Why Allied frameworks went to Asia for its new gravel frame layup

BENTONVILLE, Ark. (BRAIN) — Allied Cycle Works' parent company, HIA Velo, was founded in 2016 as a domestic carbon fiber manufacturer, originally re-purposing equipment acquired from Montreal's bankrupt manufacturer Guru Cycles. The brand, now backed by a Walton family investment group, has received considerable media attention for its U.S. production over the years.

But for its latest gravel bike being introduced Tuesday, along with its BC40 cross-country mountain bike update earlier this year, the company is having the frames' main parts laid up in Asia. It completes quality control, painting and bike assembly in its Arkansas facility. The company continues to make other frame models, mountain bike handlebars and stems at its own facilities and its bike feature U.S made components from Industry Nine, Wolf Tooth and other U.S. brands.

Allied CEO Drew Medlock said the "really hard" decision to go to Asia for the frames' carbon layup was driven by multiple factors. The primary one was the company's mission.

"We kind of hit this crux where we said, 'what do we want to do? Do we want to focus on product and the customer, or do we want to focus on being a manufacturer?' Because trying to do both at the same time is really tough."

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Clik here to view.BRAIN interviewed Medlock early last week, before the Trump administration announced new tariffs on imports. Imports from some of the nations where Allied gets products — China, Taiwan and Vietnam — are especially high. He said the company had been expecting new tariffs since Trump was elected.

Nevertheless, on Monday Allied told media the new frameset will retail for $4,500, instead of the $4,000 previously announced. The company hasn't released pricing on its complete bikes yet.

Medlock said a variety of factors contributed to the decision to work with Asian factories on frame layup for the BC40 and the Able.

*Production capacity in Allied's Arkansas factory and narrowing company focus had something to do with it. Producing the new gravel frame in Arkansas, in quantities needed to meet demand, would require an all-out effort for months that would take resources from everything else the company wanted to do to develop and sell other products. Moving layup to Asia shifted some tasks off the company's plate. 

"We had to ask ourselves if making it here was adding value to the product. Is it making a better product than I could get elsewhere? ... I'm passionate about our bikes bringing new, cutting-edge product to the market; the manufacturing part wasn't the direction we wanted to go."

*Production cost and consumer pricing had something to do with it. Asian production is simply cheaper and Medlock said he's not interested in selling $8,000 frames.

Before joining Allied, for about three years Medlock was CEO of Moots, the Steamboat Springs, Colorado, titanium frame maker. He’s familiar with high-end domestic manufacturing. But Allied is in a different market than Moots — It’s competing in segments where customers favor performance more than manufacturing story.

“Coming from Moots … they’re never going to compete with Santa Cruz or Specialized with their product, right? It's a very specific, special customer that wants to buy that type of product (that Moots offers) and are willing to pay extra for a U.S.-made-by-hand frame. Where we were going into a different space; we weren't competing with Moots,” he said.

*A desire to match the performance of the top bikes on the market, which are made in Asia, had something to do with it. Medlock said he wants Allied to offer products that can compete with the best on performance and value. And while 10 or 15 years ago U.S. manufacturers could outpace Asia, the big factories in Asia have been producing tens of thousands of frames and invested millions in their technology. It's hard for a small U.S. brand to match that.

"It's a matter of capital, but it's also a matter of experience," he said.

He said media tours of Giant's carbon fiber factory last year were eye-opening for him. "I'd been there, but the last time I was there was almost eight years ago and me watching that video and seeing how much progress that factory has made in eight years, I was like, 'wow they're doing things with their frame manufacturing that, when we started we were ahead of where they were at, and now they are ahead of where we were at.' It's not to knock what we were doing, it's just when you are only making one bike (model) every two years, it's just a matter of reps."

*Consumer desires had something to do with it. Medlock said that while some high-end bike customers in the U.S. care where their bike was made, most are more concerned with performance, quality, value and athlete endorsements. After Allied launched the updated BC40 cross-country bike, Medlock personally called a handful of customers who had ordered it.

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Clik here to view."I had some of them say, 'I bought this bike because of (Allied-sponsored pro racer) Kate Courtney, I don't even know where it was made.' I had a couple of those, and then I had a couple of people that were like, 'OK, that's interesting (where it was made), but do I still get to do custom paint and custom assemblies?' And when I said yes, they were OK.

"And then a few people who said, 'talk to me about quality, how will that change, what's different?' And then there was one customer (who said) 'I bought this bike just because it was made in the United States, I don't want it anymore.' So we arranged to refund him.

"There are the customers that (domestic manufacturing) is really important to and is a factor in their decision. But the majority of customers have other things going on with their decision"

Medlock said Allied's mission had always been to make the best products in the world, domestically. 

"That was the goal. And I think when we — to be quite frank — when we launched the Alfa, our road bike (in 2023), it launched (at the same time) as the new (Specialized) Tarmac SL8, and I looked at the Tarmac SL8 versus our Alfa, and our bike was not better. So, we're making a frame here, and the amount of labor and effort we put into this is absolutely insane and, I mean, the Tarmac was just a better frame, right? They were a step ahead. 

"So that's when we started going down this path of asking, "OK, does it make sense to make everything here? Do we need to simplify?'"

The Able

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Clik here to view.The Able is being launched ahead of this week's Sea Otter Classic in Monterey, California, following what the company said "might be the worst-kept secret in gravel racing following extensive coverage of Payson McElveen’s test mules throughout the 2024 season."

The Able features clearance for up to 57mm tires, updated geometry, fully integrated internal cabling combined with Allied's ST03 adjustable stem that lets riders swap between two rise options without needing to re-cable the bike. The frame has a magnetic-latching internal storage compartment that is separate from its bottle cage mounting area. 

The Able will be available as a frameset or in three complete bike options with SRAM drivetrains and Industry Nine wheels. 

McElveen said, “Being a part of the development of the new Able has been one of the most rewarding experiences of my career. Allied's engineering team was incredibly open-minded, giving me a voice in the project.

“I knew this bike would redefine gravel racing from my first test ride a year ago. It delivers a smoother, more confident, and faster ride. The new Able makes gravel riding better in every way,” he said.

Our colleagues at Velo took a look at the new bike this morning.