy, especially in support of youth and the outdoors, makes a huge difference in people’s lives. I encourage each and every supporter of Washington Bikes to make a personally significant gift during GiveBIG on May 6. You are supporting an organization that through humble beginnings has made a tremendous impact on biking in Washington today.”