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Project 321 is now making hubs in Canada

Innovative hub brand moves to Mississauga, Ont.

Magnetic hub pioneers, Project 321 are becoming an Ontario-based company. The brand was recently purchased by North Arc Capital Partners, a Canadian partnership that are moving production to Mississauga, Ont. as part of a plan to expand the brand’s capacity and market presence.

The transition north is already well underway. Project 321 expects its new Canadian-made G3 hubs to be released by the end of this quarter.

Project 321 colors in the G2 version.

What is Project 321 ?

Project 321 isn’t exactly a new brand. In fact, it was founded 17 years ago in Fresno, California by Jake Liles. In 2005, the move into mountain biking started with boutique parts. In 2011, Project 321 started making hubs with internals sourced from Industry Nine.

In 2017 the real work started. The brand introduced its magnet-actuated pawl hubs: the G2 hub. With 216 points of engagement, and a quiet or loud hub option, the G2 pioneered magnet paws for mountain biking. The combination of high-engagement and magnetic pawl’s promise of low drag attracted attention as an alternative to the fuss of spring-loaded pawls. By the end of that year, Liles and his partner moved to Bend, Ore. and brought most manufacturing in-house.

Pre-production hints of what the G3 magnetic pawls could look like from Project 321.

G3 Hub and Stan’s

The G2 hub design was refined over several years and eventually attracted the attention of Stan’s No Tubes. The wheel brand approached Liles to help develop its own magnetic pawl design (recently released as the MPulse hub). At the same time, Liles started developing his own G3 design.

With Stan’s involvement (Project 321 supplies several components to Stan’s that are common to the G3 hub) and the growth in cycling generally pushing Project 321 larger, Liles decided to find a way to grow the brand. Enter Bryden Richardson and North Arc Capital.

What is North Arc Precision?

So, how do Ontario and North Arc Precision figure into the story? At the same time as Project 321 was establishing itself and gaining attention with the magnetic hub design, Mississauga-based North Arc Capital Partners was expanding TriggerTech and North Arc Precision. TriggerTech produces high-end component supplier of crossbow and rifle triggers.

It is North Arc Precision’s experience in Wire EDM fabrication, CNC Machining and complex assembly processes (and 42,000 square-foot facility) that will be relevant to growing Project 321’s production capacity.

What happens next?

This is more than just taking a group of investors taking over a small brand. Project 321, a newly stand-alone Canadian entity sold by Liles’ JSLO Inc. to North Arc, is moving to Canada. It’s also moving to Generation 3 (G3) of the Project 321 hub for immanent release. With the move, the G2 hub will be discontinued (Existing warranties will be honoured and spare parts and service will still be available through Mississauga and through Liles’ Bend, Ore. facility). P321 is also expanding to supply Stan’s with MPulse hub components. Richardson, CEO of North Arc Capital Projects, hopes this will be the start of a broader OEM and aftermarket future for the Project 321 brand.

“The reputation of the Project 321 brand, combined with the recently announced Stan’s MPulse hub supply deal, make Project 321 an ideal platform to enter the cycling industry,” Richardson said of why North Arc was interested in the hub brand. “We are extremely fortunate to be able to learn from Project 321’s years of experience.”

Liles’ isn’t done with Project 321, either.

“The JLSO team is pleased to see our designs joining the North Arc family of companies. We will continue to collaborate on Project 321 to further grow and expand the business footprint,” said Jake Liles, President, JLSO, Inc. “Our companies are well aligned in that we both focus on customer service, innovative products, manufacturing excellence, and being good stewards of the environment.”

It still is a big change for the Liles’ family after 17 years. The added a note to their customers as part of the announcement:

A note from Jake and Sam

“To Our Dear Customers, Friends and Family,

How do you begin to say goodbye to something that has been a part of your daily life for nearly seventeen years? For us it starts with THANK YOU.

Thank you to our customers. Who helped us to grow an unknown brand of quality American-made products from an idea in a garage to an international brand. Your trust and support means everything to us.

Thank you to our employees, past and present. We never could have made it this far without a team of people who believed in our vision.

Thank you to all of the friends we have made along the way. We could not have imagined some of the deep and lasting connections that have come from starting and running this company.

Thank you to our families, especially our parents. Without you we could not have survived our children’s early years!

And thank you to the new owners of PROJECT321. Who have given us the opportunity to transition into a new phase of our lives and to watch the brand we started so many years ago develop in big and exciting ways.

This has been an amazing and unique journey and we are beyond grateful to everyone who has been part of it.

With Much Love and Gratitude,

-Jake and Sam”