DANCE, an e-bike subscription service from the founders of SoundCloud, closes €15 million Series A

Less than three months since launching its pilot program, the e-bike subscription DANCE has secured €15 million in Series A funding. HV Holtzbrinck Ventures led the round, with BlueYard and some entrepreneurs and angel investors joining as well. There’s lots of talk about the bike revolution spurred by the coronavirus lockdowns and restrictions. Some e-bike retailers saw a 230 percent increase in demand over the summer. More than 2,300 kilometres of bike lanes have been put into place since the start of the pandemic, and the UK has pledged £250 million to the cause. So it seems DANCE’s entry to the micromobility market is well timed. The startup was founded by SoundCloud founders Eric Quidenus-Wahlforss and Alexander Ljung, together with the co-founder of Jimdo, Christian Springub. Their vision is a monthly subscription for full-service, full-access electric bike living, without the ownership. DANCE promises to deliver a top-of-the-line bike to a customer's door within 24 hours. Through the mobile app, riders can unlock their bikes and access concierge services or GPS location tracking. As part of its all-inclusive services, maintenance and theft replacement insurance is included. Furthermore, the company says: “Should it need maintenance or even get stolen, it will be replaced immediately.” The logistics of that SLA are unclear, as the service is still just an invite-only pilot program in Berlin. But with the new funding, the company can pursue a broader launch and expansion into new cities next year. Eventually DANCE hopes to waltz into the US market.

Photo: Co-founders Alexander Ljung (Chairman), Eric Quidenus-Wahlforss (CEO) and Christian Springub (COO)