Items priced over 10,000 yuan are hot sellers! Chinese brands take first place in North America

Overseas consumers are lining up to buy "over 10,000 bicycles"...

Some time ago, Aventon electric bicycles from Jinyun became a hot-selling item in cities such as New York and Seattle in the United States. "The first batch of more than 1,000 new E-bikes were sold out within a week of their launch," said an Aventon official. In the mid-to-high-end segment of electric power-assisted bicycles in North America, Aventon has taken the first place in the market share of the E-Bike industry and officially entered the first echelon.

Ebike stands for Electric bicycle. It is a new type of transportation that integrates human riding and motor assistance, and is based on traditional bicycles and adds batteries, motors and electronic controls. It can provide power assistance according to the rider's pedaling force. It has the remarkable feature of "retaining the joy of riding while saving effort".

In Europe and the United States, the price of Ebike is generally between 1,000 and 5,000 US dollars, equivalent to about 10,000 to 30,000 RMB. Just as a large number of overseas consumers always love four-wheeled cars, their love for Ebike is also far beyond imagination.

Capital is also paying close attention to this track.

In August 2021, Dutch electric bicycle brand VanMoof won a $128 million Series C financing led by Hillhouse Capital, which became the largest financing for Ebike in recent years. At the same time, leading Ebike overseas brands such as Velotric, Urtopia, Aventon, SURPANDA, Tenways, etc. have also gained capital favor, and Tencent and Alibaba have even become shareholders of some brands. Technology giants such as Xiaomi and DJI, which we are familiar with, have also begun to squeeze into this track.

China is a major country for bicycles and electric motorcycles. In recent years, more and more excellent Chinese overseas brands have emerged in the Ebike track. With cross-border e-commerce third-party platforms, independent websites and other channels as sales carriers, the Ebikes they produce have become fashionable items that have exploded in the European and American markets.

What is the business philosophy behind the charm of Ebike? If Chinese brands want to successfully go global, they cannot do without professional market analysis and accurate brand positioning. Next, this article will analyze the market layout and overseas marketing methods of three representative players in the Ebike field, VanMoof, Aventon, and Cowboy, to provide reference for more domestic brands going global.

Sales growth once reached more than 1000%! Ebike brand is selling well around the world

Cowboy: More than 55,000 Ebikes have been sold, and the products are sold out in minutes.

The Belgian electric bicycle brand Cowboy was founded in January 2017 by Adrien Roose, Karim Slaoui and Tanguy Goretti. Prior to this, all three had extensive entrepreneurial experience. Tanguy Goretti had participated in the establishment of the ride-sharing platform Djump.

The founder's past work undoubtedly cleared many obstacles for the subsequent development of this cutting-edge brand. Cowboy has grown rapidly in just a few years.

Yienjun learned that Cowboy has captured a group of die-hard fans. The electric bicycle, which is priced from €2699, has sold more than 55,000 units. Many of its products are hot-selling, such as one   Circular bikes have sold out in minutes , with a global community completing over 1.5m rides per month, and are the only electric bike manufacturer to be certified as a B Corp.

It can be found that Cowboy's target service users tend to be younger and mainly from a female perspective. Therefore, the brand's motorcycles are attractive to this user group from the inside out. For example, the body is very light, the battery life is very long, and it has a very high appearance, a simple design with a high-tech feel, and a colorful style.

Cowboy’s keywords are mainly big words and category words, and are basically stable in the top 10. Among them, words such as cowboy bike and bici electrica are ranked first.

Relying on its "strength to stand out", Cowboy successfully completed a US$26 million Series B financing in 2022.

Winning the hearts of consumers and investors is actually the only way for Cowboy to achieve ultimate perfection in every aspect of sales.

It is understood that Cowboy has developed its own application, which provides a series of free bicycle-related services, such as route planning, bicycle tracking, diagnosis, etc. The brand also continuously enriches the application functions based on consumer feedback.

