Wharton alumni Sachin and Vishal Chopra co-founded the AlphaVector that runs an in-house bicycle business. It is a 5 year old bootstrapped venture that is ramping up the e-bicycle industry with its latest launch of Meraki at just Rs. 29,999. The firm started in 2015 is covering the Frog brand of bicycles. It is operating via an omnichannel business model combining Direct to Consumer, Online and Offline networks. IT has successfully gained fundings from the capital firms such as Titan Capital, Fireside Ventures, and Avaana Capital.
Sachin Chopra, Founder and CEO, AlphaVector, said, “India is one of the largest producers of bicycles in the world but lacks innovation and customer-centricity. Infrastructure challenges notwithstanding, India has more conducive days per year for cycling as compared to Europe and the US. COVID-19 has brought to the forefront issues related to health, fitness and the environment catalyzing the demand for bicycles across the world.”
AlphaVector’s Meraki is compounded and devised in-house
This model will soon be available acoss over 350 cities in India via the Alpha Vector’s business network. Its reach will cover almost 700 offline stores and dealers throughout the country along with the online ones on the company’s site. The company is overwhelmed with the positive reaction and alleged to receive more than 100 pre-booking registrations for the Meriki launch, from all over the country including the metropolis such as Pune, Delhi, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, and Mumbai.
The latest model of AlphaVector brings forth four different modes in order to give a memorable experience to its customers. The modes include Cruise, Pedal Assist, Pedal and lastly the Throttle mode that makes the e-bicycle ride as a scooter. Meraki neatly covers the discrete technicalities by providing e-brakes with the automatic brake cut-off system. The tampering is prevented with the attribute of a key-lock switch, that makes sure to inactivate the bike in its absence.
The bicycle weighing 22 kg is built up of hi-tensile steel with a lighter, yet firm frame. It will be available in 2 variants of Silver-grey and Balck-red combination. Meraki well- equipped with a IP 65 (waterproof) 250 W brushless DC motor and a 6.36 AH battery. One can attain the maximum pace of 25 kmp, while the charging time of the Lithium-ion battery is 2.5 hours, providing 35 km when fully charged. It will be accompanied with a display indicating battery level, and a PAS control mode.
Co-founder of the startup, Vishal Chopra said, “We also aim to contribute to the adoption of e-bicycles in India in line with the government’s initiative of introducing smart mobility and ultimately build smarter and sustainable cities for citizens.” He expressed his anticipation for the revolutionary change entering the e-bicycle sector in India . The flagship model of Meraki will surely make the sparks fly, and will leave the buyers in a thrilling sensation. They are trying their best to align with the country’s goal for the advancement in the current industry with such grand openings.
The company will gradually step into the evolving Indian electric two wheeler market. AlphaVector has obviously gained their admittance into the global e-bicycle market with this commencement. The widespread market is expected to grow crossing 38.6 billion USD by 2025.
With the onset of pandemic, people felt an absolute call to kill the slumber lifestyle and are determined to change to a clean lifestyle at the moment. This part, in particular, leads to the abrupt surge in the purchase of health equipment and it has finally added to the growth of the bicycle market. AlphaVector claimed to experience a 2.5 times elevation in the Monthly Revenue Rate of March to September period of the current year. Additionally, they have also witnessed growth in a 15 percent demand-fill rate.
Digitalisation and bicycle are the two obvious markets that have noticed a steep rise in the demand even in the face of Covid-19. The startup is well pleased with the ramping demands, and is planning to set up their own factory by the next year to amplify the capacity. AlphaVector will start with the 500 e-bikes in the coming week, targeting almost 2500 – 5000 people by March 2021.With such a strategy Alpha Vector is sure to reach its goal of 300 crore as the Annual Revenue rate coming year simultaneously working on amplifying the supplies for the next months.
