Description

50 Rebels is a Portuguese electric bicycle producer. They produce high-quality bikes in Portugal that are especially suited for hilly areas with tough roads, potholes, and tramlines. The design and specifications of 50 Rebels bikes have been successfully introduced in several European countries through an e-commerce strategy and selected partners. At the brand's core, there stand flagship stores and shop-in-shops in cities such as Amsterdam, Berlin, Porto, Valencia, Zurich.
In this campaign, 50 Rebels wants to take on a proactive role in enabling employees to change the way they commute. Its funds will go to a dedicated fleet of 50 Rebels bikes that will be made available to companies for a period of one month each so their employees can commit to trying an electric bike for their daily commute. Studies show that once a commuter tries an electric bike for a longer period of time, they are easily persuaded to change their mode of transport to electric bicycles altogether (up to 30% of participants in a German study converted). 

50 Rebels actively supports the Corporate Social Responsibility and Human Resource Departments of the participating companies to enable their employees to get a 25% discount on e-bikes if they purchase their new e-bike through the paycheck of their employer after the trial period. This project contributes to the health, well-being, and loyalty of employees, less consumption of fossil fuel and parking space, and more sustainable and greener cities, and suburban areas. The goal is to change urban mobility and daily commuting one employee at a time.

The Impact

Direct

• Promotion of local industry and employment: the 50 Rebels bikes are produced mainly in Portuguese manufactures, with its main factory and assembly in the town of Águeda, and seat production in the town of Famalicão. The local production promotes and boosts the Portuguese industry, which in turn, generates employment.
• Decarbonization of transport and cities: The use of electric bikes for daily commuting contribute to decarbonize cities and improve air-quality, since they are non-polluting methods of transportation. Also, each electric bike used for daily commuting to work avoids in average 243 kgs of CO2 emissions per year, in comparison with the use of a diesel car, which is the equivalent to the absorpion of 11 trees yearly.
• Promote accessible and sustainable transport systems: the financing of this project can empower people in their daily locomotion, with access to sustainable transport systems.
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Indirect

• Promotion of healthy lifestyles and well-being: increased cycling habits in cities contribute to air quality and road safety, when it replaces individual motorized transport, and to healthier lifestyles from the exercise.
• Promotion of sustainable cities’ infrastructure: the financing of this projects contributes to more people cycling, which incentivizes public policy towards building resilient infrastructure for sustainable transport systems.

Impact Indicators

0,24 t

CO2 avoided per year

Contribution to the Sustainable
Development Goals

Sustainable Development Goals

Financial viability

Download Key Investment Information Sheet

The Promoter

About 50 REBELS COMPANY, LDA.

50 Rebels Company, Lda has been producing electric bicycles in Portugal since 2020. Their small but dedicated team of 7 has been conquering Europe from their headquarters in Torres Vedras (Portugal) with their unique bike design and strong branding. From their very beginning, 50 Rebels pledged to locally produce as many products and pre-products as possible. This led to frame manufacturing in Anadia, seat manufacturing in Famalicao, and rack manufacturing in Torres Vedras. Committed to making its products more sustainable, 50 Rebels is introducing a circular lithium battery usage scheme in 2023 with partners in Portugal and France.

This small and unique Portuguese company wants to continue to help change urban mobility in Europe by reaching people that haven’t been in the bicycle market before. The recent launch of the V-Series, 50 Rebels' second product series, is continuing to change the perception of what electric bicycles should look like and make urban and suburban riding easier, safer, and more fun.

The promotor produces high-quality bikes in Portugal that are especially suited for hilly areas with tough roads, potholes, and tramlines. The design and specifications of 50 Rebels bikes have been successfully introduced in several European countries through an e-commerce strategy and selected partners. At the brand's core, there stand flagship stores and shop-in-shops in cities such as Amsterdam, Berlin, Porto, Valencia, Zurich.

The team

Anna Schneeberger

Co-founder & COO

With more than 8 years of retail- and customer support experience in Switzerland, Norway, Denmark, and South Africa, it was time to put her experience to work: in 2019, Anna co-founded 50 Rebels with Andreas and made it what it is today: a customer-focused electric bicycle brand.

Andreas Koloska

Co-founder & CEO

After 15 years in Marketing Management and Business Development, this 36-year-old Swiss moved to Portugal to start up his own business. Coming from Copenhagen he saw the possible symbiosis of the bicycle-producing country Portugal and the invention of moped-style e-bikes and made it happen: a Portuguese e-bike brand that takes on the European market and keeps the added value in Portugal.

Business Model

Updates

2024-10-31

The project is being successfully implemented while payments are ongoing

50 Rebels is implementing their first financed project, having used about half of the raised amount towards a fleet of bikes destined to companies promoting the use of e-bikes for daily commute and other mobility needs with their employees.

With the reactivation of public funds promoting clean urban mobility in Portugal, 50 Rebels expects to implement corporate e-bike testing weeks, on a larger scale. The next bike test weeks to be launched will include GPS trackers and surveys to understand behaviour of users in using bikes for their daily commutes.

50 Rebels is launching a third fundraising campaign to source the bikes’ batteries directly in Portugal, reaching 67% of added value with Portuguese companies, per bike. Check it out at 50 Rebels III.