It wasn’t a great year, but some great things happened thanks to you.
2020 will most certainly be one for the ages. We will not easily forget the hardship, disruption, and uncertainty it brought to all of us. Still, the adjustments and sacrifices we all had to make this year highlighted many positives for me personally and for Eliel as a company. I’m thankful and grateful that these positives eclipsed the negatives as we reach year’s end and look over our shoulders. The shining star was certainly the resilience and determination of the Eliel staff and our greater Eliel community of friends and family.
It seems so long ago, but the initial disruption and mandatory shut down of our business in March was both crushing and terrifying. And yet, the optimism and accommodations of our staff as we navigated the unknown was a delight to witness. The difficult decisions we had to make ended up being crucial, but they gave us confidence and energy to tackle the challenges we are still grappling with now. The outpouring of concern and understanding from our amazing friends and customers right away was so empowering and humbling to all of us.
It was a delight to see our staff take on the challenge of developing and safely producing essential masks when there was a heavy need and massive shortage – it gave us purpose. We donated thousands of masks to essential workers at medical facilities, first line responders, and even bike shop employees as they worked to keep us safe and moving forward.
Later, after a couple months of only producing masks, it was the understanding and compassion of our clients who anxiously awaited their custom kit orders that further inspired us to get back to producing the Best of the Best cycling gear with all the new COVID-19 safety measures in place. We had limited personnel, as our staff navigated quarantines, lack of school and childcare, and all of the extra precautions to keep themselves, their families, and their co-workers safe, but our team came together in the new paradigm, working in creative and productive ways to meet the growing demands for our gear.
With a wider perspective, I’m so proud of how everyone in our company and our community came together to support each other this year. I’ve seen so many instances of support, caring, and outreach that greatly overshadowed the difficulties and frustration we have all been feeling. I know in the greater scheme of things, creating and crafting the Best of the Best cycling apparel is not an essential need in these times. I also know there are so many people who deserve our gratitude and respect for stepping up to take care of us and keep our community working. However, I will say, our business is essential to the dedicated folks who work here, and your support to keep us going and allow us to support them is something for which I’m extremely grateful and humbled.
I hope that in our small way we have also brought some joy, FUN, and motivation this year to stay safe and active with a colorful, positive mask or some of our beautiful gear that got you out on your bike or on your trainer. We believe getting some exercise, fresh air, and all-important stress relief is what we have needed a bit more of this year.
So, thank you for allowing us the privilege and the pleasure of providing this small gift to you and our community. We hope we will be over this long climb soon and feeling the wind in our faces on the descent back down to a less complicated time. Here’s to our amazing community and sharing more FUN miles with everyone soon!
