Words PADDY MADDISON Photography PATRIK LUNDIN
Mikoláš Voverka of Prague-based Repete tells Cyclist about making steel bikes for the modern rider
Mikoláš Voverka and Robin Fišer first met (as all the very best of friends do) through a shared love of classic Italian racing bicycles.
After spying each other’s steel frames from across the street in Prague, the pair struck up a conversation. They joined forces to hunt down vintage bikes, and it wasn’t long before they’d amassed a stable of 35 of them in Voverka’s childhood bedroom. Then they started their own brand, Repete.
‘I think the first bike we bought together was an old Francesco Moser Cromovelato,’ Voverka tells Cyclist. ‘It’s the one with the blue-tinted clear coat and it’s super-nice. We still have it today and it’s all original.
‘I was about 22 when Robin and I first met, and Robin was even younger. We’ve been friends ever since. It started off with riding together, then collecting and renovating these old race bikes, which is where the love of steel started. It was a shared passion, and at some point we realised we wanted to make our own products.’
Founded in 2012, Repete has forged a reputation as one of the coolest independent bike brands on the scene. Its steel frames are simple and elegant, with tastefully subtle colour schemes (usually) and an Instagrammable aesthetic that has made them a staple in trendy high-end cycling boutiques around the continent.
‘Honestly, I never thought I would end up doing this,’ says Voverka. ‘I’ve been riding bikes since I was a kid but nothing serious. And it was always mountain biking, never road cycling. Initially, I studied economics, but I ended up dropping out. I started looking for something in my life, and that’s where I found cycling.’
At Repete’s headquarters, Voverka focusses on the day-to-day operations, while Fišer concentrates on more of the design work. There are no investors pulling strings behind the scenes, and aside from an extra pair of hands in the workshop now and then, or a bit of outside help from experienced marketeers, it’s ultimately the team of two that builds the frames and runs the business.
‘Repete is all about making modern steel frames,’ says Voverka. ‘That has been the idea from the very beginning. We fell in love with st