First of all, on the basis of the existing monthly maintenance and repair subscription service, users can also easily book a variety of on-demand services through the Cowboy app, including maintenance packages, tire puncture repair, bicycle settings, rear rack installation and child seat installation. Cowboy also launched a home repair service. As long as consumers have needs, they can make an appointment at the time and place that suits them best, and experienced technicians will come to their homes in time for repairs.

Cowboy understands the consumer frustration of e-bike theft and has developed an industry-first software feature that helps customers and police more accurately locate stolen bikes with the help of an audible alarm. Activated through the Cowboy app and powered by the bike’s motor, the alarm will allow riders to activate the alarm from up to 30 meters away to help confirm the bike’s location, and even if the Cowboy bike’s battery dies or is completely removed from the bike, a backup battery inside the bike will be activated to track the bike for up to a week after the battery is depleted.

VanMoof: “The most funded e-bike company in the world”.

Europe is recognized as having the best bicycle cities in the world, and most of them are in the Netherlands. Therefore, the Netherlands is known as the "bicycle superpower" in the Western world. VanMoof was born in this place with excellent bicycle genes.

In May 2009, brothers Taco and Ties Carlier founded VanMoof. In the early days, the company mainly produced traditional bicycles, but later switched to specializing in electric bicycles. It is understood that the electric bicycles produced by VanMoof are equipped with exclusive applications and patented components. With this selling point, the products are sold well in many places. Among them, the S3 and X3 series electric bicycles, which start at 1,998 euros per unit, sold 4,500 units in just 24 hours after they were launched .

After years of development, VanMoof has 120,000 loyal customers worldwide. In addition to opening a dedicated online store, it also has brand stores in Amsterdam, Paris, Berlin, London, New York, San Francisco, Taipei and Tokyo.

VanMoof's website is dominated by organic search traffic, which shows that the brand is already well known by consumers. Its target service users are also relatively young, so the product slogan is mainly based on words such as "future sense, design sense", and it also positions itself as a unique means of transportation created by fashionable design aesthetics. Unlike many Ebike brands on the market that take the cost-effective route, VanMoof focuses on high-end products, and its products are more expensive than general Ebike products . Combined with VanMoof's product innovation, such as integrated anti-theft tracking, automatic shifting and mobile application connection, it has to be said that it is expensive for a reason.

From the keyword perspective, VanMoof ranks first for most of the keywords , which is an excellent result.

In 2021, VanMoof received $128 million in Series C equity financing, led by top investment institution Hillhouse Group. This financing is known as the largest Series C financing in the history of electric bicycles , so VanMoof once said that it is "the most funded electric bicycle company in the world."

Aventon: Sales increased by 1000%, and it has the largest market share in the North American Ebike industry.

Aventon, founded in 2013, did not start out as an E-bike manufacturer, but rather as a manufacturer of fixed-gear bicycles. In 2017, Aventon joined the E-bike research and development community, and in 2020, the pandemic catalyzed the company's transformation into the E-BIKE market.

"Orders increased tenfold overnight, and we received 300 calls a day..." Aventon revealed that after the COVID-19 pandemic began to sweep the world, there were major disruptions in the bicycle supply chain. At the same time, online consumption surged, and the company's Ebike sales increased by 600%.

In recent years, Aventon's revenue has been growing rapidly, with sales in Maryland, Michigan, Virginia and other places in the United States increasing by more than 1,000%. Forecast data shows that Aventon's turnover in 2019 was about 10 million US dollars. In 2020, the shipment volume was 50,000 units, and sales doubled to 32 million US dollars. In 2021, the shipment volume doubled to 100,000 units, with revenue of about 100 to 200 million US dollars, or about 2 billion yuan.

Aventon operates locally in China and the United States. Compared with its peers, Aventon's target service users are more comprehensive, covering all age groups. Its products are known for their high cost-effectiveness. Its sales channels are very diversified, including independent sites, brand-owned stores, large retailers, and third-party sales sites such as Amazon.

