From eco-tours on e-bikes to India’s first EV marketplace

Three years ago, when BLive launched India’s first experiential tours on e-bikes, electric cycles were still a novelty. But the tours off Mysuru, Madikeri, Goa and other locations built an e-bike interest so engaging that the startup is now big into an entire online marketplace for Electric Vehicles (EVs).

Friends for long, Samarth Kholkar and Sandeep Mukherjee had started BLive in 2018 with a mission: Make EVs accessible to all, and the best way to do it was to let people touch, feel and ride e-bikes to travel spots. The immersive experience idea with its own customised fleet of bikes struck, and many who took the ride were ready to buy one for personal use.

The travel buffs had never experienced something like an electric cycle before. They could either pedal just like any other cycle or switch to a battery-driven pedal-assist mode that made negotiating those tough terrains a breeze. The BLive tours had the tour hosts called ‘captains’ guide them all through, cementing that green connect even further.

So far, BLive has completed over 11,000 tours countrywide. “These are highly immersive experiential tours that last two to three hours, typically covering 12 to 15 kms. Guests, for instance, are taken to a very old Portuguese house for breakfast or to a fishermen’s village to see shrimp farming or to a local baker to partake in the bread-making process,” Mukherjee explains.

Well-versed with local traditions, story-telling and EVs, the captains keep the guests on e-bikes engaged right through the tours. “We have had groups of 10 take the island tours, heritage tours, food trails, village trails and more.”

The thrust is clearly on sustainable tourism with the e-bike platform. “So far, we have saved over 10 tons of CO2 emissions. We also try to put the spotlight on local craftsmen by bringing guests to their doorsteps. More than 80 craftsmen are now working with us,” says Mukherjee.

Last year, BLive launched India’s first multi-brand EV retail online marketplace with over 10 top EV brands selling e-bikes and e-scooters. Twenty offline retail stores are on BLive’s agenda this financial year, as Kholkar informs.

On the tour, the customised e-bikes are mostly gearless while the BLive store offers the entire geared range.

Globally, 45 million e-bikes are sold every year. “India’s share is a very small fraction now. But it could see growth in retail and B2B sections such as large housing societies, large corporates and large resorts,” contends Kholkar.