The Dutch media RTL Nieuws was able to speak with an administrator of VanMoof, who evokes a race against time for the takeover of the company. It was expected that a decision would be made around August 14: it will finally be later.
Source: VanMoof
Update of 08/16/2023:
We were expecting the situation to settle down on Monday August 14, but it didn’t. In the columns of the Dutch media Bright, administrator Jan Padberg indicated that it was “unlikely” that a decision around the future of VanMoof will be taken on Wednesday August 16.
It will probably be necessary to wait a few more days before a takeover offer is formalized. Or, in the worst case, learn the pure and hard end of the Batavian enterprise.
Original article from August 11, 2023:
In mid-July, VanMoof was officially declared bankrupt in the Netherlands. Like a domino effect, the bankruptcy then affected its French and British entities. The Batavian company is now playing against time: will it be bought by a buyer before everything collapses? That’s the big question.
The Micromobility group had positioned itself on the file, but VanMoof kindly preferred to decline to negotiate with other parties. And precisely, the negotiations are currently in full swing to record a potential restart of the brand, as we learn from the administrator Jan Padberg in the columns of RTL Nieuws.
Trek and Giant out of the race
According to him, the weekend should settle the situation, then result in new elements early next week. Namely, an agreement found, or not, with a company. It was whispered in particular that the American giant Trek and the Taiwanese company Giant were on the spot: this is not, or no longer the case.
The problem being: the longer the negotiations last, the greater the risk that the whole of VanMoof will crumble. Because for the moment, VanMoof is simply inactive – and not bankrupt – on the German, Taiwanese and Japanese markets. The official website even indicates that the firm is operational in the United States.
Source: Louise Audry for Aroged
However, all these markets are necessarily in difficulty given the bankruptcy declared in the group’s native country. This has a considerable impact. And without the parent company, it is difficult to design a happy sequel for other markets. Especially since the trend would be for employees to resign.
“People leave and plan other projects as long as it remains uncertain”, explains Jan Padberg. This would be the biggest problem facing the company. Without staff, it’s complicated to keep any activity afloat.
The return of the Carlier brothers?
It is also rumored that the founding brothers of VanMoof, Taco and Ties Carlier, would be tempted to revive the machine via a recently created limited company, writes RTL Nieuws. Salvatore Palella, the CEO of Micromobility – which almost bought VanMoof – had explicitly mentioned it in a Twitter message (X).
On this subject, Jan Padberg simply kicked in touch: “No comment” to make, can we read. The VanMoof saga should in any case come to an end, the happiest it is hoped, in the very near future. The survival of its e-bikes is clearly at stake.
Want to join a community of enthusiasts? Our Discord welcomes you, it’s a place of mutual aid and passion around tech.