Observing the traffic of its independent website, we can find that the data is excellent. The overall visits in 2022 reached 7.5 million, rising to more than 8 million in 2023, and close to 2 million in the first three months of 2024. Facebook and YouTube are the main sources of traffic for Aventon's official website. With the rise of TikTok, the brand also pays attention to marketing in this channel, and often invites celebrities to share cycling vlogs.

Aventon's keywords are mainly brand words and related long-tail words, and almost the vast majority of keywords are ranked first .

In-depth analysis of the independent website operations of the three companies, VanMoof occupies the majority of German traffic

Using independent websites as a carrier to promote and operate brands is what the three parties are doing together. Independent websites can not only shape brands, but also increase the exposure and popularity of enterprises. During the promotion and operation process, it is the common expectation of all brands to make independent websites rank high through search engine optimization (SEO) and other online promotion methods. How are the independent websites of the three parties operating?

The above figure compares the total number of keywords, traffic ratio in each country, etc. among the three brands. The total number of keywords for VanMoof is 25353, the total number of keywords for Aventon is 80065, and the total number of keywords for Cowboy is 40891.

You can take a look at the marketing cooperation, traffic data in the past month, website design, product display, etc. VanMoof ranks high in the industry, and Aventon ranks the highest among them in terms of traffic data in the past month.

The above figure is an analysis of the SEO data comparison, traffic and interaction, social media marketing and other factors among the three. Aventon is dominant in the United States, Cowboy and VanMoof are mainly dominant in Europe and the United States. Compared with the other two brands, Cowboy focuses on promoting its brand in small and beautiful countries. Social media is the main promotional platform for major brands. Analysis shows that the main traffic of Aventon and Cowboy comes from Facebook, and the main social traffic of VanMoof comes from YouTube.

In the European market, especially in Germany, the traffic share is basically occupied by VanMoof , and there are traces of this. VanMoof's homepage is visually attractive, the product display on the homepage is clear and concise, and the website supports global multi-language, which enables seamless switching of the website and effectively gathers traffic from different regions.

In addition, through a simple SEO test, we can find that VanMoof has laid a solid foundation for SEO throughout the site , including keyword optimization of h tags, social integration, and website speed settings and optimization.

In July 2023, VanMoof declared bankruptcy, and the Amsterdam Court of the Netherlands has revoked the suspension of payment procedures against VanMoof Global Holding BV, VanMoof BV and VanMoof Global Support BV, and declared these entities bankrupt. This is good news for other competitors, as the Ebike brand has the opportunity to find new opportunities in the European electric bicycle market to meet the needs of segmented regions and specific customers.

Chinese Ebike brand takes over the streets of the United States and other countries

Ebike is not only an economical means of transportation, but also combines the comfort of a car with the fun of riding, making it very suitable for leisure activities. Driven by factors such as people's increasing awareness of fitness, increasingly serious environmental problems, increasing traffic congestion, and government policies to promote cycling, the electric bicycle market has expanded rapidly and is becoming more and more popular around the world.

Ebike's consumer portrait is inseparable from three groups of people: cycling enthusiasts, people with refined lifestyles, and the middle class. More and more riders are riding over mountains and across ridges, engaging in various mountain cross-country competitive activities. At the same time, groups of overseas consumers are also using Ebike to replace driving, public transportation and other modes of travel... They constitute the underlying foundation of Ebike's existence. In 2020, the epidemic began to sweep the world, offline sales were hindered, but online sales became popular, which helped Ebike break through the circle and gain the trust of more overseas consumer groups and investment institutions.

Data shows that the electric bicycle market size is estimated to be US$34.98 billion in 2024 and is expected to reach US$51.78 billion by 2029, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 8.16% during the forecast period (2024-2029).

Europe is an important market that cannot be ignored by Ebike . In 2022, the European electric bicycle market sold a record 5.5 million units, an increase of 8.6% year-on-year. In 2023, one out of every four bicycles sold in Europe will be an electric bicycle. It is expected that the penetration rate of electric bicycles in Europe will reach 42.6% by 2025. Germany is the largest electric bicycle market in Europe, accounting for 34.5% of the market share.

