VanMoof, the bankrupt Dutch ebike startup, has found a saviour in McLaren Applied, a British technology company.
Lavoie, the electric scooter unit of McLaren Applied, will acquire VanMoof to stabilise and expand its operations, the company has said in a statement.
VanMoof, which had raised close to $200m in funding from investors including Balderton and Felix Capital, filed for insolvency earlier this month. It faced challenges with its supply chain and the high costs of bike repairs. Its closure left many customers in a tight spot, with their bikes locked in stores, stuck in transportation or unable to be repaired.
Lavoie says it plans to “combine and integrate” the capabilities of both businesses “to create a next generation e-mobility business and establish a world-leading premium e-mobility offering”.
“VanMoof has 190,000 customers globally and our commitment is to continue to keep those riders on the road while we stabilise and efficiently grow the VanMoof business and continue to develop its world-class products,” says Eliott Wertheimer, Lavoie’s CEO.
The company hasn’t disclosed the exact terms of the acquisition.
Reuters reports that the capital required to stabilise VanMoof will reach "tens of millions" of pounds "in the short term". McLaren Applied chair Nick Fry also told Reuters that the acquisition will involve some redundancies and changes to the business model.
