Rad Power Bikes, a leading e-bike company headquartered in Seattle, is facing an uncertain future. In an internal email viewed by TechCrunch, the company’s leadership revealed that unless it secures new funding or finds an acquirer, operations will cease in January 2024. While the situation remains precarious, the email emphasized that the company’s leadership is actively pursuing solutions to keep Rad Power Bikes running.
The message, sent from the “people team,” painted a picture of intense negotiations and dashed hopes. A previously promising acquisition opportunity reportedly fell through. This setback follows numerous rounds of layoffs implemented over the past few years as Rad Power grappled with challenges arising from post-pandemic market shifts.
Initially buoyed by surging demand during COVID-19 lockdowns, the micromobility sector experienced a sharp decline in consumer spending, leaving companies like Rad Power struggling with excess inventory. The email cited additional financial hurdles: “significant financial challenges… including tariffs and the macroeconomic landscape.”
Despite ongoing efforts to secure its survival, Rad Power is not alone in facing industry headwinds. A wave of restructuring and closures has swept through the e-bike and micromobility sectors in recent years, impacting companies such as Cake, VanMoof, Superpedestrian, and Bird.
Recognizing the gravity of the situation, Rad Power brought in Kathi Lentzsch earlier this year. Lentzsch, a seasoned executive with experience revitalizing struggling companies, has been spearheading strategic partnerships aimed at either attracting investors or finding an acquiring company. Last week, the company filed required Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) notices for its Seattle headquarters, anticipating potential layoffs as early as January 9th, 2024. However, this WARN notice, impacting 64 employees, is a procedural requirement based on the size of the workforce, not indicative of a specific targeted layoff program.
The email cautioned that if closure becomes inevitable, it would be permanent and affect all locations and departments across the company, with termination effective January 9th, 2024.
While Rad Power Bikes remains hopeful, its precarious financial standing raises important questions about the future of the e-bike market and the challenges faced by companies navigating a changing economic landscape.
