London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Jul 30, 2025

British foldable bike maker plans to launch subscription service next month as the cycling boom continues

British foldable bike maker plans to launch subscription service next month as the cycling boom continues

British folding bike maker Brompton is planning to launch a subscription service next month as part of an effort to get more people using its bikes.

The London-based firm, which has sold around 500,000 bikes worldwide, will charge subscribers £30 ($39) a month if they sign up to a 12 month contract, or £42 a month if they opt for a rolling monthly contract. In return, they get to hold onto a £1,000 Brompton M3L bike, insurance, and access to a free repair service.

Brompton Bike Hire Managing Director Julian Scriven told CNBC that “demand for bikes has gone ballistic” during the coronavirus pandemic.

The Brompton subscription offering will launch in the U.K. in September but Scriven said that he would like to launch in Germany and the U.S. next.

“I have a strong affection for Germany,” said Scriven on a phone call Tuesday. “I think it’s often a much overlooked market for cycling but it’s incredibly strong. And then if I wanted to take on the ultimate challenge, America has a lot of untapped potential.”

Brompton, now 44-years-old and with approximately 400 staff, already has a bike hire scheme that allows people to pay a one-off fee of £6.50 to hire a bike for a day. This falls to £3.50 a day if they pay a £25 annual fee.

By comparison, the Brompton subscription service will work out at around £1 a day. Users must register online and Brompton said subscribers can pick up a bike from any Brompton hub in the U.K. and keep it for as long as they need.

Unlike the Brompton bike hire scheme, there’s no fancy app for the subscription service. Users must sign up online and contact Brompton directly if they wish to change their membership or get a repair.

Scriven said the coronavirus pandemic has been changing how long people hire bikes for. Before the pandemic, people would typically hire bikes for three to four days consecutively but recently some users have been keeping the bikes for over 30 days.

The idea for the Brompton subscription service was “formulated a year ago” but it “really crystallized” when Brompton started to react to the Covid-19 crisis, Scriven said. “I wish we could have got it out a bit quicker,” he added.

Scriven has set himself what he calls a “modest target” of getting around 1,000 people signed up as subscribers within six months of the service going live and he’s expecting many of them will be young riders.

“The millennial generation and Gen X are very much into not having ownership of stuff,” he said, adding that they’re happy to rent a home or share an office. Other subscription services like Netflix, Spotify, and HelloFresh are also popular with this age group.

E-bike push?


Brompton isn’t the first company to launch a bike subscription service.

Founded in 2016, Buzzbike charges Londoners £29.99 a month for access to its bikes, while Hurrecane claims to offer the only e-bike subscription service in the U.K., with plans ranging from £40 to £60 a month.

At the end of July, Buzzbike raised £1.7 million from the heir of Adidas and other investors to fuel its growth.

Covid is driving seismic shifts in the way people move around cities,” said Tom Hares, CEO and co-founder of Buzzbike said at the time.

“Over the last few weeks, we’ve seen a record-breaking level of interest in our service,” he added. “Our latest investment round will give us the means to invest into technology, product development, key hires and capability to scale to the demand we’re witnessing.”

Over in Berlin, the founders of music streaming service Soundcloud launched an e-bike subscription start-up called Dance last month with subscriptions costing 59 euros a month.



Dance cofounders (L-R): Christian Springub, Eric Quidenus-Wahlforss, and Alexander Ljung.



Brompton also makes e-bikes but Scriven said these will not initially be available through the subscription service, despite knowing the demand is there.

“The number one question in testing has been will you be offering Brompton Electric on the subscription product?” he said.

Scriven said he wants to be sure Brompton has got the model right before introducing Brompton’s electric bike, which is a “more complex” and more expensive product.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Procter & Gamble to Raise U.S. Prices to Offset One‑Billion‑Dollar Tariff Cost
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
Botswana Seeks Controlling Stake in De Beers as Anglo American Prepares Exit
Trump Administration Proposes Repeal of Obama‑Era Endangerment Finding, Dismantling Regulatory Basis for CO₂ Emissions Limits
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
A family has been arrested in the UK for displaying the British flag
Mel Gibson refuses to work with Robert De Niro, saying, "Keep that woke clown away from me."
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
The British propaganda channel BBC News lies again.
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
×