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One of Europe’s leading bicycle and outdoor e-commerce company’s Internetstores Holding GmbH is expanding its German online store sales portfolio with cargo bikes with their platform Fahrrad.de. Additional storage and an assembly and delivery hall will support the move. When successful, Internetstores might also start offering cargo bikes on their international platforms.
Fahrrad.de has been delivering three ready-built cargo bike models to customers throughout Germany since early May. This summer the offer was supplemented with a cargo bike distributed exclusively by Fahrrad.de under its private label name Ortler. The cargo bike range being offered by Fahrrad.de in Germany is not only available online, but also through five stationary stores.
Growing demand for cargo bikes
Whether Fahrrad.de’s portfolio will be extended to its online bicycle sister companies under the name Bikester in other European countries, is currently unknown. According to Internetstores – the multichannel retail group belonging to Signa Holding’s Signa Sports United (SUU) division – a further sales expansion is also a question “of a very challenging logistics”.
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The e-bike and bicycle industry in Germany enjoyed dynamic growth in recent in years but 2020 set all records in volume expansion and growth in turn-over. With cargo bikes retaining a 4% share of the German e-bike market, the reasons for entering the cargo bike business are easy to explain. The introduction of the new category is intended to meet the growing demand and tap into new target groups. “We are confident of selling at least 10,000 cargo bikes via Fahrrad.de by 2025,” states Internetstores’ director purchasing & products, Michael Benner.
More space needed
In order for Internetstores and Fahrrad.de to be able to handle storage, assembly and delivery of this new product category, an additional 2,000 square meters has been rented at the company’s own logistics center in Stuttgart-Untertürkheim. After being converted to the needs of the approximately 50 kg weighing cargo bikes they are now fully assembled there and delivered on a pallet.
“In addition to space, this also requires suitable processes and service providers,” reveals Internetstore’s Head of Returns Eduard Jesser. This is indeed one reason why only a few online retailers have ventured into the sale of cargo bikes to date.
Benner is sure that the effort is worth it. “This way, we can also deliver cargo bikes to our customers’ doorsteps without long delivery times, and hopefully make a contribution to getting more people to switch from cars to bikes,” he said. The new cargo bike range from Fahrrad.de is to be rounded off with an increasing selection of cargo bike accessories.