Ebike consumption has also increased in other regions . In recent years, as consumers' preference for low-speed two-wheeled vehicles has increased, the North American e-bike market share has continued to grow . Various shared bicycle operators are incorporating e-bikes into their fleets, which will undoubtedly provide a great boost to the sales growth of e-bikes in North America.

In the global electric bicycle market, pedal-assisted has the largest share, followed by throttle-assisted and speed electric bicycles.

It can also be seen from the keyword data of Ebike that this market share is very large . In addition to India and the Philippines with large population bases, the United States and Germany are the search destinations for electric bicycles . The high market demand also means that the competition in this track is fierce to a certain extent. The keyword competition of Ebike is as high as 76%. Electric bicycles face competitive threats including but not limited to product quality, brand and market share, and are beginning to face supply chain challenges. The supply of parts and cost fluctuations in the supply chain may affect production and pricing.

Despite this, the Ebike track still holds huge business opportunities.

VanMoof and other electric bicycle brands are researching new technologies, such as app linkage, to consolidate their market position. Compared with high-end brands that attract consumers with high quality and innovative features, there is huge demand potential in the market that can also be met by providing affordable electric bicycles . Moreover, providing a variety of electric bicycle models, including options for different uses and budgets, can also attract a large number of consumers.

It is also worth noting that the main markets of some brands are currently concentrated in specific countries, but there is huge potential for market expansion worldwide. In addition to Europe and North America, the demand for electric bicycles in the Asian market is growing, especially in the context of accelerated urbanization, traffic congestion and increased environmental awareness. By entering these emerging markets, market influence and share can be expanded, and sales can be significantly increased.

Global bicycle production is mainly concentrated in developing countries and regions such as China, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia, with Chinese manufacturing accounting for more than 90% of the market share .

At present, the degree of industrial agglomeration in China's bicycle industry is relatively high. Three major bicycle cluster industrial belts have been formed in Tianjin Bohai Bay, Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai, and the Pearl River Delta . They have an industrial chain ranging from bicycle raw material processing to the production of various bicycle parts and components, and then to large-scale and specialized production of complete bicycles.

Many industry insiders believe that the biggest advantage of Chinese Ebike going overseas is the efficient supply chain system and the ultimate cost-effectiveness . A large number of Chinese Ebike brands have taken advantage of this advantage and occupied the streets of many countries such as the United States.

Ma Yuchi , co-founder and CEO of Dayu Intelligent Driving, previously revealed that there were 7.5 million Ebikes in the world last year, of which 3 million to 3.3 million were in China.

It is the right time for brands to go overseas. According to incomplete statistics, there are more than 300 Ebike brands with independent websites . Technology giants such as Xiaomi and DJI are setting their sights on this track. In 2023, there was news that "DJI Innovations" was about to enter the Ebike industry. The internal project codename begins with EB . The project is still in the confidentiality stage and the project leader is a senior engineer. The popularity of the track continues to attract more players to join. Whether it is traditional bicycle manufacturers, four-wheeled car manufacturers, or new consumer brands, they all want to get a share of the Ebike field. From the facts, whether it is a niche route, a cost-effective route, or a high-end route, there will always be Ebike brands that stand out .

However, many manufacturers seem to be in a very contradictory state: they want to tap into the overseas market very much, but they are held back by various concerns. The journey from 0 to 1 and then to successfully creating a hit product may not be smooth sailing for novice players. Many people often have to go through a lot of trial and error before they can understand the underlying logic of product selection, link promotion, advertising and other links... A professional brand incubation and operation team can help sellers skip the novice awkward period and successfully gain a foothold overseas.

If you don’t want to miss out on the Ebike gold rush, you can click on the QR code below to add the E-En Overseas Customer Service WeChat account and communicate with the E-En Overseas Operations Team in detail. We will tailor the most suitable brand overseas planning for you!!!