Dominic Loh cranked his way into mountain biking as a teenager by riding and racing on the tightly woven and slippery urban jungle trails of Singapore. After treading a life path in a different direction, he decided to pull the brakes on to regain his direction, which, of course, meant finding a way to turn his love of skimming the trails and the bike he rode into his career.

• Industry Insider - MTB career highlights with Dom Mason of Mason Cycles
• Industry Insider – MTB Career Insights with Rory Hitchens
• Industry Insider – Cy Turner, founder of Cotic Bikes

From East to West, from hotly slung in Singapore to shivering and slithering in Scotland, from shoes to stems, Singapore-based mountain biker Dominic Loh, has been involved in all things off-road cycling, the sports industry, and the mountain bike world on various levels since he was in his early teens. Tying his career laces from the ground up, he has developed a fine and ever-growing inside knowledge of the bike industry and spends much of his life living between the eastern and western worlds that inexplicably link the industry together. 

As Director of Business and Communication for the company that parents FUNN MTB and Granite Design, Dominic leads a hectic life with his virtual communications time machine, which is no easy task. We asked him to tell us more about his work.

In your own words, who are you and what do you do?

My name is Dominic Loh, I am the Director of Business and Communications of the parent company that owns Funn MTB Component and Granite Design. 

What is your job?

The main job that I do is to service some of the key accounts of the global distribution network for the brands, and strategic planning is part of it in terms of new product launches, athlete sponsorship and management, event partnership, and social media management. Other parts are media relationships, like working with off.road.cc on certain relevant content that we can be part of.  

How did you get into what you do?

I have been in the sporting goods industry since 2005, working in the retail scene with brands like Salomon, New Balance, and then eventually moving into the area of sales and marketing with Asics, The North Face, Buff, and Suunto. I took a brief hiatus of three to four years away from all that to focus on my personal development, and eventually landed in the bike industry with a Scotland-based brand, Pipedream Cycles, to do everything from distribution to marketing. All that started when my wife asked me what really motivates me to work and use my skillset. Hence, I started digging deep to find my love for the bike industry, as I had started riding mountain bikes when I was a 14-year-old, and have never stopped doing that. 

How long have you been working in the bike industry?

There was no specific date on when I started, as it was a progression from distribution to working for the brands. So, I would say it's about 15 years.

How have things changed since you started? 

The industry has moved from a conservative geometry design to something more progressive over the years, with slacker/lower geometry taking the limelight. Road bikes - then it was all rim brakes, and now it's all disc brakes. Electronic shift was non-existent for a while. And there is the arrival of E-bikes from being a complementary product to now being a mainstream category. We’ve also seen a big change from having constant launches, with a new model every year, while now it's more progressive, with product replacement only being done to necessitate progressive changes. 

Dinner with Tyler Benedict (Founder of Bike Rumor).jpeg, by Liam Mercer

Then there are changes in how brands are marketing themselves now, with more campaigns being done through digital platforms, and content is the talk of the town now, versus when I first started, when print articles were of paramount importance. 

Is there anything you wish you could change about your role/job? 

I don’t have much I wish to change in my work, as I have the flexibility of time because I have to talk to distributors, partners, colleagues, athletes, and media from different time zones. One thing I would love to have is more time with my colleagues in the office, especially with R&D, as I do love to throw ideas and tinker with designs. 

What does the average week look like?

As I am currently based in Asia, my week generally starts with online meetings and a phone call with the office team to lay out the weekly agendas and daily tasks. Then there are R&D meetings with the design team. As the time zones vary, I generally talk with multiple distributors in Oceania, and also with media and athletes in  North America first thing in the morning. 

Taipei Cycle Show 2024.jpeg, by Liam Mercer

Late morning to early afternoon will also be spent completing the tasks at hand for the day/week. Then the European timezone starts, where most key businesses, partners, and athletes like Richard Gasperotti, Tom Wilson, and Wyn Masters are. I do regular lunch rides (mostly two to three times with a short duration of one to two hours) with the purpose to keep up with fitness and to test new products, and for content curation (photos and videos for social media accounts), which which includes some basic testing at the wrenching station. 

The rest of the time, I’m writing newsletters/communiques to fellow trade partners, and also press releases, plus planning marketing budgets and product launch strategies. Then there are times when you have to travel for work. I recently spent two and a half weeks traveling to meetings with European distributors, brand partners, and also attending CoreBike UK to support our UK Distributors and to help with answering the technical questions on the products.

What advice would you give to someone who wants to do your job/what you do?

Working in the bike industry can be “living the dream” for some, but it comes with a lot of hard work. You need to be of the right personality and also have the willingness to connect with people of all levels. There are times that you will have to get out of your comfort zone, like staying up late and getting up early for a call that might determine the future of one of the key markets. No need for a lot of intentional action as you interact with your counterparts, because people will see through your motives and intentions quickly. Passion for success will eventually outweigh the love of sports. So be prepared for that.

What do you like most about what you do?

The fact that I have the opportunity to work with people from different countries and backgrounds. I appreciate the ever-changing landscape of the bike industry, which helps me to see each day as a fresh start for new things, which excites me all the time. 

If you weren’t doing this, you would be?

I’d still see myself involved in cycling in one way or another, as I do volunteer with the local (Singapore) cycling governing body as a board member, and I am also a trained commissaire (race official) who officiates MTB and BMX bike races. If not, I would probably be doing my cooking blog – since I love to cook. 

What have been some of the highlights of your career?

Being involved with a downhill team that races the World Cup. Being able to attend some of the coolest events – like Crankworx, the UCI MTB World Cup and Sea Otter Classic. Meeting the many legends, like sharing a breakfast table with Mr Gary Fisher, was really special. 

Me and Gary Fisher (Leogang 2023).jpeg, by Liam Mercer

Being involved with two seasons of the Pinkbike Academy was pretty rewarding, too. And lastly, being involved in the launch of a brand new brand (Granite Design) and seeing it grow to the scale it is today. Those are some of the milestones and highlights that will stay with me for the rest of my life. 

The industry finds itself in a tough situation in terms of the cost of living. Do you see it recovering any time soon, and if so, what will brands need to do to stay relevant and afloat?

I don’t see this as a bike industry problem, it’s also the sporting goods industry and the fashion industry. I can see some improvement in terms of the data that is being presented, but we are still a distance away from seeing the recovery in full swing. That being said, it is up to the individual brands in the bike industry to work on differentiating their brand and their products to convince the consumers to buy in. It’s really to answer the “why” of the consumers rather than the “what.” 

What do you dislike most about the cycling industry?

There are always things in the bike industry that I don’t agree with. But it’s part of it. It’s about finding that balance. You can’t win it all,  but what you can do is change your perspective and go for the small wins that will eventually turn into the big change. When I first started, there was not much of a push for female products, but now there is a big movement, and I think that is a change of perspective. Through small wins, it's now turning into a big movement, but there’s still a long way to go. 

How do you keep things balanced when your hobby becomes your job?

I am not the best person to ask, because I tend to switch to the extreme ends of things most of the time. The work side will win over the hobby. But I have learned to switch the business head off when I am out on the trails with my friends, and to just soak up the moment and talk about riding and line choices versus talking about products all the time. 

You might also like:

• Industry Insider - MTB Career insights with Joe McEwan of Starling Cycles
• Industry Insider: MTB career Insights with James Lawrence
• Industry Insider – MTB career insights with Chris Porter