Born in Australia and raised in Amsterdam, the Dutch-style bike brand Lekker is embracing the e-bike trend as the next major growth driver for its business. It is removing all non-electric bikes from its offering and reversing course on its direct-to-consumer strategy as it looks to expand its market share.Since 2017, e-bike sales in Australia have increased by 500 per cent with the value of e-bike imports exceeding the value of conventional non-electric bike imports in the past two years.Meet LekkerLekker simultaneously launched in Australia and Amsterdam in 2009 after Dutch founder Meindert Wolfraad moved to Australia and experienced the magic of the Bondi Beach lifestyle. Wolfraad recognized a gap in the Australian market for a stylish commuter bike to ride to and from the beach after his search for a quality Dutch-design bike proved surprisingly difficult.Despite the urban bike being a European-centric product, the team focused on adapting and creating a product tailored to the Australian market from its Amsterdam headquarters.In 2012, Lekker opened its North Melbourne brand store and expanded to Sydney in 2016, initially to a small store space before relocating to a much bigger space with on-site service facilities, offices and the ability for customers to test-ride bikes.“In 2022, I went to Brisbane and scouted the location there and we started straight away,” Niels Bark, Lekker’s CEO, told Inside Retail.In addition to its three ‘brand stores’ in Australia, Lekker has one reseller in Canberra, which the team kept after shutting down the remainder of its retailer network in 2022.Localized offeringLekker adapted the build of its product offering to suit the Australian market and consumer preferences, which contrast with the European markets.“We make the bikes a bit more specific to the Australian market, there’s a difference between the European and Australian markets,” Bark said.Simplifying the product in Australia was a priority, given the commuter bike culture was nowhere near as entrenched in society as in Amsterdam.“Design was the biggest change we made, knowing that was a big reason why many Dutch bike brands had failed going abroad,” Bark said.Now the brand is navigating how to evolve the product to service the existing markets with a smaller product range.“We went from 60 to 70 product SKUs, to maybe 40 to 30, that’s where we are now. I want to bring that number down to tops, between 10 and 15,” Bark said.Honing the product for growthMoving forward, Lekker’s strategy is to be fully impact-driven and its focus on e-bikes is a big part of this.In 2019, e-bike sales in Australia were about 48,000 units, almost double what they were in 2017.Whilst the growth of the sector has steadied, the Australian e-bike market is estimated to be worth US$65.42 million this year. By 2029, it is projected to reach US$98.46 million, with a CAGR of 8.52 per cent, according to Mordor Intelligence. “Our core focus is getting people on a bike and getting people out of cars,” Bark said. The importance of this goal will see Lekker reverse course on its previous direct-to-consumer strategy. By the end of this year, the brand expects to add eight to 12 retail partners to its network to enable people to book test rides closer to home and have bikes delivered online.“Moving to e-bikes, we see that we need to make our bikes more available in those types of test-ride settings as people are making a big purchase and the economy is not going so great,” Bark said.In Europe, due to the bike-riding culture, this is not a pressing concern as consumers are already well-versed in the type of bike they require and see it as a transport necessity and a replacement for a car.“In Australia, bikes are often a luxury purchase, especially since we’re now sitting in quite a high-price segment if you compare where we started,” Bark said. “When we started our average cost price per bike was around $500. Now, moving to e-bikes it’s more expensive with the range sitting around $4000 to $4500,” Bark said.Quality niche deliveredIn contrast to its closest competitors, Lekker delivers its bikes 98 per cent assembled, streamlining the setup process and allowing customers to start to their cycling journey effortlessly. Lekker bikes are made from 100 per cent aluminum, and the lightweight frames are based on Dutch bicycle design adapted to Australian consumer preferences. All of the bikes are designed at the Amsterdam and Melbourne offices, from parts sourced worldwide.Currently, Lekker’s e-bike range includes two models, Jordaan and Amsterdam, with two SKUs each, and a new hybrid between the two aims to achieve Bark’s focus of reducing the range.The fourth generation prototype is set to be tested across the country. Further reading: How Ryan McFarland turned a love for bikes into a multimillion-dollar brand