Now it’s hydro e-bikes

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Hydrofoil electric bike company Manta5 is looking to raise $10 million in capital to fund the manufacture of its bikes, designed to be ridden on water.

Guy Howard-Willis, founder of retail chain Torpedo7 and 1Day.co.nz, now owned by the Warehouse Group, founded the Hamilton company about eight years ago after the sale of the outdoor equipment retailer.

Manta5 was one of just three New Zealand tech companies to be exhibiting their technologies at the consumer electronics show (CES) in Las Vegas last week.

The company took five staff to the show, where even the smallest stand costs US$4000 ($5700). It also took along three of its $7490 Hydrofoiler XE-1 bikes — one for its stand and two

for journalists to trial at a nearby lake.

Chief executive Greg Johnston told the Herald Manta5 had plans to create other models of water bikes, manufactured in part in Taiwan, including tandem models and others designed for surfing and the resort market.

A CES first-timer, Manta5 has garnered a lot of media attention. On Tuesday it was one of five companies trending at the event which attracts more than 150,000 people each year and about 4500 companies with exhibits.

“Being the world’s largest innovation/tech trade show, CES presents an amazing opportunity for Manta5 to cement ongoing relationships with the US market,” Johnston said. “CES is ideal for distribution talks. Although we are currently selling directly to the consumer, there are a number of great connections we will follow up with should we choose to introduce strategic distribution partners . . .”

The bikes were delivered to presale customers for the first time ahead of Christmas. Most orders went to the United States and about 40 in New Zealand.

Above the water, the product is a waterproof electric bike with pedal-assist technology that can be adjusted. Below the water, the bike is similar to a plane with hydrofoil wings and a propeller. On highassist it will last one hour on the water, and the detachable battery — which lasts up to 60 minutes — can be fully recharged in three hours.

Johnston said Manta5 had sold hundreds of the bikes and had already sold out of its latest pre-sale round, scheduled to be delivered in May. It had received a lot of interest from the superyacht and hire markets, among high-net-worth Kiwis, as well as interest from all over the world.

It is already working with some resort and hire operators in New Zealand and “prominent companies in the US”, which could not named.

“Initially, because we had such overwhelming demand, we utilised a pre-sale strategy where people would put a 10 per cent deposit down . . . we will scale up our mass production until we get to a point where we can hold stock, and we’ve got thousands of distribution inquiries from around the world, so [the next step] is whittling that down and working with partners that we can have holding stock and running demos,” he said.

“We’re looking to have central distribution in the US and another in Europe.”

The concept for the company’s bikes was literally dreamt up. Howard-Willis had a dream of pushing off from his pontoon in Pauanui and riding out on to the water on a bike-like object, next to dolphins. He woke up next day and got started on

CES presents an amazing opportunity.

Greg Johnston, CEO

making the vision a reality.

It took about two years to develop the final prototype, and it first went on sale two years ago on pre-sale. Those units were delivered in December.

The company was funded by Howard-Willis in its first two years and has since received capital from local investors. This year it will raise a series A round of funding to secure $10m in May. It plans to use the capital to scale up stock, for marketing and to grow its team.

The US is Manta5’s largest market, followed by Europe. The bikes have proven particularly popular in California, Florida, Texas and New York.

“Our vision is to become cycling’s new frontier, just like the mountainbike industry has downhill and cross-country mountain bikes, we want to create a suite of hydrofoil bikes. We see ourselves as having one that is for the resort and hire market, a racing model that’s manual, and innovating on a surf

model.”