Berlin-based GetHenry, a startup that provides electric last-mile delivery bikes to couriers and logistics companies, has raised a $17.4 million (€16.5 million) seed round to expand its business across Europe. The startup currently operates in Germany, Austria, Italy and France, but plans to use its latest funding to move into Spain, the Netherlands and the U.K. over the next two quarters, according to a GetHenry spokesperson.
GetHenry, which supplies e-bike fleets to enterprise customers like Gorillas, Flink and JustEatTakeaway.com, is coming to market at a time when on-demand grocery, food and convenience store delivery is becoming increasingly popular. At the same time, more traditional logistics companies are getting wise to the fact that an army of electric bikes is an efficient way to address emissions and reach corporate climate goals, particularly for last-mile.
A range of electric utility bike companies, like Zoomo, Ubco and Joco are sprouting up to address these coinciding trends with what is becoming a classic combination of fleets for larger companies and weekly or monthly subscriptions for couriers.
“We’ve seen in the last 12 months just how important providing sustainable last-mile delivery solutions has become,” said Luis Orsini-Rosenberg, co-founder and CEO of GetHenry, in a statement. “While logistics companies struggle to meet the ever-increasing demand for ever-faster deliveries, GetHenry is here to provide a quality fleet of electric utility vehicles that can cater for the current climate. We allow delivery companies to get on with what they do best — delivering — by providing round-the-clock maintenance and service, with up-to-the-minute data on the status of their delivery vehicles at their fingertips to ensure peace of mind.”
Like some of its competitors, GetHenry’s subscriptions and service include everything from the production of vehicles and finance of high end e-bikes to on-demand maintenance and fleet management software services. GetHenry’s subscription product, which averages out at around €100 per month ($105) depending on the country, is on par with the costs from competitors. Zoomo, for example, charges anywhere form $20 to $35 per week for its gig worker subscriptions in the U.S.
GetHenry’s bikes, which are German-engineered and manufactured in partnership with a French e-bike manufacturer, are built to handle the 80 kilometers per day that delivery couriers tend to travel, accounting for any additional weight for parcels, according to the company.
“We decided to manufacture our own bike because there was no e-bike on the market for the grocery delivery use case at the time, and we wanted to build the best bike for these customers,” a spokesperson told TechCrunch. “In manufacturing our own e-bike, we also have full control over costs and supply chain.”
GetHenry also plans to use the fresh capital to diversify its product portfolio, with plans to develop and deploy cargo bikes and electric mopeds in the near future.
The funding round, a combination of €10 million equity and €6.5 million debt, was led by LocalGlobe, with participation from Visionaries Club, Founder Collective, EnBW New Ventures, GreenPoint Partners, SpeedUp Ventures and Third Sphere. Angel investors including Voi CEO Fredrik Hjelm, former Tier COO Roger Hassan and Everphone CEO Jan Dzulko also participated in the round.
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