Electra Bicycle Company

Apr 1, 2021

By Natallie Rocha Benno Bikes has distribution partners in more than 15 countries worldwide for its electric bikes. The pandemic has caused consumers to clear the shelves of many things, including electric bikes, which has local bicycle companies experiencing unprecedented demand and wondering what’s next for this trend. Tracy Sheffer, co-owner of local electric bike shop, Pedego La Jolla, said “bikes and electric bikes are the new toilet paper, basically.” Electric bike, or e-bike, motors are typically powered by a lithium-ion battery, which allows riders the ability to power ahead by pedaling or give themselves an electric boost to tackle hills or long distances without breaking a sweat. Sheffer opened her store, Pedego La Jolla (dba Dynamic Wheels in Motion LLC) on the corner of Bird Rock Avenue and La Jolla Boulevard in 2017. With more than 35 years of industry experience, Sheffer previously held executive sales positions representing brands like Nike and Merrell Footwear, and when it looked like demand was high for e-bikes, she decided to make like 1990s boy band, *NSYNC and “buy, buy, buy” to keep her inventory stocked. Pedego Electric Bikes was founded in 2008 and is headquartered in Orange County. The private company has more than 150 independently-owned stores, not franchises, worldwide and opened 35 new stores in 2020 alone. Pedego has five stores throughout San Diego County, including Sheffer’s La Jolla shop, and a new store that recently opened in Santee. According to a Pedego spokeswoman, growth across its San Diego stores more than doubled at 156% in 2020. “In April 2020, that is when the phone started ringing off the hook,” Sheffer said. “We had more people starting to already go stir-crazy with some of the March stay-at-home orders...people coming in more curious about electric bikes, trying to understand them. People coming in and literally saying things like...‘I don't care what it costs, I've got to get out of my house. I’ve got to do something healthy and active.’” Demand is Up Sheffer explained that in the electric bike and bike market at large, most manufacturers plan aggressive growth at 20% year-over-year, on average. From 2019 to 2020, her sales revenue increased 155.8%, blowing that metric out of the water. “It was at this time, nearly one year ago, that millions of people start re-engaging in bike riding,” said Kevin Cox, President of Electra Bicycle Company. “And for us at Electra, because we sell bikes to everyday people for everyday use, we saw a large uptick in our business in both classic bikes and e-bikes.” Founded in 1993, with headquarters in Encinitas, Electra is well known for its comfortable, beach cruiser style bikes and in 2012, the company produced its first e-bike, Townie Go! Cox added that he’s not surprised by this trend as bikes provide people a safe, socially-distanced option to get outdoors. “I’m smiling because everywhere I look, I see people out riding bikes,” Cox said. “I see families spending more time together...I see cities changing their infrastructure to accommodate more bike riders...And I see a lot more people smiling as well.” One of Electra’s co-founders, Benno Baenziger, started his own company in 2015 called Benno Bikes that exclusively sells high-end e-bikes and has distributors worldwide. From 2020 to 2021, Baenziger said his company experienced a 300% growth in business as gyms remained closed and people looked for ways to explore their nearby neighborhoods. "People all of a sudden started looking into e-bikes and regular bikes and everything but the difference is this time when they discovered bikes, they discovered that now bikes...have motors and they discovered that cycling is not as difficult or as hard as they remember,” Baenziger said in a phone interview while riding his electric bike around Del Mar. After leaving Electra and the company being sold to Trek Bicycle Company in 2014 Baenziger said he didn’t have any intention of getting back into the industry, but the electric element of e-bikes intrigued him. He explained that the electric element presented an opportunity to get more people riding as it took away all of the negatives of cycling. Demand Meets Manufacturing Challenges Baenziger said that right now everything is pre-booked for his inventory and he “could be selling a lot more bikes right now” but you can’t build a whole bike until the part that is taking the longest to manufacture arrives. Across the industry, there is a tension between the demand for parts and consumer demand for bikes, said Tora Harris, CEO of Juiced Bikes. Harris added that Juiced Bikes’ direct-to-consumer model has helped his company avoid waiting lists and allows them to innovate quickly as his customers bring up concerns or repairs directly to them. Harris who grew up in Taiwan and Atlanta, Ga. came to Chula Vista as an Olympic athlete and founded his company in 2009. During the pandemic, Harris has been based in China, a place where e-bikes are everywhere. While the demand for e-bikes came suddenly, Harris said that this phenomenon wasn’t completely new. In 2003, e-bike sales in China surged after the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, SARS, when many riders shifted away from public transit, according to a 2005 report by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Road Ahead Harris acknowledged that while many industries have struggled during the pandemic, the e-bike business was essentially in the right place at the right time and his company was ready to provide people with performance-enhancing, cargo-style e-bikes. Both Baenziger and Harris have been in the industry for a while and shared that this trend is not slowing down anytime soon. Recently, federal legislation was introduced to offer a 30% tax credit of up to $1,500 for purchasing an e-bike. The proposed tax credit is aimed at making electric bikes, which can cost anywhere from $1,000 to $8,000, more affordable and attractive as a viable transportation option for Americans. Right now, for retail shops like Pedego La Jolla, there is no sign of things slowing down. While Sheffer is working long hours, seven days a week, she is also optimistic about the possibilities e-bikes offer people of all ages and interests going forward. “You know what electric bikes have done — they've become the great equalizer,” Sheffer said.