"Our design approach of beauty and simplicity means no buttons, gears or settings and our AdaptivePower technology enables the bike to think for itself in real time adjusting the power depending on hill, wind or weight." These are the words of Belgium's Cowboy - and our most recent review of one of the firm's famously designery e-bikes largely agrees.
If the evidence of Cowboy's current campaign on equity crowdfunding platform Crowdcube is anything to go by, there are many who agree this is the right approach, as the company hit its €1m target in under 48 hours. Cowboy say this is, "the highest amount raised and the most number of investors in the automotive, transport and mobility industry on Crowdcube this year."
Investors can invest as little as €10 and will benefit from rewards depending on the amount they invest with the stand out reward being a Cowboy bike when they invest 10k. Note that Cowboy have currently declined to put a valuation on the company and so company shares with a proportionate value will be issued at a later date. The deadline for the raise is 12.59pm CET on April 26.
It's not just a proposition based on an attractive-sounding design ethic. Commercial incentives also figure in Cowboy's pitch: "2022 was our best year ever with €41m revenue and 2.7x year on year growth and this year has seen a strong start with sales above expectation." Although they add that, "we continue full steam ahead on our path to profitability..."
To date the firm has sold more than 50,000 e-bikes and you can now find them in Selfridges of London.
As well as high-tech design innovation, Cowboy also stress their sustainability credentials, having become the first e-bike manufacturer to achieve B-corp status.
B Lab assesses whether companies meet high standards of social and environmental performance, public transparency and legal accountability. Cowboy stress the recyclability of materials used in both their e-bikes and packaging amongst many other metrics measured by B Lab.
What does the future hold for Cowboy? "Design has begun on new models that can unlock a broader customer base and investment is being made in expanding our sales and service footprint as we aim to drive innovation further through new software launches before autumn," they say.
