Western Daily Press (Saturday)
E-bike business racing ahead after lockdown boost
A GLOUCESTERSHIRE e-bike business has opened a second site in Bristol following a 400% increase in sales during the pandemic.
EDEMO Electric Bikes, based in Nailsworth, will move into one of the original units at Bristol’s Paintworks development, which it will use for offices and distribution.
The company, which is a specialist dealer of the Riese and Muller brand of e-bikes, said the sales surge was in part driven by people’s interest in the power-assisted bicycles as an alternative to using public transport during the pandemic and for holidaying in the UK.
According to research carried out by Halfords, Google searches in the UK for terms such as e-bike, electric bike or electric bicycle, increased by almost 50% last year.
EDEMO has agreed a five-year lease of its new Bristol outlet at the former Victorian paint factory on the A4 Bath Road with the landlord Bright Property Development.
The unit provides 1,140 sq ft of ground floor and mezzanine accommodation.
Tom Dugay of commercial property consultancy Alder King, who assisted in the letting of the unit, said: “Bristol has long been known as a cycling city and with increased availability of electric bikes, more of us are using them for both commuting and leisure. It’s great news that EDEMO has decided to open a second outlet and I’m sure they’ll continue to prosper here.”
EDEMO was started by e-bike enthusiast Dan Radford in 2018, who was previously managing director of a refrigerant detection and software company.
Mr Radford said: “Our philosophy is to sell adventure and fun. We always work with our customers to find the very best electric bike to meet individual needs.
“We try to simplify the techy world of bikes into simple easy to understand language. Although the bike is just the tool to enable your dreams, we know how important quality and reliability is.”