According to CEO and co-founder, Vivekananda Hallekere is expecting Bounce, a manufacturer of electric scooters, to achieve Ebitda break-even in FY24 due to higher sales projections, new launches, and lower expenses.
In 2018, Hallekere, Anil G, and Varun Agni launched Bounce after their previous luxury motorcycle rental platform Wickedride failed to gain traction. The business began as a last-mile connectivity provider for cities like Bengaluru, renting scooters. However, it stopped being a rental business in 2022 and started making electric scooters.
Since it began manufacturing, the company has put 7,000 scooters on Indian roads, according to Hallekere, and in the next six to eight months, it anticipates selling about 3,000 units a month. This would increase the current monthly sales of 1,250 or so vehicles. Every month, companies like Ola Electric and Ather sell about 8,000 vehicles.
Revenues are anticipated to rise from Rs 16 crore in FY22 to Rs 100 crore in FY23 as a result of higher sales. The business suffered a net loss of Rs. 243 crores in FY22. Hallekere said that the anticipated loss for FY23 would be in the double digits but did not provide the exact number. According to him, FY24 revenues will probably total about 360 crore rupees.
“With 250 members, we are a much leaner team, and our costs are under control. Additionally, we are developing three new products that we will roll out over the course of the upcoming year. These vehicles will have a longer range, cost around $120,000, and boost sales, according to Hallekere.
Bounce has slashed its team size from about 2,000 employees to around 250 now, which has helped it reduce its cash burn rate to `2 crores a month, a person aware of the developments said. It is in the midst of fundraising of $20 million. Hallekere said the company had received the first tranche but did not specify the exact amount. “Even after we turn profitable, we’ll be raising more money as manufacturing needs that kind of investment,” he said.
Sources said Bounce is raising the money at a valuation of $150-200 million, down from around $500 million it commanded earlier. It is also among the few EV makers that follow a battery-swapping policy, while companies like Ather and Ola Electric have dismissed the move. “Battery swapping is essential to increase EV penetration because it brings down scooter prices by 40-50%,” Hallekere said.
