New Forest Cycling says its hire operation is going to take a “huge hit” after 15 Cube Reaction Hybrid Pro e-bikes were stolen last week.

Assistant manager Matt Raybould told the Daily Echo the theft was discovered on the morning of Tuesday July 27.

“We arrived at the shop at our usual time of around half eight when we saw our van window had been broken in, before we walked out back and saw the panels of our shed door smashed,” he said.

“We’re obviously very angry, sad and confused as to why this has happened. The question we immediately asked was, what are we going to do now? We’re not able to order any more bikes due to a massive supply issue at the moment. The loss of earnings from this is not going to be good.”

The bikes taken were all from the firm’s hire fleet and were without keys or batteries.

The keys are specific to each bike and cannot be used without them, so Raybould says attempts to sell them should be easier to spot.

The firm usually rents such bikes over the summer months, before selling them off later in the year. Some already had buyers lined up for them.

Each is worth approximately £2,400.

“We’re hopeful that our insurance can cover some of the losses as these e-bikes are easily our most popular,” said Raybould. “Every day they’re rented out, so we’ve got a long wait on our hands until we can get new ones.”

A Hampshire Police spokesperson said: “We are investigating following a burglary at New Forest Cycling, The Cross, Burley.

“The incident happened at some time overnight between 5.30pm on July 26 and 8am on July 27.

“15 electric bikes, valued at around £2,400 each, were stolen.

“Anyone with information should call police on 101, quoting crime reference number 44210297443.”