Court Rye (Mktg’06)
Founder and CEO, ElectricBikeReview.com
Court Rye knew there would be sacrifice involved in pursuing his startup business full time. So the two years he spent living in his Toyota Prius were all part of the plan.
“Your business is a living thing—you need to take care of it for it to work,” Rye said. “I’m doing this because I want to have something authentic that helps people looking for honest answers when they buy an e-bike.”
Rye’s business, ElectricBikeReview.com, offers thousands of bike reviews for hobbyists and newcomers alike. In almost 10 years, the site has generated millions of page views from people who come to EBR for simplicity and authenticity, instead of being sold on some fancy marketing.
Rye has worked at big companies—including Google and Accenture—as well as smaller ones over the years, but he’s always had a taste for the startup life. On nights and weekends, he would practice programming and launch side projects, two of which he sold when he lived in Silicon Valley.
‘There’s no extra credit’
Turning to startups was a natural, but not always smooth process for Court. He participated in the entrepreneurship program at Leeds, but failed to earn the official certificate after receiving a C in the capstone course.
“I’m really thankful for that C,” Rye said. “It was the lowest letter grade I earned at 鶹Ѱand it reflects the reality of business—it’s not just about how hard you work, and there’s no extra credit.”
“Your business is a living thing—you need to take care of it for it to work.”
Court Rye (Mktg’06)
It’s safe to say the lesson stuck—EBR shows no signs of slowing down. Rye still creates virtually all the content for the site, and even a brief sampling of his videos shows obvious enthusiasm for what he does. Luck and timing have played a role in his success, he said, but so does his hard work; the site is the longest running independent resource for e-bikes on the web.
“I’ve had a couple of good offers to sell,” he said. “But it’s honest, it’s a special place, and I want to preserve that. My plan is to keep EBR independent.”