PedalMe Crowdfund

[Boopop]

PedalMe are having another crowdfunding round, anyone else tempted to get involved? I've put £500 in myself. I love their work and I hope they can expand to other towns and cities, reducing the number of taxis and vans in our urban areas, replacing them with much friendlier cargo bikes 😁

 

[glasgowcyclist]

PedalMe are having another crowdfunding round, anyone else tempted to get involved? I've put £500 in myself. I love their work and I hope they can expand to other towns and cities, reducing the number of taxis and vans in our urban areas, replacing them with much friendlier cargo bikes 😁

Is that a donation or an investment with the possibility of a return?

 

[Boopop]

It's an investment, you're buying shares.

 

[cougie uk]

Yes I've invested too. Bikes and companies like this have to be the future in cities.

 

[Dan77]

They appear to be hemorrhaging money. I wish them luck but I'm out.

 

[Boopop]

If silicon valley is anything to go by, the profitability of a company doesn't always have any relation to whether you can make a profit on owning shares in them. That and I really believe in what they're doing.

 

[Drago]

Profitability has a great bearing as to whether the company will still exist next week.

They don't have the wherewithall to operate for long at a loss, hence seeking financial support in this manner - can they continue to do so long enough to get themselves into the black? I'm not sure they can - they don't even have a mission statement, which suggests a lack of clear focus and ever-changing goals.

I wish them well. Im not putting my hand in my pocket just yet, but will keep an eye on them.

 

[Boopop]

Profitability has a great bearing as to whether the company will still exist next week.

Clearly...that's why I only put one month's left-over disposable income in, rather than my life's savings

 

[nickyboy]

As a general premise, crowdfunding campaigns are extremely high risk investments so folk should only invest what they can afford to lose.
The costs of running a crowdfunding is cheap so it attracts all sort of headcase "businesses". Also, the verification process on the information provided to investors on a crowdfunding is very limited. You need to take everything you read with a large pinch of salt

That's not to say there aren't good crowdfunding opportunities out there but the evidence is that most crowdfunding businesses spaff the money away and never achieve whatever they set out to achieve

 

[Oldhippy]

Just looked at the website. Genius, and what every city and town should have, last mile delivery by cargo bike type stuff. Outspoken in Cambridge similar. It is a no brainer really.

 

[Arrowfoot]

Though noble, the barrier to entry is low, productivity / efficiency ratios are low etc at a commercial level. If I the rider finds that I have good business over time transporting cargo good, I would appeal to my family for a loan to get a second hand white van and cover more and make more. The company becomes vulnerable.

To retain this noble cause it would make sense for local municipal to allow individuals to run the service like they do with pedicabs in London.

 

[Eric Olthwaite]

I think first they need to change their website to:

a) clearly explain the service they are providing
b) not annoy the fck out of their visitors with chimes and pop ups every 5 seconds offering web chat "help"

https://pedalme.co.uk/

 

[Oldhippy]

Society would have to change dramatically. Until people stop buying for buying sake, cars are a thing of the past and and people actually give a crap about each other and the planet they live on. Until then these things will seem quirky and well meaning but ........

 

[Boopop]

Society would have to change dramatically. Until people stop buying for buying sake, cars are a thing of the past and and people actually give a crap about each other and the planet they live on. Until then these things will seem quirky and well meaning but ........

Disagree with that...they've said multiple times that they're often actually faster, more efficient and cheaper than vans at delivering the same goods. That's why Lambeth Council picked them over more traditional forms of delivery service: https://ebiketips.road.cc/content/n...th-chose-pedal-me-e-cargo-bikes-to-distribute

People care about saving money and efficient delivery services right now, not just in an ideal world. I wouldn't be backing them if it was just a novel and more expensive service that only appealed to Extinction Rebellion/Greenpeace lifetime members.

 

[Arrowfoot]

Disagree with that...they've said multiple times that they're often actually faster, more efficient and cheaper than vans at delivering the same goods. That's why Lambeth Council picked them over more traditional forms of delivery service: https://ebiketips.road.cc/content/n...th-chose-pedal-me-e-cargo-bikes-to-distribute

People care about saving money and efficient delivery services right now, not just in an ideal world. I wouldn't be backing them if it was just a novel and more expensive service that only appealed to Extinction Rebellion/Greenpeace lifetime members.

According to the FOI, their quoted rate was cheaper than others. The quoted rate may not have covered their cost and most start-up do it to gain a profile. Ocado ran for years without making a profit and no dividends. And it is also not in Lambeth Council interest to see if Pedalme is covering their cost.

Just look at the picture. A large truck with 2 staff would have done the job faster. I use to live next to Lambeth, there is hardly any traffic that will impede a large truck doing distribution.

Its no surprise that an FOI was raised as it does not make sense.