Guava bikes: A growing brand of gravel bikes from Catalonia

Born in Barcelona and recently expanding to Girona, Guava Bikes is committed to delivering great and affordable gravel bikes to cyclists from Catalonia and abroad, while also building a community of like-minded individuals.

Together with industrial designer Nacho Suárez, US native David Álvarez launched Guava Bikes in Barcelona back in March 2023, with their initial focus on the Catalan and Spanish markets. One year later, the Guava Bikes team has now opened a store on Carrer de la Força in Girona, and is actively supporting multiple gravel events around Catalonia.

Álvarez and Suárez received special support from two prominent sporting figures to get their brand up-and-running when they launched Guava Bikes last year. This includes the Sports&Life agency Never Say Never Ventures (NSN Ventures, for short), founded by former football player Andrés Iniesta, along with another ex-footballer Bojan Krkic, now an enthusiastic gravel cyclist.

While the Barcelona Clubhouse, fantastically located on the road up to Tibidabo, features a full Guava Bike fleet, coffee corner, showers and changing rooms; opening the new shop in Girona was a natural decision for Álvarez.

Since their inceptions, both the Guava Clubhouse in Barcelona and the new store in Girona, have rapidly developed into meeting places for the local (gravel) riding community. Indeed, the Girona-based shop is a fantastic destination for a gravel ride starting in Barcelona, or vice-versa. “Shop to shop, so to say”, says the founder. “Ideal for cyclists who want to try out our bikes”, he continues. “We did this for our launch party for the shop in Girona, and Bojan joined in as well. It was – I think – a great success.”

Álvarez invites everyone to come and test his products: “We want everyone to come and test out our bikes, our ‘freedom machines’ as we like to call them. So, whether it is from our Clubhouse in Barcelona or our new shop in Girona, join our community and come try them out!”

This story is part of Nafent Magazine volume 11. Read the full story in our digital or paper magazine. Go to our webshop to get yours.