WELCOME TO SPECIALIZED.

Youre an important part of Specialized! Youre here because your

values align with ours. As a member of the team, you impact The Brand
with everything you do, say, and create. With that influence comes
great responsibility. This book lays out our core values, which will guide
you on your journey.

HOW IT STARTED
IT BEGAN WITH A LOVE OF BICYCLES.
When I graduated from college in 1974, I wasnt sure what I wanted
to do next, but I knew it was going to involve spending more time
on my bike.
Back then we riders were outcasts; drivers in California werent
sure cyclists should be on the road, and people in coffee shops
stared at us in our funny riding shorts and shoes. I knew that things
were different in Europe, so I sold my VW Microbus for $1,500 of
Adventure Capital that financed a trip to ride the roads that are the
roots of cycling culture.
By sleeping in farm fields and youth hostels and working in bike
shops when I could, I rode for three months on a route from north to
south. While staying at a hostel in Milan, I met a girl who knew the
legendary frame and component craftsman, Cino Cinelli. I spent a few
bucks on a suit and shoes and went to meet Signore Cinelli. After my
impassioned presentation, he agreed to let me distribute his rare parts
in the USA, and I placed my first order.

MIKE SINYARD, 2011

I hurried back to California in time to meet the boxes, which I stored

under the 8-by-30-foot trailer that served as my home, office,
warehouse, and the world headquarters of Specialized Bicycle
Components. I had these rare bike parts that I knew riders wanted,
but I didnt have a carso I bought a bike trailer. With that, I pedaled
from bike shop to bike shop in the Bay Area, making deliveries and

collecting orders. Some of these shops remain Specialized dealers

to this day. Specialized never would have gotten off the ground if the
dealers hadnt believed in me, shared the vision that riders wanted
these parts, and paid for the components up front.
From 1974 to 1999, Specialized grew swiftly. Unfortunately, several
bad decisions I made in 1999 threatened the future of Specialized.
I call it our near death experience.
To find our feet again, a few key team members and I got together to
get clear about who we are and how we needed to act if we wanted to
succeed. This is when we created the first Specialized Brand Book. It
made a huge impact by aligning the entire team around our Founding
Principle, Vision, and Mission.
We are now living the current chapter, what I call Specialized
Forever. This means many things, but first and foremost, it means
building the best team in the world to ensure that Specialized lives
deep into the future. To do this, we must all be aligned around our
Founding Principle, Vision, and Mission so that we can work together
in The Specialized Way.
Its more critical now than ever.

MIKE SINYARD, 1974

THE BRAND
FOUNDATION

We built our foundation on three parts: the Founding

Principle, the Vision, and the Mission. The Founding
Principle is why we exist. The Vision is the ideal we
are striving towards. And the Mission is the goal we
are set on achieving.

OUR FOUNDING
PRINCIPLE
I called the company Specialized because in
Europe the artisans who really focused on riders,
knew what they needed, and made the best
frames and components were known as
Specialistas. I wanted to create exactly that kind
of company, so Specialized was founded with this
core principle:

FOCUS ON THE RIDERS NEED

FOR TECHNICALLY ADVANCED
PRODUCTS THAT PROVIDE A
PERFORMANCE BENEFIT.
This simple statement is key to every success
Specialized enjoys. Straying from it results in
failure. Today, we are those Specialistas. We will
succeed if we push ourselves to deliver on the
promise of the Founding Principle.

FABRIZIO MACCHI, 2010 U CI PARA- CYCLING TT WORLD CHAMPION

OUR VISION
At Specialized, we are driven by one vision that
is as simple as it is bold:

BE THE BEST CYCLING BRAND

IN THE WORLD.
To be the best means surpassing all others in
how we meet the needs and demands of the rider.
This does not mean being the biggest. If we
concentrate on being the best, success will follow.
Being the best applies to everything that bears
the Specialized name: our bikes, our equipment,
our service, and our people.
This is not a destination; it is a journey of
continually improving peoples lives, the earth
we all share, how we do business, and of course,
the bikes and equipment we make.
At Specialized, we enjoy this journey as a team,
challenging and supporting one another.

MARK CAVENDISH, 2011 U CI ROAD WORLD CHAMPION

OUR MISSION
Working here is exciting. Theres no doubt about
it. But as with all fast-paced environments, you
may occasionally stop and think, What am I
doing? At those moments, remember the
passion for cycling that got you here and which
brings us all together. Be clear that Specialized is
a competitor; a passionate team that wants to win
in everything we do by working together. Our
Mission is to:

BE THE BRAND OF CHOICE FOR

DISCERNING RIDERS AND THE
BEST FULL-SERVICE DEALERS.
>> Create a culture that attracts, develops, and
retains the best people.
>> Design and build the best bikes and equipment
in the world.
>> Solidify financial strength with sustained
growth in sales and profits.
>> Foster social and environmental responsibility
for the world we live in.

NE D THE CAPTAIN OVEREND

THE
SPECIALIZED
WAY
Working together in a highly collaborative, transparent
environment is The Specialized Way. Our Paired Principles
are fundamental to defining our Way. They act as guideposts
for our products, our processes, and our actions. Think of
each set as a cornerstone of the Specialized foundation.
As caretakers of the brand, our responsibility is to make
decisions that operate and build the brand within the scope
of these five sets of principles:
>> Function + Innovation
>> Value + Quality
>> Authentic + Engineered
>> Timeless + Exciting
>> Sustainable + Uncompromising
RACHAEL LAMBERT, WOMENS PRODU CT AND MARKE T ING MANAG ER

FUNCTION + INNOVATION
Innovate or Die. This philosophy has long
served us well in everything we do, from
what we make to how we run our business
to how we act; however, what brought us
here will not bring us into the future. We
must create new solutions.

VALUE + QUALITY
Our bikes and equipment must stand up to the use of riders
who tax the limits. We must exceed rider expectations.
Our product must be perceived as worth the investment,
no matter the amount spent. Our service and our company
culture in general should follow this model of positively
exceeding expectations.

TROY BROSNAN, 2011 U CI JUNIOR DOWNHILL WORLD CHAMPION

AUTHENTIC + ENGINEERED
To be authentic, we need to be true to the needs
of the rider. We must be the real deal. But we
also need to be engineered, calculated, and
intelligent to achieve the goal. This applies to
everything we do.
CHRIS DALUISIO, DIRECTOR OF ADVANCE D R & D

TIMELESS + EXCITING
Our work must be inspired and enduring. Our bikes
and equipment must make riders want to ride. What
we make needs to look fast even standing still, and it
needs to do that today, tomorrow, and in two decades.

SUSTAINABLE + UNCOMPROMISING
Before we act, we must consider the long-term effects of our
actions on the earth, on relationships, on people and make
decisions from this point of view. We must always find the
intersection between performance and sustainability.

WE ARE
SPECIALIZED
There are no options here. We know who we are, what
we stand for, and where we are going.
If we live the words and the meaning of this document,
We will continue the journey to be the Best Cycling
Brand in the World.

MART IN SDERSTRM, S AN FRANCIS CO, 2011