February – LEVA-EU member and Germany’s premium e-bike brand HNF reported a 103 per cent growth in sales during the 2020 calendar year compared with the previous 12 months. HNF has been manufacturing electric bikes for around eight years now.

Michael Hecken, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer of HNF, said ‘’HNF and Hero International’s joint strategy of working with independent bike dealers is paying off with more than half of all sales coming from IBDs.’’ He said ‘’all of the Hero International businesses would benefit from the integration of HNF into the group, bringing with it German precision research and development.’’

HNF has established a global research and development centre in Berlin to design and engineer bikes and e-bikes for all the business, including Hero Cycles India, Insync in the UK and Firefox India. HMC’s factories in India and Sri Lanka will support the brands with production and assembly of Hero International e-bikes and bikes.

Mr Hecken said ‘’that Hero International is planning further investment in research and development, brand building and expanding its distributor network to become a pan-EU brand. There also plans to expand in the UK through Manchester-based Insync.’’

HMC Group Chairman and Managing Director Pankaj Munjal said ‘’it plans to support the success of HNF with the upcoming ‘Cycle Valley’ plant in India which will add a capacity of four million units to the existing six million units per annum.’ He also said: “We are delighted to see HNF grow with the support of Hero International in such a short span of time. The expertise and capabilities offered by HNF were identified as a good fit for the Hero International group, allowing all of our brands to keep up with the increased demand for bikes through our in-house manufacturing and research and development offerings, leaving us less reliant on external suppliers.’’

Insync is also reporting a record-breaking performance in with sales trebling in 2020, selling more than 50,000 in retail in the year to November 2020. The uptick in sales is being driven by the increased demand for affordable bikes in the family market as a healthier form of commuting and exercise in reaction to the coronavirus pandemic. Insync is now planning to build on this success by doubling overall sales in 2021.