Early in 2002 I was approached by a Japanese marketing company called Sakura International, who had noticed my work with the New York Bike Messenger Association. Sakura was interested in developing a clothing line specifically designed for bike messengers and urban cyclists. They commissioned me to come up with some brand name ideas and associated imagery as a foundation to base their product line from. This "Sunset Wheel" image and the "Raven Gear" brand name is one of several concepts I came up with. After submitting my design ideas Sakura then offered me a six month contract to consult them on expanding the newly formed "Raven Gear" line. During the six months I purchased various related sample products from other companies as a basis to develop further into a line of technical clothing and accessories. Along with the designer role I also acted as a liason between Sakura and artists within the messenger community to commission and sub-contract their artwork for placement on Raven Gear clothing.