Cycling Santa gets on his cargo bike

The Gateshead-based Ethicalsuperstore.com, which sells to customers throughout Europe, will be offering a bike delivery service in Gateshead and Newcastle for the Christmas period.

The delivery bike is a Kona Ute cargo bike.

EthicalSuperstore.com says it has launched the same-day delivery service "to make sure that customers are kept happy at the busiest time of the year, with minimal carbon footprint and less impact on the environment."

Members of staff will take it in turn to personally deliver orders made online before 10am by 2pm the same day. At a press viewing earlier today the Ute’s carrying capacity had been extended even further with a Yak trailer ‘sleigh’; and the festively-decorated bike was ridden by a cycling Santa.

Ben Mawhinney, marketing manager for EthicalSuperstore.com, said:

“We are always keen to go the extra mile and this helps us with our carbon neutral aim, as well as ensuring that in the run up to Christmas over 600 customers in the NE1 to NE9 postcodes can be confident of same-day delivery.

“Santa will be carrying Christmas presents, but he’s also delivering an important message about the environment as he cycles around the area with his sleigh."

EthicalSuperstore.com will also be donating a percentage of all sales that use this service to the Sunshine Fund throughout December.

The first customer to receive a product via the delivery service was Carlton Reid, executive editor of BikeBiz.com.

“When I order products from EthicalSuperstore.com I have always used the warehouse pick-up option, and ride my bike to pick up the order. However, not everybody can do this so it’s great to see EthicalSuperstore.com offering a local delivery service by bicycle.

"With the United Nations Climate Change Conference starting in Copenhagen next week now is the perfect time to demonstrate that cargo bicycles can carry an awful lot of weight in a carbon-friendly fashion.

"Not only will the Santa Delivery be handy for customers, it’s going to be a lot of fun for EthicalSuperstore.com staff, who will be getting screaming fit into the bargain. It’s a win-win situation.”

Kona describes its Ute (short for ‘utility’) as a load-carrying bicycle "for those ready to kick their addiction to combustion engines."