Wish for Wheels

What Wish for Wheels does

Wish for Wheels is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2004 by Brad Appel and headquartered in Greenwood Village (Englewood), Colorado. The company operates the 'Bike Build & Give' program, in which corporate teams fund, assemble, and donate bicycles and helmets directly to second-grade students at Title I schools in the same session. Events are positioned as employee engagement and CSR experiences for corporate partners and are customizable for team building, sales kickoffs, client appreciation, holiday parties, and company retreats. The organization handles all logistics, including parts, tools, and school partnerships, with advance notice of 3-4 weeks for Colorado events and 4-8 weeks for events outside Colorado. As of 2023, Wish for Wheels has delivered bikes to over 85,000-99,000 children (sources differ slightly) across 1,100+ schools through 850+ events, with 2023 alone producing a record 8,200+ bikes via 117 corporate partners.

Revenue is generated through three streams: corporate event sponsorships (primary), individual bike-and-helmet donations at $250 per unit, and a merchandise storefront selling apparel and accessories ($15-$50 items). The customer base spans 117 corporate partners across diverse verticals including energy, banking, insurance, legal, manufacturing, technology, and real estate, with notable anchor relationships such as OXY (Occidental Petroleum), Gates Corporation, Chevron Colorado, 1PointFive, McWhinney Real Estate, and Banc of California. Geographic operations cover multiple U.S. states, with recent expansion emphasis in Texas energy markets and Arkansas. The company runs with a lean 1-10 person core team (CEO/Executive Director Greg Greenwood, Director of Operations, Director of Sales and Partner Relations, and several Build/Give Specialists) supported by an external volunteer base of 30,000+. Technology footprint is minimal — a Squarespace website, standard e-commerce, and basic email/newsletter — with no proprietary software, app, AI/ML capabilities, or disclosed APIs.

Name

Wish for Wheels

Legal name

Wish for Wheels

Website

https://wishforwheels.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Wish for Wheels is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2004 that partners with corporations to host team-building events where employees build bicycles donated to Title I 2nd-grade students, having served 99,000+ children across 850+ events nationally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Philanthropic Team Building Services

NAICS

Sporting and Athletic Goods Manufacturing (339920)

SIC

Sporting & Athletic Goods, Nec (3949)

akta.pro primary industry

Bicycle Programs & Bike Share (Parking, Repair, Rentals) (EDALAKAE)

Keywords

• Corporate team building
• Philanthropic team building
• Employee engagement events
• Corporate social responsibility
• Bike donation programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Englewood

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Corporate Event Sponsorships: Companies and organizations sponsor Team Build & Give events where they fund, build, and donate bikes to Title I 2nd-graders. Corporate partners cover the cost of bikes and helmets as part of their team building and CSR initiatives.
2. Individual Donations: Individual donors can sponsor a bike and helmet for a 2nd grader in a Title I school for $250. These donations directly fund the purchase of new bikes and helmets for children.
3. Merchandise Sales: The organization operates an online store selling apparel and accessories including t-shirts, hoodies, hats, socks, and helmets. Proceeds from merchandise sales support the mission of providing bikes to Title I students.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Wish for Wheels operates the Bike Build & Give Program, where corporate teams sponsor and assemble bicycles that are then donated the same day to Title I 2nd-grade students along with helmets. The organization handles all logistics including parts, tools, and Title I school coordination across the USA. Revenue is generated through corporate event sponsorships, individual bike-and-helmet donations ($250 each), and a merchandise store selling branded apparel.

Product overview

Wish for Wheels is a nonprofit organization offering the Bike Build & Give Program as its core product—a philanthropic team-building service where corporate teams assemble bicycles and donate them directly to Title I 2nd-grade students. The primary offering includes Corporate Team Building Events, Company Retreats, Client Appreciation Events, Donate a Bike for Every Sale programs, and Holiday/Giving Events. Supporting the mission, the organization operates a Merchandise Store selling branded apparel (Tri-Blend Tees, Zip Hoodies, Sun Protection Hoodies, Sport Hats) and accessories (Kids Bicycle Helmets, Trucker Hats, Logo Socks, Performance Tech-T Jersey). Additionally, individual donors can sponsor bikes through the Individual Bike & Helmet Donation program ($250 each), while corporate partners can participate in State, City/County, or School/District Sponsorship Programs to scale their community impact.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Bike Build & Give: The core program where corporate teams build bikes and donate them to Title I 2nd graders

