BikeBiz Bicycle and cycling retail news
E-bike designer Cowboy has announced an $80 million Series C financing milestone.
The round is led by Exor, HCVC and Siam Capital, with investments from Tiger Global, Index Ventures, Eothen, Isomer Opportunities Fund, Future Positive Capital and Triple Point Capital.
The new capital injection, bringing the total raised by Cowboy to $120 million, follows the launch of the Cowboy 4 in May 2021, an expansion into the Nordics and the US, and the recent introduction of Cowboy Care.
Key initiatives and investments in 2022 and beyond will be structured around four growth themes, said Cowboy: product design excellence, on-demand services, fitness and customer delight.
“Since day one at Cowboy, we have focused on designing the simplest, most intuitive ride feeling anyone has experienced in an electric bike,” said Karim Slaoui, co-founder and VP hardware technologies. “Now we can go even further with the technology in the bike and how it pairs with the app for a truly seamless cycling experience for every rider.”
Cowboy riders use their bike on average nine times per week, typically cycling over 4.5 km with a median caloric burn of 648 calories per week, said the company. Since last November, the Cowboy app has offered riders to track their fitness stats, including human power and caloric burn, as well as to compare and compete with the rest of the community.
“In just over two months time since we released the new app, our riders have cycled almost 2.5 million kilometres,” said Tanguy Goretti, co-founder and CTO. “They’re riding further and more often – an 8% increase in distance travelled and a 15% increase in moving time. That’s really our ambition here at Cowboy. As we look to further enhance the connected ride, we can be that everyday companion encouraging the community to ride and anticipating their needs along the way.”
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The company is planning to continue its US expansions and open two new retail stores in Berlin and Paris. Its team will also continue to grow, in particular in the design and engineering practices as well as US operations. The brand also has a goal to produce over 50% of bike parts and components in Europe, reducing reliance on long-distance freight.
