Missionary Depot has served tens of thousands of missionaries over the years!
We are the oldest and most experienced full service missionary outfitter in the world.
The owner of Liahona Missionary Depot has personally visited over 280 of the world’s missions. He has seen first-hand and experienced what works best for the missionaries. We have taken these experiences and suggestions to heart and have personally designed and manufactured our own Liahona products. By doing this, we have cut out the middle-man so YOU can save money! You’re not going to be a businessman on your mission with a fancy car and short walking distances, so why would you go to Men’s suit store that sell to businessmen? You need products that are made specifically for the daily rigors of missionary work. You have come to the right place. Please enjoy shopping on our website or please stop-by and see one of our friendly sales associates. They will be able to outfit you with exactly what will work best for YOUR mission and not try and sell you unneeded items. We are honest and want to see you be the best prepared possible for the exciting adventrure that you are about to embark upon. Good luck and God Speed!
Now please enjoy our story:
Keep The Focus
In 1994 my family and I moved to the beautiful land of Australia to start a new life. We had no idea how much our life would change because of that decision. Not long after we arrived my family and I were blessed to meet three faithful missionaries. Elder Newman, Elder Gibson and Elder Bronson. These three wonderful missionaries baptized my family and I on May 1, 1994.
Elder Newman’s father called him one day and told him that no matter what happened he wanted him to remain focused and work hard. The next day the office called Elder Newman to inform him that his father had died of cancer. Even in the midst of this personal hardship he elected to keep the focus and continue to teach. His tribulations did not stop there. Elder Newman also had the opportunity to unknowingly donate his bike twice to the less fortunate. It was then that we discovered the missionaries were paying way too much for inferior bicycles and that their bikes were being stolen every day. Up till that day I don’t think anyone had ever noticed how important bicycles were to the missionaries. Wanting to help out I called my brother who managed a bicycle factory in Taiwan. I told him I needed a sample bike that was stronger and more durable than the average bicycle. The sample was a winner and Liahona Bicycles was born. Soon, every mission in Australia and New Zealand began ordering our bicycles. Elder Newman’s honor and example were our inspiration.
An incredible year later President Hunter of the New Zealand Auckland Mission suggested we take our bike program to the missionaries in America. We thought it was a great idea but our budget was extremely tight. Several people had borrowed money from us and it looked like we would never get it back. Unfortunately, without that means we would not be able to relocate to America. We fasted and prayed for a long time and then in the course of one week all our borrowers incredibly returned and settled their accounts. Within a couple months we moved to Salt Lake and settled down. Not long after we arrived in Utah we met with the Purchasing Division Manager of The Church of Jesus Christ of Later Day Saints. Much to our dismay, they said they couldn’t endorse our bike program because we were too small “Little Potato” and they already had large name brand suppliers. This was a major setback.
With the prospect of losing everything, my wife and I began a journey that would take over a year to complete. We traveled to nearly every mission in North America meeting the missionaries face to face and introducing our bicycle program. Our work soon paid off when missions began ordering our bikes to replace their aging fleets. The large suppliers the Purchasing Division in Salt Lake had been using were unable to serve the missionaries in a satisfactory manner. But because of our focus and unique abilities “Little Potato” we were very successful and received an endorsement from the Missionary Department in 1998.
Today, six years after Liahona Bicycles began we still remember Elder Newman’s example. We are eternally thankful to those who have supported us over these six years. Our determination to support the missionaries has not wavered and we have “Kept The Focus.” With “Faith in Every Footstep” we have expanded our product line over the years to better serve the missionaries. Providing the missionaries with the best possible bike and accessories at the best possible price remains our fundamental purpose. We stand behind the missionaries and we are delighted that our bikes and accessories are helping the missionaries do the work they were called to do.
Check Out This Story Where We Where Spotlighted In The L.A. Times
Whither the Mormon missionary goeth, so goeth the way-cool Liahona bicycle
When Brother Michael Spence finished assembling the Liahona Mission bicycle prototype earlier this year, he rode it to his local bike shop in Diamond Bar to ask how much it should go for. “The guy said, ‘Hey, I’ve never seen a Liahona,’ “says Spence, a customer service representative for Southern California Edison. “I said, ‘You probably won’t either.’ ”
That is, unless the bike shop guy becomes an emissary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. L.A.’s Mormon missionaries-usually pairs of young men dressed in white shirt sleeves and neckties who travel by bicycle for two years to spread the word-were finding their 10-speeds weren’t keeping pace with Southern California’s famous, Challenging, roads.
“We have a gentleman from Taiwan who was a convert to the church, and he wanted to be more helpful to missionaries,” says Spence, a lifelong Mormon who rode a 10-speed Schwinn on his mission 30 years ago, “and he said, ‘You know, these bikes are really bad.’ ” So Spence and the grateful convert created the Liahona Mission Bike, a 21speed mountain bike sold exclusively to Mormon missionaries, also known as elders. Spence assembles the bicycles himself-the frames come from Taiwan, the Shimano parts from Japan-in a Diamond Bar storage unit, about 600 so far. Named after a compass in the Book of Mormon, the Liahona’s design is based in part on recommendations from elders-its most Mormon-specific feature is a plastic sprocket guard to keep trouser cuffs oil-free. Introduced in June in the Southern California mission area, the bikes were an immediate success and are now ridden by missionaries in Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan and 75 other U.S. missions. Of the 200 elders in Los Angeles, 25% proselytize via Liahonas.(Today is 100%)
The total Liahona package, which includes assembly, helmet, lights and a 16-millimeter U-Lock, comes to a modest $400. The bikes are Covered by a two-year warranty–coincidentally, the exact length of a mission-a boon to elders, who traditionally pay for parts and repairs.
Since Liahona is not a familiar brand, it’s hoped that someone asking, “How can I get one of those bikes?” will open the door to an appointment for conversion. As for theft, long a problem for missionaries, Spence notes: “If you see a hippie guy with long hair riding a Liahona down the street, and he doesn’t have a shirt and tie on, you know the bike’s not his.”
-Mary Melton
LOS ANGELES TIMES MAGAZINE, NOVEMBER 16, 1997
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