the past two years. Expanding with quality Lekker emanates quality and delivers a bespoke yet attainable customer experience through specialised direct-to-consumer brand stores, complemented by select retail partnerships.  In 2012 Lekker opened its North Melbourne ‘brand store’ and in 2016 expanded to Sydney, initially to a small store space before relocating to a much bigger space – being its current Sydney location with on-site service facilities, offices and the ability for customers to test-ride bikes. “In 2022 I went to Brisbane and scouted the location there and we started straight away,” Niels Bark, Lekker’s CEO, told Inside Retail. In addition to its three ‘brand stores’ in Australia, Lekker has one reseller in Canberra, which the team kept after shutting down the remainder of its retailer network in 2022. “We kept one partner in Canberra [Kingston Foreshore Cycles] because they’ve been part of Lekker for such a long time,” Bark said.  “We also knew having a presence in Canberra, we couldn’t achieve that ourselves because the market is just a little bit too small to justify a Lekker store and these guys are great.” Meet Lekker Lekker launched in Australia and Amsterdam in 2009, and despite the urban bike being a European-centric product the team focused on adapting and creating a product tailored to the Australian market from its Amsterdam headquarters, which grew into an additional Melbourne-based hub. The European-based company was an entrepreneurial venture inspired by the lifestyle of Bondi Beach after the founder Meindert Wolfraad experienced the magic of the area for the first time. Wolfraad recognised a gap in the Australian market, shortly after moving from Holland when it became apparent that a stylish commuter bike to ride to and from the beach and beyond was missing and a quality Dutch-design bike proved surprisingly difficult. Localised design Lekker adapted the build of its product offering to suit the Australian market and consumer preferences which contrast with the European markets. “We make the bikes a bit more specific to the Australian market, there’s a difference between the European and Australian markets,” Bark said. Simplifying and not overcomplicating the product in Australia was a priority, given the commuter bike culture was nowhere near as entrenched in society as in Amsterdam. “Design was the biggest change we made, knowing that was a big reason why many Dutch bike brands had failed going abroad,” Bark said. “It’s been very interesting creating a product that works in Australia but also in Germany and the Netherlands. It’s quite hard. We had to because we’re very small, so we couldn’t have, a specific collection for the Australian market and for the European market.”  Now the brand is navigating how to evolve the product to service the existing markets with a limited product range. “We went from 60 to 70 product SKUs, to maybe 40 to 30, that’s where we are now. I want to bring that number down to tops, between 10 and 15,” Bark said. “With higher stock levels, you’re forced to find partners across Australia, where we’re focusing on the DTC e-commerce elements because that’s what we’re good at. We make use of existing retail infrastructure, through our retail partnerships, the great bike mechanics and service points.” Honing the product for growth Moving forward, Lekker’s strategy is to be fully impact-driven and its focus on e-bikes is a big part of this. In 2019, e-bike sales in Australia were about 48,000 units, almost double what they were in 2017. Whilst the growth of the sector has steadied, the Australian e-bike market is estimated to be worth US$65.42 million this year. By 2029, it is projected to reach US$98.46 million, with a CAGR of 8.52 per cent, according to Mordor Intelligence.  “Our core focus is getting people on a bike and getting people out of cars,” Bark said.  The importance of this goal will see Lekker reverse course on its previous direct-to-consumer strategy. By the end of this year, the brand expects to add eight to 12 retail partners to its network to enable people to book test rides closer to home and have bikes delivered online. “Moving to e-bikes, we see that we need to make our bikes more available in those types of test-ride settings as people are making a big purchase and the economy is not going so great,” Bark said. In Europe, due to the bike-riding culture, this is not a pressing concern as consumers are already well-versed in the type of bike they require and see it as a transport necessity and a replacement for a car. “In Australia, bikes are often a luxury purchase, especially since we’re now sitting in quite a high-price segment if you compare where we started,” Bark said. “When we started our average cost price per bike was around $500. Now, moving to e-bikes it’s more expensive with the range sitting around $4000 to $4500,” Bark said. Quality niche delivered In contrast to its closest competitors, Lekker delivers its bikes 98 per cent assembled, streamlining the setup process and allowing customers to start to their cycling journey effortlessly.  Lekker bikes are made from 100 per cent aluminium, and the lightweight frames are based on Dutch bicycle design adapted to Australian consumer preferences.  All of the bikes are designed at the Amsterdam and Melbourne offices, from parts sourced worldwide. Currently, Lekker’s e-bike range includes two models, Jordaan and Amsterdam, with two SKUs each, and a new hybrid between the two aims to achieve Bark’s focus of reducing the range. The fourth generation prototype is set to be tested across the country.