VanMoof

VanMoof was a Dutch e-bike company founded in 2009 by brothers Taco and Ties Carlier.¹²¹⁵¹⁷ The company raised significant funding, including a $128 million Series C round in September 2021, bringing its total raised to $182 million.⁹¹¹

Timeline

Money raised

VanMoof raised $4 million in a Series A round in July 2017, led by Slingshot Ventures.⁸ VanMoof raised $2,504,000 in an equity crowdfunding round in June 2019.⁸ VanMoof raised $13,750,000 in a funding round in May 2020.⁸ VanMoof raised $40 million in a Series B round in September 2020.⁸¹² VanMoof raised $128 million in a Series C round in September 2021, led by Hillhouse Investment.⁸⁹¹¹ The Series C round brought VanMoof's total raised to $182 million.⁹¹¹ VanMoof's total raised was $182 million, according to Balderton Capital and Powersports Business.⁹¹¹

Investors named in the sources: Balderton Capital^8111517, Felix Capital⁸¹¹¹⁵, Hillhouse Investment⁸¹¹¹⁷, Slingshot Ventures⁸¹⁷, Norwest Venture Partners¹¹¹⁵¹⁷, TriplePoint Capital¹¹¹⁵, Gillian Tans¹¹.

What happened

VanMoof was founded in Amsterdam in May 2009 by brothers Taco and Ties Carlier.¹⁷ The company aimed to revolutionise urban cycling with minimalist e-bikes.¹⁷ In 2010, VanMoof secured £2 million in its initial funding round.¹⁷ In 2011, VanMoof introduced its first electric bike series, the VanMoof Electrified S and X.¹⁷ In 2012, VanMoof opened its first store outside the Netherlands in Tokyo, Japan.¹⁷

In 2015, VanMoof raised £4 million in a round led by Slingshot.¹⁷ In July 2017, VanMoof raised $4 million in a Series A round led by Slingshot Ventures.⁸ In 2017, VanMoof launched the Electrified S2 and X2 models.¹⁷ In 2018, VanMoof revealed significant losses attributed to high expenditures on research, production, and marketing exceeding revenue.¹⁷ In June 2019, VanMoof raised $2,504,000 in an equity crowdfunding round.⁸

In 2019, VanMoof secured £34 million in Series B funding from Norwest Venture Partners and Balderton Capital.¹⁷ In May 2020, VanMoof raised $13,750,000 in a funding round.⁸ In September 2020, VanMoof raised $40 million in a Series B round.⁸¹² In 2020, VanMoof experienced a surge in demand for its electric bikes during the COVID-19 pandemic.¹⁷ In September 2021, VanMoof raised $128 million in a Series C round led by Hillhouse Investment.⁸⁹¹¹

The Series C round brought VanMoof's total raised to $182 million.⁹¹¹ In 2021, VanMoof expanded its distribution network by partnering with major retailers like Best Buy in the US and Halfords in the UK.¹⁷ In 2022, VanMoof raised £62 million in Series C funding led by Hillhouse Investment.¹⁷ In January 2023, Dutch media revealed VanMoof had been in talks over €40 million to help it remain liquid.¹⁵ In June 2023, VanMoof stopped accepting new orders, blaming logistical issues and an influx of orders.¹⁵

The court appointed two trustees to assess the situation and investigate the possibility of a restart through an asset sale.¹⁵¹⁸ VanMoof's stores outside the Netherlands, including those in San Francisco, Seattle, New York City, and Tokyo, remained open.¹⁵¹⁸ VanMoof temporarily closed its physical stores in the Netherlands on the grounds of staff safety.¹⁵ Customers who had paid for bikes that were not delivered were left uncertain about refunds.¹⁸ In August 2023, Lavoie, part of McLaren Applied, acquired VanMoof.¹⁴¹⁷

Lavoie did not have access to the money customers paid and was not legally required to remedy the issue.¹⁴ In November 2023, Lavoie unveiled plans to revive the VanMoof brand.¹⁷ In February 2024, VanMoof began providing access to repair manuals, guides, and technical drawings for e-bikes released in 2018 and earlier.¹⁴ On 15 July 2024, VanMoof offered a $1,000 discount to customers who never received e-bikes following bankruptcy.¹⁴ VanMoof said it had more than 120 service partners in Europe and the UK.¹⁴

VanMoof was refining the S5 and A5 models before restarting sales.¹⁴

Legal outcomes

• pendingVanMoof B.V. was summoned in a personal injury case in the New York Court (Kings County) on 16 April 2021.¹⁶

Where the founders are now

Taco Carlier was a co-founder of VanMoof and made statements about the company's vision in 2021.¹¹ Ties Carlier was a co-founder of VanMoof.¹²¹⁵¹⁷

Lessons, as others put them

"We’re reinventing, redesigning and re-engineering every component of the bicycle"Taco Carlier, Co-founder of VanMoof¹¹

"With VanMoof’s unique approach to manufacturing and innovative, consumer-first technology, we are excited about its e-bikes’ potential in engaging millions of riders around the world to adopt active transportation into their commute and to build a healthy lifestyle"Haoyu Shen, Partner at Hillhouse Investment¹¹

Sources

8. How Much Did VanMoof Raise? Funding & Key Investors | Clay, clay.com
9. VanMoof raises $128m Series C, balderton.com, Sep 1, 202
11. VanMoof raises $128m in funding round for e-bike brand | Powersports Business, Powersports Business, 2021-09-09
12. Popular Dutch e-bike startup VanMoof has raised $40 million as growth explodes — here's an exclusive look at its pitch deck, Business Insider, 2020-09-16
14. VanMoof offering discount to customers who never received e-bikes following bankruptcy, Bicycle Retailer and Industry News, Jul 15, 20
15. Dutch e-bike start-up VanMoof declares bankruptcy — Financier Worldwide, Financier Worldwide
16. Fourth-public-bankruptcy-report-VanMoof- ..., hvglaw.nl, Jun 6, 202
17. What Happened to VanMoof? (A Timeline and Latest Updates) — Velorution, Velorution, May 10, 20
18. VanMoof, the e-bike startup, officially declared bankrupt in The Netherlands | TechCrunch, TechCrunch, 2023-07-18

How this case file was put together

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