Quantifiable outcome

• 99,000+ children have received bikes since 2004
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• PeopleForBikescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 May 2026SGS partnered with PeopleForBikes and Wish for Wheels to donate 60 bicycles and helmets to youth in underserved communities as part of SGS's new Bicycle, eMobility and Transit Packaging testing laboratory launch in Bentonville, Arkansas.
• 1PointFivecoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 10 November 2023Carbon removal technology company partnered with Wish for Wheels and King Ranch to build over 300 bikes for area second graders in Kingsville, Texas at Harvey Elementary School.
• King RanchcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 10 November 2023Historic ranch partnered with 1PointFive and Wish for Wheels to support bike donations to area second graders through the Team Build & Give program.
• McWhinney Real Estate and DevelopmentminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 6 November 2023Real estate development company partnered with Wish for Wheels to assemble and distribute 41 bicycles at Truscott Elementary School.
• National Cycling League (NCL)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 July 2023Partnership to promote cycling and drive community-building in Denver, Colorado. The National Cycling League and Wish for Wheels collaborate to advance cycling initiatives and community engagement through the nonprofit's bike donation programs.
• Native American BankminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 21 June 2023Financial institution donated 25 bikes for kids at Denver Indian Center. Employees assembled and donated bikes through the Wish for Wheels program.
• PDC EnergycoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 11 May 2023Energy company partnered with Wish for Wheels to donate brand-new bicycles to all second graders in Pecos-Barstow Toyah ISD in Texas, totaling over 200 bikes.
• OXY (Occidental Petroleum)coreGTM or Marketing Partner · 15 December 2022Major energy company partnered with Wish for Wheels to donate 575 bicycles to every second-grader at 10 Houston ISD schools. Set a WFW record with 615 bikes built for the 5th Ward in Houston. Multiple-year partnership continuing into 2023-2024.
• The Pro's ClosetminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 5 December 2022Bike retailer partnered with Wish for Wheels to give bicycles and helmets to Aurora second graders. Built and gave 70 bikes through the collaboration.
• Bike Fort CollinscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 October 2022Local cycling organization partnered with Wish for Wheels for the 3rd Annual FoCo program, with goal to bring new bikes and helmets to every second-grader in Poudre School District's Title I schools.
• Denver PoliceminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 27 September 2022Denver Police partnered with Wish for Wheels to help kids with bike repairs, extending the impact of bike donations into ongoing community support.
• Hope CyclesminorOthersDenver-area organization that accepts donations of used bicycles. Referenced as an alternative for those looking to donate used bikes, as Wish for Wheels only gives new bikes.
• Bike TogetherminorOthersDenver-area organization that accepts donations of used bicycles. Referenced as an alternative for those looking to donate used bikes, as Wish for Wheels only gives new bikes.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Habitat for Humanity: Large nonprofit that runs corporate volunteer 'build days' where employees construct homes for low-income families. Closest direct peer to Wish for Wheels — same nonprofit + corporate team-building event model applied to a different physical product (homes vs. bikes).
• KaBOOM!: Nonprofit that organizes corporate volunteer playground builds for underserved communities. Directly comparable operating model: corporate teams, logistics-handled events, partnership with schools/communities, and mission tied to children's well-being.
• buildOn: Nonprofit running corporate team-build service trips (often school construction) with enterprise partners. Comparable model combining corporate engagement with community/mission impact, though more travel-intensive.
• Project C.U.R.E. Nonprofit that engages corporate volunteer groups to sort and pack medical supplies for underserved communities. Similar model of corporate team-building experiences that produce a tangible, mission-aligned physical output.

Broad incumbents

• Boys & Girls Clubs of America: Established youth-services nonprofit with deep corporate partnership infrastructure and similar Title I / underserved-community beneficiary base, but a much broader operating mandate (after-school programming) rather than a single productized event.
• United Way: Dominant nonprofit intermediary running large-scale workplace giving campaigns and corporate volunteer mobilization. Comparable on the corporate-partnership channel but operates at far larger scale and on a different (fund-allocation) product model.
• TeamBonding: For-profit corporate team-building vendor that offers a portfolio of experiences including charitable giving events. Comparable on the corporate team-building purchase occasion but competes in the for-profit experience market rather than as a mission nonprofit.
• Outback Team Building: For-profit corporate team-building company whose catalog includes charity-themed events (bike builds, etc.). Functions as a commercial competitor to Wish for Wheels in the same enterprise buyer occasions and event categories.

Emerging players

• Bike New York: Cycling-focused nonprofit running youth education and bike-programming initiatives in underserved communities. Comparable mission overlap (bikes + youth + equity) but different operating model (education classes vs. corporate team-building events).

Others

• VolunteerHub: B2B volunteer management software platform used by nonprofits to coordinate corporate volunteer programs. Adjacent ecosystem participant — Wish for Wheels' corporate partners may be in VolunteerHub's buyer base, but it is a tooling vendor rather than a competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wishforwheels
• Xx.com/WishforWheels
• Facebookfacebook.com/WishForWheels

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Wish for Wheels