As VC-backed e-bike startups went bankrupt, bootstrapped Lectric grew

Lectric eBikes, a Phoenix, Arizona-based institution known for its applicable and affordable XP bid electrical bikes, has launched 3 caller brands truthful acold this twelvemonth — a Juiced Bikes relaunch, a caller Juiced Powersports brand, and present a premium escapade marque called Monarc — an enlargement strategy that runs antagonistic to the question of bankruptcies that person plagued the sector.

Together, Lectric has enactment astir $10 cardinal toward these initiatives, CEO Levi Conlow told TechCrunch.

“Others mightiness beryllium pulling back, oregon raising money, we’re really deploying and investing into initiatives similar this,” helium said. “I really don’t deliberation the marketplace is saturated close now; Lectric past period had its biggest income period successful our company’s beingness and we sold astir 30,000 bikes. I’m not definite anybody has done that before, adjacent astatine similar highest COVID.”

Image Credits:Lectric eBikes /

It whitethorn look similar an unusual clip to motorboat an e-bike brand, fto unsocial three.

In the past 2 years a slew of e-bike companies person filed for bankruptcy, unopen down, oregon withered until they were snapped up by larger companies. Rad Power Bikes, the buzzy electrical motorcycle institution that raised astir $330 cardinal successful task capital, was possibly the highest illustration collapse. The company, erstwhile valued astatine $1.65 billion, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in December. Its assets were acquired by Life Electric Vehicles Holdings for $13.2 million.

“To me, it’s conscionable opened it up,” Conlow said of the marketplace aft listing a twelve companies that had folded oregon near the U.S. market. “I deliberation the the marketplace really lacks a batch of worthy contention close now.”

The contrarian stake has a contrarian backstory. Conlow and co-founder Robby Deziel ne'er raised task capital, alternatively bootstrapping the business, which they founded 7 years agone arsenic puerility friends, earlier taking an concern from backstage equity steadfast Bertram Capital Management successful 2020. What started arsenic a scrappy startup is present 1 of the top-selling direct-to-consumer e-bike companies successful the U.S., shipping 150,000 units successful 2025.

The playbook — bootstrap, enactment profitable, fto better-funded competitors implode, past grow — is 1 that founders crossed hardware categories mightiness find instructive. But Conlow is cautious astir however Lectric grows. Trying to merchantability e-bikes for each benignant of lawsuit risks diluting the brand, helium said.

“What we’ve learned is that Lectric cannot beryllium everything to everyone,” helium said, earlier pointing to its wide merchandise lineup, which see folding bikes and an electrical tricycle. The institution sells 90% of its products nonstop to consumers done its website, which, depending connected the month, attracts 2 cardinal to 4 cardinal visitors.

The solution is to support the brands abstracted oregon hazard dilution. Featuring a Juiced Bikes exemplary prominently connected the Lectric homepage, for instance, mightiness propulsion attraction distant from Lectric’s best-selling XP Series, sending the incorrect awesome to the incorrect customer.

“You request to beryllium a batch much intentional, and erstwhile you’re much focused, you tin spell truly heavy into that vertical; you tin marque lawsuit service, branding, and selling circumstantial to that merchandise and that company,” helium said.

That’s what Lectric has done with Juiced Bikes, Juiced Powersports — which volition vessel its archetypal e-moto successful August — and Monarc. Juiced Bikes was acquired by Lectric successful 2025 and relaunched past month, portion Monarc, which started arsenic a skunkworks task wrong Lectric, spun retired this week arsenic a standalone marque based successful Minnesota, led by manufacture vets Julia Moran and Ryan Callahan.

Each marque has its ain merchandise engineering and development, branding, marketing, and lawsuit work teams. Conlow takes this separation a measurement further, noting helium adjacent wants the brands to vie with each other.

“We don’t privation 3 brands that extremity up looking and performing the aforesaid oregon feeling the same. There should beryllium steadfast contention betwixt [them],” helium said.

Image Credits:Lectric eBikes /

Monarc is leaning connected its premium escapade manner features and lawsuit work strategy that includes a five-year warranty and telephone enactment with existent humans. (Conlow was speedy to enactment that nary of its brands volition ever usage AI for lawsuit service.)

Monarc’s archetypal e-bike, an all-terrain way electrical motorcycle called the Marker, volition travel modular with 2 LG 48-volt 15Ah batteries — an offering that is antithetic successful the e-bike assemblage — that supply 720 watt-hours each and are UL 2271 certified. The batteries besides travel with a 5-amp accelerated charger. The Marker, which volition statesman shipping to customers successful July, is kitted retired with different premium features similar a Bafang motor, Shimano drivetrain, and a 3.5-inch colour touchscreen that tin sync with different accessories similar rearview radar and astute helmets.

Monarc and the 2 Juiced brands are small, with 10 and 8 employees, respectively, though they are expected to expand. Lectric itself has 170 employees. The brands run independently but leverage Lectric’s proviso chain, purchasing power, and backend support.

Whether Lectric volition proceed to motorboat caller autarkic brands is an unfastened question. Conlow kept the imaginable open: “We proceed to research and support our eyes open.” But helium isn’t successful immoderate rush. “We person made our sheet precise full, and we’re going to enactment focused connected this.”