Who hasn't experienced this: Dusty sports equipment in the basement because you've stopped kiting, skateboarding, or hula-hooping? For your no-longer-used mountain bike or racing bike, there's bikesale.de a solution.
We spoke with Axel Donath, one of the founders of the website for used bicycles.
1. Who are you and what do you do? Please briefly introduce yourself and your services!
We are bikesale.de, The first professional marketplace and now also the largest online retailer for used bicycles. We recently started offering our customers the service of quickly and easily selling their bikes to us.
And that's where our added value comes in: If you want to buy or sell a used bike, we offer you a service that no one else can offer, whether it's buyer protection or a free valuation.
We're Jan and Axel, a bike enthusiast and a digital nerd (both 36), the perfect combination for building a specialized online business. We met through mutual contacts who at some point suggested we would form an interesting mix of skills—and they were right!
2. But that's been around for a long time!
Yes, exactly, at bicycle dealers, except that dealers don't want anything to do with used bikes and now prefer to send customers to us.
And, exactly, on eBay, except that on eBay you're more likely to sell your bike for a bargain, you have no opportunity to search specifically, you're neither protected nor advised, and you can't use any services like purchasing or valuation at all.
Oh, yes, there's Fahrrad.de – but they only sell new bikes. And used bikes are in high demand because there hasn't been a single supplier for them yet.
So let me ask you the other way around: Do you know of a mobile.de for bicycles? Now you know!
3. What has been your biggest challenge so far?
The classic answer: financing. If you're trying to...
- as first mover (without comparable values)
- with a marketplace model
- in a huge consumer market
- with a strongly marketing-driven market entry approach
...to raise money, you need patience and a lot of luck. It's not just about seed or early-stage financing. It's a constant question because you're constantly being asked: How big is the market? And you can only keep saying: Look at what we've achieved, look at these assumptions, and then you'll get an idea. But the facts won't be available until we've created them. It's a very exciting challenge, but also one I didn't expect.
4. Let’s get down to business: How is business going?
What do numbers mean? We're grossly profitable and can break even in 2017 if we want to. We're growing efficiently and now serve the entire market, from bike enthusiasts to casual cyclists, from balance bikes to high-end triathlon bikes, from unicycles to four-person tandems.
When it comes to purchasing, we can't keep up with the number of inquiries we receive.
Yet hardly anyone in Germany knows us – I would say that pretty much sums up our success.
5. What does Munich mean to you?
Munich is very important for the cycling scene. You can find every cycling sport here, have the mountains on your doorstep, and therefore a few manufacturers and specialist media in the neighborhood. However, this question didn't really arise. We both live in Munich and love the city. We have our networks here and therefore never considered relocating.
The startup scene is also different because everyone here has to be successful quickly. The costs are simply higher than in Berlin. If you have to go without a salary for a month here, you'll be bankrupt the next.
I also think it's an advantage not to be so influenced by hype. You have to fight harder in Munich, but that also creates more substance.
6. How can your startup become the next unicorn? Or see you soon at Epic Fail Night?
We might well see each other at Fail Night. There are good founders and employees there that we would certainly like to have on board. It's precisely these people who will make us a unicorn. The market is there, the business model works, and we've set the course. Now we're putting together the team of employees and shareholders/investors so that we can hit the ground running.
7. Fish on a stick or pork knuckle?
I love a chicken. But if it's a ham hock, then it's a ham hock.
