Dutch e-bike maker Stella requests deferment of payment

About 450 Stella employees are at risk of losing their jobs. According to its website, the bicycle brand has a total of fifty stores: 42 in the Netherlands and eight in Flanders.

Stella, founded in 2011, suffered losses worth millions this year and last year. The company points to difficult circumstances in the electric bicycle market. There is no prospect of recovery in the short term, it sounds.

Demand is decreasing

“Demand is decreasing and excessive inventories and tough price competition are also a major setback. Since 2022, Stella has tried to adapt to these challenges with various measures, including a reorganization. The losses have now increased to such an extent that Stella can no longer meet its financial obligations,” the company reports.

The investment fund DMEP, which fully took over Stella last year, had to make additional capital contributions several times to keep Stella afloat. Now the owner thinks this is “no longer responsible”.

Previously, Dutch sector peers VanMoof and Qwic went bankrupt.