The horizon is brightening for VanMoof’s approximately 190,000 customers. More than six months after the bankruptcy of the Dutch start-up and its acquisition by McLaren Applied through the Lavoie brand, the latter sent an email to the customer base of the manufacturer of electric and connected bicycles.
In this message, the electric scooter brand Lavoie talks about the acquisition of VanWoof at the beginning of the school year, which occurred “because we were pleasantly surprised by the products and the brand.” He also promises to say more soon about VanMoof’s business restart and asks customers to update their preferences with this in mind.
“Our subscribers will soon discover our 2024 product range,” says Lavoie.
Lavoie then detailed the three “founding principles” guiding VanMoof’s relaunch: staying true to the start-up’s spirit of innovation, ensuring reliability and transparent communication, and, above all, keeping cyclists on the road.
“We have made the current VanMoof bicycles more robust by redesigning the basic parts,” says the McLaren Applied subsidiary in particular. We will significantly reduce delivery times, be open and transparent with you about our progress and keep you informed regularly. updates.”
Too high costs due to a vertical production chain
These commitments seem to echo the extensive criticism VanMoof received before ultimately filing for bankruptcy. In the twenty countries in which the start-up’s models are sold, many customers have complained of not having received their bicycle or even of finding sales outlets simply closed. Unable to meet demand due to particularly high costs due to a vertical production chain, VanMoof ended up preventing orders from being placed at its headquarters at the end of June. The bankruptcy had even made the owners of these connected bicycles fear that they would no longer be able to use them, since their operation was associated with a patented application.
Created in 2009, the Dutch start-up wanted to target the urban CSP+ in search of premium mobility with connected products and high-end design with a set of integrated services such as a rental system, insurance, maintenance and guarantee against theft. All at a high price, about 3,000 euros. It exploded in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic by raising funds worth €12.5 million in the spring of 2020 and $128 million a few months later, the largest figure in the European cycling sector.
Source: BFM TV
