McLaren's scooter brand Lavoie in VanMoof takeover talks in the Netherlands
The electric scooter brand owned by the McLaren Group wants to take over VanMoof, according to Reuters. A source close to talks between scooter brand Lavoie and the beleaguered Dutch bicycle manufacturer said that negotiations were at "quite an advanced stage."
The unnamed source said that VanMoof is "very well aligned with Lavoie's strategy to grow as a premium global brand of e-mobility devices." If the deal goes through, Lavoie would acquire "as much as possible" of VanMoof's operations, though a timeline was not specified.
VanMoof's founders announced that the company was declared bankrupt by an Amsterdam court on July 18. The bankruptcy has been attributed to repeated losses of tens of millions of euros annually. The manufacturer used many of its own parts in their bicycles and e-bikes, and warranty repair costs soared as the company grew.
Lavoie is owned by the same parent company shared by luxury sports car manufacture McLaren Automotive, and its motorsports business, McLaren Racing. The latter was formed forty years ago, and its Formula One team has taken eight Constructors' Championships and 12 Drivers' Championships. The F1 team has one 183 races, with drivers taking second or third in another 313 races since.
Bankruptcy administrators have been evaluating different offers and scenarios where VanMoof can be restarted. Another source told Reuters there were two companies still in the running. One previous offer came from Micromobility.com, the American company behind Wheels e-bikes and Helbiz e-scooters.
That company's CEO, Salvatore Palella, said their bid was rejected by the Dutch trustee in favor of negotiations with another party, however he said he may still attempt to acquire VanMoof assets from bankruptcy courts in other countries. The company entered bankruptcy proceedings in Germany earlier this week. Palella also alleged that the brothers who founded VanMoof could be seeking investment to take back control of the Dutch company.
News about the talks between VanMoof and Lavoie broke on Thursday night, with VanMoof's current customers having only until the close of business at 6 p.m. on Friday to pick up bicycles brought in for repairs at one of several locations in the Netherlands. VanMoof had not released the bicycles once the company was declared bankrupt one month ago.
VanMoof has sold roughly 200,000 bicycles worldwide, with 20 retail outlets in different major cities. The company's bicycles are still sold in its outlets in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Japan, Ireland, Austria and Denmark.
