Behind the brand: Jonas Thiemann, Senior Bike Product Designer

In our continuing series, we'd like to introduce you to a few of the people who work behind the scenes at Merida. Say hello to the mastermind behind our mountain bike designs, a sculptor who works with a computer rather than clay - Jonas Theimann, our Senior Bike Product Designer. 

It's his job to take the ideas and designs from our engineering team and sculpt them into beautiful moving machines. He's the person who 3D designs our carbon fibre frame shapes, making them as pleasing to look at as they are to ride. 

It's this freedom to create that's his favourite part of his role, saying "I can live out my potential as a designer. I love the proximity to the customer and the constant development."

When it comes to riding, Jonas prefers the simple joys of his home trails in the Black Forest, where he can ride secret singletrack for hours and rarely come across a person. His weapon of choice - the eOne-Sixty which, of course, he helped design.

"This bike is the first painted sample we have received. I worked on it for over 14 months and know every corner inside and out.  It is a milestone in the history of the company and I feel very connected to the platform. The components are carried over from the predecessor eOne-Sixty 900E except for a few parts. Therefore, everything has already seen many miles and everywhere there are dents and scratches. But that's what I like most. I have grown in the project myself and am very happy that it drives on the trail just as I had always hoped during the development on the PC."

It's also a bike that's given him one of his favourite riding-related times too, saying: "The day of the presentation in Girona was a very special highlight for me, for months I had the bike only in my computer and besides me only a handful of people have seen it before. I was very touched by the reaction of the press and then, after all the effort, to go on the trails together was a fantastic conclusion to the project and the start of a new era of eMTB."

However, while fancy product launches in far-flung parts of the world are great, he's content with the simple pleasures, saying: "I find it most beautiful at home, where I know my way around and know every stick and stone. I don't get bored, I love it, I don't have to go anywhere else. I'm happy here!"

You can keep up with Jonas by following him on Instagram here.