Greyp’s Batteries Also in Porsche’s Electric Bicycles

The most well-known manufacturer of Croatian electric bicycles, the company Greyp, founded by local wunderkind Mate Rimac, plans to sell over 1000 units this year, nearly double the amount sold last year. Sales have definitely accelerated due to the pandemic, but have also slowed down due to a lack of parts and components caused by turbulence in supply chains and challenges in Asian factories like Shimano. As Dominik Vrbanac, the sales manager at Greyp, states, the company has recorded over 100% growth every year (in terms of quantity and revenue).

– Looking back since the founding of Greyp, 15% of bicycles have been sold in Croatia, with the rest being exports. The sale of electric bicycles is experiencing growth in all markets, especially in the DACH region (which includes Austria, Germany, and Switzerland), where every third bicycle sold is electric, and in Germany, 2.5 million electric bicycles are sold annually. Additionally, due to Covid, the trend of electric bicycle sales has increased so that in 2021, demand exceeds supply, while a significant shortage of parts and components poses a major challenge in delivering sold units – said Vrbanac. He adds that, like all manufacturers worldwide, the newly emerged procurement situation creates problems, but they are trying to solve them as best as they can.

– Considering that many components in the cycling world come from China and Taiwan, we are trying to find suppliers in Europe to shorten the procurement process, or even turn to our own production. Delivery times have in some cases jumped from the usual 60 days to as much as 720 days, so due to the current situation, our planning department is already ordering components and electronic elements for 2023! – says Vrbanac.

As Domagoj Topličanec, the head of mechanical engineering, points out, software for bicycles and batteries is being developed in the production facilities in Sveti Nedelja, and the frame is being designed, while all other components are ordered from various manufacturers around the world. The production process consists of several phases, and in their case, he adds, the duration is even doubled because they are developing software in parallel with the bicycle.

– The process itself begins with researching the potential market, the needs and desires of consumers, as well as reviewing the competition and positioning – components, additional features, technology, and of course, pricing. After that, the frame design process begins (the duration varies depending on whether it is a carbon frame like the Greyp G6 or an aluminum frame like the Greyp T5 models) and the procurement of other components. Once the frame design is finalized, components and the entire bicycle as a system are tested. This is, of course, a very shortened and simplified description of the process, and the last model we developed was ‘caught’ right during the peak of the COVID panic, but despite the inability to work and travel normally, the lack of and/or delay of parts, we managed to release an excellent trekking bicycle in record time – emphasized Topličanec.

Vrbanac reminds that Greyp entered the market with a very specific model, the G12S, which is essentially a hybrid of a motor and an electric bicycle. Very quickly, he notes, they realized that it was necessary to develop a more everyday model, and thus the Greyp G6 was born (a mountain bike with front and rear suspension), which is currently available in five models: G6.1, G6.2, G6.2 OFFROAD, G6.3, and G6.X, which is available in limited quantities.

– In the mountain bike segment, we also have a hardtail version, Greyp G5.1 and G5.2, and at the beginning of July, we presented new trekking models to the public, Greyp T5.1 and T5.2. As for customers, I would say that the G6.3 is the most popular mountain bike model, while we have higher expectations from the T5 series – says Vrbanac. However, there will be news.

Although Greyp will continue to produce ‘smart’ electric bicycles for tough terrains, they will soon present their city-bike model that they are currently working on. However, this is not the only segment of their business; Greyp, like Rimac Automobili, is also developing and producing technological solutions for other bicycle manufacturers.

– We have just completed one such large project for Porsche, and at least three more are in the pipeline – says Topličanec.