Turning old into new: Bravobike refurbishes used bikes and sells them online. We asked the founders our 7 questions.
1. Who are you and what do you do? Please briefly introduce yourself and your business!
We stand for the sustainable resale of high-quality used bicycles and e-bikes. We buy these from private individuals via wirkaufendeinfahrrad.de as well as from dealers, manufacturers, and leasing companies. Here in our workshop in Munich, they are all checked, refurbished, and cleaned. The bikes are then sold through our sales portal. gebrauchtradstudio.de or third-party portals. This form of buying and selling high-quality used bicycles is currently still largely offline. We want to change that and bring it into the digital age. Managing directors are Oliver Diekmann (37) and Axel Donath (38). Axel (bikesale.de) and Olli (Lieferheld, Shopnow) have several years of experience in founding companies and in building them up in a structured way.
Schwacke list for bicycles
2. But that's been around for a long time!
Nope, surprisingly, actually not. But we thought it was high time—and founded Bravobike! We also developed many things familiar from the automotive industry for the bicycle segment for the first time. For example, a data-driven valuation, which is known in cars as the Schwacke list.
3. What has been your biggest challenge so far?
We certainly have specific requirements for our location. It needs to be a mix of office, workshop, and warehouse. You don't find much of that in Munich. And it also needs to be somewhat flexible with our planned growth. Finding the right property was a real challenge.
“Munich is an incredibly livable city”
4. Let’s get down to business: How is business going?
Like any startup, we don't share bare sales figures. However, we're in the fortunate position of not chasing our targets, but rather exceeding them since launch. This takes unnecessary pressure off some business decisions, allowing us to build Bravobike sustainably. We fire confetti cannons when we're successful; all we can say is, there's often confetti lying around.
5. What does Munich mean to you?
Munich is an incredibly livable city. Our central location in the Westend district allows us to serve walk-in customers and, after work, we can quickly reach the green surroundings of the Isar River for an after-work tour of Munich.
6. How will your startup become the next unicorn? Or will we see you soon at Epic Fail Night?
We ensure well-structured processes and automation, among other things, with the help of work instructions. Our skilled and bike-savvy employees, who work hand in hand, also contribute significantly to this. We're also fortunate enough to be able to implement sustainable business development through existing long-term contracts. Whether that's enough to qualify us as a "unicorn" remains to be seen—our primary concern is to do something meaningful and not just focus on the valuation.
7. What is your favorite cycling route in Munich?
We love cycling through the Isar meadows and along the Isar trails!
