After the first, limited edition consisting of fifty ”pieces”, part of which is already reserved, some novelties will be introduced into the existing design.
As Poslovni Dnevnik/Sasa Paparella writes on the 13th of April, 2018, one of the most attractive exhibitions at the recent Zagreb Auto Show, is the prototype of an electric vehicle (e-cycle) from the SentiMental Bikes workshop owned by Duško Ilijević, a young Zagreb local who has successfully transformed his love of two wheels into a business.
As usual, the beginnings of the project were of course rather modest – on the balcony of his apartment on the 12th floor of a building in Dubrava, Zagreb, he created bicycles reminiscent of the old board track racers from the 1930’s. At first, he worked on models with pedals and gasoline engines. Now, after about half of the processing that is already being done in specialised workshops, he began with th new Experiment e-cycle, which, according to its design, resembles cafe racers, powered by electric engines from the bike industry. As mentioned, after the first, limited edition of fifty copies, part of which has already been reserved, some novelties will be introduced to the existing design.
“Experiment’s planned price was 35,000 kuna, but due to the extremely large public response, that price could be dropped by 23 percent on the second day after the global premiere, because if SentiMental gets more cost-effective components and production for larger orders, it’s only natural that the first buyers who recognised the value of our product should be rewarded,” explained the young bike enthusiast.
Zagreb’s Ilijević has already experienced some good criticism in the media. He wanted to make sure that the price would be acceptable to domestic buyers, but it was not oriented merely to Croatia and the region, but also to the global market, with the first interest coming from other European countries, Portugal, France and Italy. The export of the bike begins in sixty days, and Ilijević has invited potential partners and investors to take a look at this worthy project as soon as possible.
“Experiment is an e-cycle that embodies our vision of personal urban transport, a vision of a modern, urban commuting vehicle for business people in cities, as well as as a vehicle for enjoyment,”
Who are the customers and buyers?
“So far, they’ve been mostly business people and people who like style and see their presentation as being important to the public. Despite the retro style, it’s been modern city transport for gentlemen, and we’ve never aimed exclusively at just cyclists or motorcyclists, but on people who love tastefully designed things, who nurture a certain lifestyle that complements our products. We’ve been making personalised bicycles, which have been known to be much more expensive and have always been created uniquely, i.e, one tailored for each specific customer and their needs. The Experiment bike will be the first serial product of my company (SentiMental j.d.o.o.) and we’re planning to present the prototype of the second model, designed more for the gentler sex.”
This success story has long since been just a bit too big for the former ”workshop”, as in, Duško’s Dubrava balcony, so the production is heading from a workshop for the full custom processing of individual specimens to more appropriate production facilities. “I’m very proud of the bike being produced in Croatia. We import from our partners and suppliers only the most essential things, namely wheels, light signaling and the instrument panel,” he added. In an even more welcome twist in the story, part of the work will be done in overlooked Slavonia, in Eastern Croatia.
The first copies are already beginning to be worked on, and the delivery of the first model preorder is within sixty days of the deposit payment. For now, there are only a few test specimens that serve as show bikes, and the next step on the path will be presentarion in public at Zagreb’s Design Week at the Technical Museum, where promo rides will be possible.
