Jack O'Sullivan, the 23-year-old Dubliner who has quietly launched his new ebike, the Modmo Saigon. It has gone down a bomb in German in particular and with 800 pre-orders at €2,000 each the Irishman has already developed a cheaper second bike and is employing 22 people and counting

An Irish bike company started when its founder was just 17-years-old now employs 22 people and is rapidly developing an international operation.

Modmo, which produces electric bikes with a range of up to 200km with pedal assistance, was founded by entrepreneur Jack O’Sullivan six years ago.

Now aged 23 years, O’Sullivan is on the cusp of major success having secured pre-orders for 800 of his bikes, at a cost of €2,000 each; that’s a cool €1.6 million.

Indeed, the pre-orders have gone so well O’Sullivan doubts he will need to fundraise, as he had planned to do last year when he prepared to crowd fund for €400,000.

The customers who have ordered the bikes so far have done so at a discount as each bike now costs €2,300, with plans to increase it to a retail price of €2,800.

The bikes have a large number of clip on accessories - for everything from children to workman's tools and even temperature-controlled boxes aimed at food delivery cyclists. The aim of Modmo is to provide a bike that can replace a car for many people

Unusually, the company founded in Ireland and with its headquarters here has sold very few bikes into the Irish market.

Instead, over 600 of the bikes sold so far have gone to the German market, with many buyers also in Holland and Switzerland.

With an assembly operation in Vietnam, O’Sullivan has spent a lot of time there in recent months overseeing the preparation of the first batch of bikes for shipping to their owners.

The first bike in the range, the Modmo Saigon (see specs below), has gone so well that the company has now launched a second bike, the Modmo Saigon S, which is cheaper at €1,500 and has a range of 115km.

Lara Gillespie attacks Dolomite stage as Giro hits high mountains — Just eight months ago this was O'Sullivan's explainer video about the Modmo Saigon prototype. With five months the company had sold its first 800 pre-order bikes for €2,000 and has already developed a cheaper version of the bike

Video - Ireland's Meehan climbs with best on brutal Alpine terrain — Just eight months ago this was O'Sullivan's explainer video about the Modmo Saigon prototype. With five months the company had sold its first 800 pre-order bikes for €2,000 and has already developed a cheaper version of the bike

O’Sullivan, who is from Cabinteely in Dublin, is a former
downhill rider who said he was addicted to the sport by the time he entered his
teenage years and so had to come up with an income to pay for his hobby.

“I began importing and selling refurbished iPhones and
grew that revenue to around €20,000 per month,” he said. “After a year or two
of that, I learned that it wasn’t scalable as barriers to entry were too low.”

While he drifted out of school he continued to study on
his own and sat the Leaving Cert, securing enough points to study business at
UCD but dropped out after four months.

He then began selling fixie bikes for €250 after securing
a supplier and some investment money from his father and brother, going on to
quickly produce and sell 165 bikes.

After that experience he said he wanted to design a bike that could take the place of a car for many people. So he came up with Modmo ebikes, which have a range of accessories that can be fitted to the front and back of his bikes.

This includes bike seats for children, surfboard racks, baskets, trailers, a pannier rack, waterproof pannier bag and even a temperature-controlled food box for delivering food.

The bikes also have integrated lights front and back as
well as a GPS tracker inside the frame to alert owners if the bikes are being
moved and to also track them in the event they are stolen.

An integrated cockpit display also shows ride activity, including
information about how much charging remains and the range it will allow.

Specs: Modmo Saigon

Frame | 6061 Aluminium with T6 heat treating.
Battery Range | Up to 200km of pedal assistance*. Dependant on factors such as terrain, rider weight and power level.
Motor | EU – 36V 250W with 5 power levels.
Brakes | Hydraulic brake-set.
Battery | 17.5Ah Panasonic lithium-ion battery. 50* Panasonic 3,400 mAh cells. Custom developed battery management system. Removable for charging.
Drive System | Single speed with Gates CDX belt drive with CDN cranks. 55-22 gear ratio. Upgrade to Enviolo CT hub.
Warranty | Five years on frame & fork, two years on components.
Connectivity | GPS and Bluetooth with IOS/Android App.
Tyres | Kenda 700x40c with K-Shield puncture protection.
Headset | Custom NECO headset with sealed bearings.
Wheels | MODMO custom developed.
Forks | Custom MODMO 6061 Aluminium with T6 heat treating.
Grips | MODMO grips.
Battery Management System | MODMO proprietary smart battery management system.