After the pandemic boom, the demand for electric bikes is falling, and the market cannot withstand the large number of companies that have started operating in this segment.
The market for electric bikes is oversaturated, and demand for them is declining. This led to a decline in sales of electric vehicles and even bankruptcy of many companies operating in this market.
Danylo Tonkopiy, the founder of the Ukrainian company Delfast, which operates in the North American market, wrote about this on his Facebook page.
According to him, manufacturers of micromobility vehicles have recently faced a decline in demand for electric vehicles after the pandemic boom, high costs of attracting customers, and problems with the supply chain and inventory. This led to a significant decrease in profits and the inability to attract investment. Also, manufacturing companies have accumulated debts, which is why they are bogged down in lawsuits.
“Having an insider’s view of the industry, I have to sadly state that the e-bike boom is over,” Tonkopiy says. Sales of Delfast Bikes also declined. He cites a number of failures and bankruptcies in this market:
- This week, Micromobility.com was delisted from NASDAQ. In 2021, the company’s market capitalization exceeded $800 million; today it is worth $400,000.
- Bird, an electric scooter company that was valued at $2.3 billion in 2021, was delisted from the NASDAQ stock exchange in September 2023 and recently filed for bankruptcy.
- Superpedestrian, another scooter rental company, has ceased operations in the United States, citing “unspecified financial reasons,” TechCrunch reports.
Earlier, in July, Vanmoof, which called itself “the most funded electric bicycle company in the world,” declared bankruptcy. Having raised more than $200 million, the company faced debts totaling 144 million euros at the time of closing. However, there is talk of plans to restart. - Sondors (USA) failed to go public in January and closed its headquarters in Los Angeles in August. It is impossible to order a bike on their website, and the support service does not work.
- In October, the Danish brand Mate Bike reported a drop in demand and a debt of about $10 million. They are working to avoid bankruptcy.
Wiggle, a British online bike retailer, suffered a loss of €244 million in 2022. In October 2023, Wiggle went into administration due to financial difficulties at its parent company Signa Sports United.
There is not much positive news:
- Cowboy, a Belgian electric bicycle manufacturer, plans to achieve annual profitability in 2024 despite financial difficulties.
- Lime is thriving, being perhaps the only scooter-sharing company to have identified a successful strategy for achieving profitability.
- Rad Power Bikes, a Seattle-based company, reported selling 600,000 electric bikes since its inception, but announced another wave of layoffs, closed its New York store, and ceased operations in Europe.
- Phoenix-based Lectric has announced the sale of 400,000 electric bicycles, but its financial condition has not been disclosed.
