Levi Conlow and Robert Deziel are partners in crime in the entrepreneurial world. They are both the cofounders of Lectric eBikes. Levi Conlow was the designer of the bikes, and Robert Deziel was the idea maker. Levi Conlow, being the salesman he is, convinced his father to invest in his company with his father’s retirement savings. The amount given was fifty thousand dollars to make an affordable electric bicycle he designed. His first model was unsuccessful due to factors like speed and range, which he underestimated. He had to change course to be successful and not disappoint his father. His new idea was to model for the Lectric company, which makes electric scooters and bicycles. He created Lectric’s one thousand-dollar XP model when, at the time, the cheapest model of electric bikes was two thousand dollars. He utilized his skill set to create a cheaper product with the same quality that Lectric likes for their products. He created a minimal-value product. He also applied one of the modes of innovation, which is the adaption mode. His first idea of creating a product from scratch did not work, so he adapted his skill set to another field of improving a product. He also utilized one of the zones of innovation, which is product. He improved the product by keeping the quality high but reduced the costs by fifty percent. This price reduction could potentially find a new audience of customers who could not afford the typical two thousand-dollar models. Since 2019, when Levi created the XP model bike, Conlow has sold more than one hundred thousand bikes, and his company is on pace to make eighty-five million dollars in revenue this year. This story ended happily as Conlow could repay his father’s retirement savings and more.
I did an electric bike tour when visiting North Carolina a few years back and I can attest that they are very fun to use. I’m glad to see that there’s people making cheaper versions out there. Defiantly a good way to take advantage of, in my opinion, a rather untapped market.
Amazing how the two of them combined their skills to create a profitable business. It’s crazy how much eBikes have blown up over the past few years in cities so I’m sure their business can only be growing. It’s very inspiring how, after at first failing, they were not deterred and kept trying to perfect their product. That, I think, is the test of a true entrepreneur.