Coronavirus: More Cyclists to Keep Fit, Bike Sales Boom in Indonesia

Secondly, it is to eliminate burnout during the large scale social restrictions (PSBB) measures. Cycling has become a new lifestyle that can relieve stress while looking stylish at the same time, he added.

He hopes that cycling can become part of the new normal across the archipelago. Cycling has long been part of the people’s daily lives in the country’s small towns.

Local-made bicycles

With a growing number of bicycle clubs and bike-to-work communities, local entrepreneurs see there is a business opportunity in producing Indonesian-made bikes to cater to the need for cycling enthusiasts.

One of them is a Bandung-based bicycle maker called Kreuz in West Java. As of now, they have received hundreds of orders for their handmade folding bikes until February 2021.

“We have set a target of producing 10 to 15 units per month. But, we have already received orders of 100 frames. The waitlist is six months long until February 2021,” said Yudi Yudiantara, one of the founders.

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Yudi said that the idea of making handmade folding bikes did not happen until last year when attending an event called Indonesia Cycling Festival in Senayan, Jakarta.

At the event, he saw a collection of a popular London-made folding bike: Brompton. At that time he was still producing panniers. “All of a sudden I think it is cool to attach our Kreuz pannier to the Brompton bike,” he recalled.

Long story short, together with his business partner Jujun Junaedi, they decided to make a prototype of a folding bike that is similar but not the same as Brompton.

Then they started to produce Kreuz bikes after receiving financial assistance from a good friend of theirs.

Yudi said that all work is done by hand by involving several local home industries.
The frame-set of the three-fold bike costs about 3.5 million rupiahs, while the price of a full-bike is at least eight million rupiahs.

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In the beginning, they used social media platforms to promote their folding bike. The turnout has been unexpected. Since then, they have been receiving orders from customers in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore.

“Those who have money will still go for Brompton. But, customers who look for a quality bike with competitive price, they have an alternative to buying Kreuz,” said Yudi.

Brompton founder and inventor Andrew Ritchie created a prototype of Brompton bike from his bedroom in South Kensington, London.

But, Yudi and Jujun created Kreuz bike after attending a cycling festival where Yudi coincidently saw Brompton bikes. They then disassembled their friend’s Brompton bike to get to know more about all its parts before making the first Kreuz prototype.

“Next year is the time for Kreuz to take off. Hopefully, there will be no more technical problems,” Jujun said.

Source: Kompas.com