Slinker eBikes

What is Slinker eBikes exactly?

Slinker eBikes is an electric bike company aimed at taking action to mitigate climate change by accelerating the electric micro-mobility revolution. In a post-COVID era, the electric micro-mobility industry shows promise, with a global market capitalization of more than $40 billion in 2020 and an estimated annual growth rate of 17.4% through 2030. Over the course of the pandemic, Slinker eBikes founder Jamil Liu noticed a shift in transportation trends that mirrored the shift to remote work. As many cities either shut down or reduced the service of their public transportation systems, these millions of public transportation consumers were pushed towards finding private transportation options. Many of these consumers had needs for relatively short distances (less than 10 miles) in areas where traditional methods like cars and buses suffered from congestion and environmental consequences. In these situations, manual bicycles were physically demanding, creating an opportunity for electric micro-transportation (such as e-bikes and e-scooters). In 2020 alone, the sales of e-bikes and e-scooters worldwide increased by 320% year-over-year.

How did Slinker eBikes Start?

Slinker eBikes was founded by Jamil Liu, an MAM student at Yale University, and a serial entrepreneur with extensive experience in the e-bike OEM field. In 2011, he founded his first venture: an international technology brokerage that helped Chinese companies implement cutting-edge technologies from other countries. After successfully scaling the business, Jamil turned his attention to the e-bike industry. Jamil quickly realized that the accelerated growth rate in the micro-mobility industry meant that the market will reach saturation relatively quickly. After the start of the pandemic last year, Slinker quickly leveraged the opportunity to establish a presence in North America.

Jamil developed the idea following a conversation with a Norwegian technology expert who had great insights in the micro-transportation field and wireless charging technology. With macro trends for globalization and environmental awareness developing, demand for green micro-transportation solutions was growing rapidly every year. After considering options to differentiate Slinker from other competitive e-bike offerings, Jamil decided to develop a companion app that encourages consumers to ride more and converts the mileage they ride into carbon credits, which will then be donated to environment-related NGOs in the name of the consumers to encourage consumers and to thank them for their contribution to the environment. Slinker conducted many surveys with its consumers and eventually landed on the current implementation.

What makes Slinker eBikes unique?

Above all, Slinker eBikes’ mission is to accelerate the eco-friendly, micro-mobility revolution. To accomplish this, Slinker has vertically integrated its supply chain. Most electric bike companies outsource the bicycle manufacturing, while Slinker has its own in-house factory, and after-sales care platform. The founding team has a unique advantage derived from their relationships with expertise in hardware manufacturing and design. This gives Slinker a huge cost advantage and an integrated after-sales experience to help retain customers. The team currently consists of globally distributed talent with supply chain experts from China, seasoned marketing partners from the US, IT talent from Pakistan, and product designers from Europe. Slinker’s companion app they developed focuses on improving consumer experience and increasing environmental affinity, which the team is confident will set them apart in a competitive space.

Roadmap and Expansion

As of October 2021, Slinker has established partnerships with 23 stores in 11 states through a manufacturer-to-consumer model. During his time at Yale, Jamil hopes to better understand the American market dynamics to scale Slinker to more US markets. Slinker has also been working on iterating on their original bike design, fixing design flaws and streamlining the component sourcing and supply chain process. In addition Slinker is planning an awareness campaign and a potential B2C market entry in 2022. Stay tuned!

If you are interested in learning more about Slinker eBikes, feel free to visit http://www.slinkerbikes.com/ or reach out to Jamil Liu at jamil.liu@yale.edu.

Entrepreneurship has been my way of life. It’s not easy to progress from surviving to thriving, but I still strive to keep going because entrepreneurship is about doing the difficult but right thing. For me, it's the best way to contribute to society because we are taking "Climate Action by Accelerating the Electric Micro-Mobility Revolution" - Jamil Liu