“That’s Not Going to Sell”: 10 Years of VOLT at Leith Cycle Co.

Just over a decade ago, Richard at Leith Cycle Co. agreed to give a VOLT folding e-bike a go. He was convinced it would just gather dust. Instead, it kicked off one of our longest-running dealer partnerships, with somewhere between 400 and 500 VOLT bikes sold since. VOLT Co-Founder and Director Lyle Metcalfe headed up to Edinburgh to catch up with Richard on 10 years of e-bikes, commuters and Edinburgh hills.

Keeping Leith’s Commuters Moving

Richard has been at Leith Cycle Co. for close to 20 years, and in that time both the shop and the neighbourhood around it have changed.

“We’re in the heart of Leith in Edinburgh, which was the docks area, but is now very much an upwardly mobile, quite young, quite bohemian kind of area,” he says. “Very busy commuting area, so we’ve got a lot of commuter cyclists.”

With new cycle paths running up and down Leith Walk and one of Edinburgh’s old railway path networks close by, the shop has found its calling.

“We used to try to do a little bit of everything, but over the years we’ve really found our niche, which is keeping the commuters on their bikes, getting them onto new bikes and fixing the bikes that they’ve currently got.”

The Real Cyclists

Richard has a soft spot for his customers, and a theory about who really deserves the title of “cyclist”.

“People will say it’s the roadies or it’s the mountain bikers. But I get people who come in who couldn’t even tell you what make their bike is, but they ride it every single day, every day of the week, in all weathers. They’re always on that bike getting to work and back. You could argue that they’re the real cyclists.”

“That’s Not Going to Sell”

Richard’s VOLT story began with a phone call from London, asking him to build a bike for a customer in Edinburgh. When the VOLT team came up to say thanks, they brought a folding e-bike in the back of the van.

Richard had dabbled in e-bikes before, but wasn’t convinced they suited his corner of the city.

“In my mind they didn’t work where we were, because everybody lives in tenements. Everybody lives up 50 flights of stairs. They’ve got nowhere to keep their bikes. So I thought it will never work.”

He agreed to take a VOLT Metro anyway, and told his team not to expect much.

“I said to all my staff, that’s not going to sell. And in the first week I think we sold about six of them.”

As it turned out, a folding e-bike was exactly what tenement Edinburgh needed.

“People put them on boats, into the back of camper vans, tucked them away in the corner of their flats, because they could get them up and down the stairs and get them out of the way.”

The Benefit of a UK Brand

For an independent shop, Richard says, the relationship with the brand behind the bike matters as much as the bike itself.

“I think a lot of people, definitely me, like the fact that they’re based in the UK. They assemble the bikes in the UK. Their head office is in the UK. If I need to speak to somebody, they’re only down the road. If I need a part, I know I’m going to get it within a couple of days.”

“When you’ve tried to deal with some of these massive global manufacturers, that’s a great selling point for me as a retailer. I know that if the part is available, I can get it. I know I can get advice. I know where they are, and I’m going to be able to look after this bike.”

One Ride Is All It Takes

Getting started didn’t mean a huge upfront investment, either. VOLT supplied the shop with demo bikes so customers could try before they buy, and they’ve been doing the selling ever since.

That test ride is often what wins over the sceptics too.

“A lot of them come in with ‘Oh, I don’t need an e-bike. I actually want to ride a bike.’ But if you can get them on the bike and they go for a ride on it, they nearly always come back thinking, ‘Oh, I really want one of these.'”

Better Every Year

Over 10 years, Richard has watched the VOLT range evolve.

“The bikes have got better and new products have come through. The displays are more reliable, the motors are more reliable, the bikes are starting to look cleaner and tidier. They just get better and better.”

So much so that the workshop rarely sees a VOLT for anything other than routine maintenance.

“We don’t really do repairs. We just do servicing now on VOLT bikes. There really isn’t much that goes wrong.”

On the day we visited, there were four or five VOLT bikes in the workshop, all in for routine servicing: chains, pads and tyres. As Richard sees it, that’s a good sign.

“It means people are riding them lots, and we’re starting to get lots of them through just keeping them going.”

Transport and a Bike, All in One

Richard’s customers are a broad mix, and increasingly they’re people who simply want an easier way to get around.

“We have got some older people, but actually we’re starting to get more people who want to get around on a bike and have realised that sometimes they just want transport, and they want a bike as well. An e-bike covers both those genres.”

Edinburgh’s roads are playing their part too.

“The good thing about Edinburgh, which is a bad thing about Edinburgh, is the traffic is getting worse and worse. But we do now have a decent cycle network, so it’s actually encouraging more and more people onto bikes, because they’re seeing that they’re either stuck in traffic or wedged onto a tram or crammed onto a bus.”

Shared city e-bikes have helped as well, giving people a taste of electric assistance before they come in looking for one of their own.

Quality You Can Feel

With cheap e-bikes widely available, Richard often finds himself explaining why quality is worth paying for.

“People think that you can get a quality e-bike for 6, 7, 800 quid, a thousand pounds. But once they’ve ridden one and ridden the other, they usually can feel the difference. And we can explain to them why there is a difference.”

And with VOLT’s pricing becoming more and more competitive, that conversation is getting easier.

Richard’s Favourites

Richard still has his own VOLT Pulse, now around seven or eight years old.

“It still works, it still goes, and I use it occasionally.”

These days, though, he has a new favourite in the VOLT Regent.

“It’s a really nice bike. Looks good, rides well. We’re getting a lot of good feedback. It’s all singing, all dancing, isn’t it? Belt drive, internal gears, crank motor, you can charge your phone off the display. It’s a lovely bike.”

He has high hopes for the new VOLT Urban, too, after taking one for a spin around the city.

“I think you should do well with the Urban. It’s a very, very nice bike just for getting around the city. Super quiet, doesn’t make any noise.”

Here’s to the Next 10 Years

“I think we’ve had a great 10 years,” says Richard. “I’m very happy.”

Thank you, Richard, and the whole team at Leith Cycle Co., for a decade of keeping Edinburgh’s commuters on the move. Here’s to the next 10!

Visit Leith Cycle Co.

In Edinburgh? Pop in and see Richard and the team at Leith Cycle Co., or book a test ride and feel the difference for yourself. Not in Edinburgh? Find your nearest VOLT dealer or explore the full VOLT E-bike Range.

Want to hear more from the VOLT community? Read more e-bike stories.