Bamboo Bicycle Club

What Bamboo Bicycle Club does

Bamboo Bicycle Club is a UK-based social enterprise (legally Bamboo Mobility Project CIC, Companies House Reg 16257348) that designs, manufactures and teaches hand-built bamboo bicycle frame construction. Founded in 2012 in Hackney, London by design engineers James Marr and Ian McMillan as the UK's first bamboo bike workshop, the company operates from a London E8 workshop and ships to 36+ countries through a Shopify direct-to-consumer storefront. Its core offering is a kit-based product line spanning Road, Gravel, MTB, Fatbike, City, Custom and Balance Bike frame kits (£66-£795) built from heat-treated Moso bamboo tubes joined with flax/carbon reinforcement and two-part epoxy resin, alongside premium lugged variants using pre-formed aluminium joints, matched component packs, parts, tools and apparel. The build method is designed so that approximately 95% of builders have never constructed anything before, using only basic hand tools and a plywood alignment jig, with the bamboo tubes independently flex-tested to BS ISO 22157 at Swansea University and ride-comfort testing at Oxford Brookes.

The business generates revenue through four interlocking channels: one-time e-commerce hardware sales (53 SKUs of frame kits, component packs, tools, apparel, gift cards); in-person 2-3 day frame-building workshops at London, Amersfoort and Toulouse priced at £595-£695; bespoke corporate team-building days for groups of 5-50+; and an accredited Make Engineers education programme (free Speaker taster laddering into paid Frame II, Additive and Systems modules). All major UK Cycle to Work providers are accepted. Profits and grants fund Build to Bond, a six-week OCN London Level 2-accredited prison rehabilitation programme running at HMP Lowdham Grange, HMP Lindholme and HMP Foston Hall, where participants build a balance bike for their own child. The company has trained 4,000+ builders across 36 countries and built 3,500+ frames since 2012.

Customer segments include individual DIY bike builders and workshop attendees (primary), corporate team-building clients (e.g., Four Seasons Hotel Hampshire), schools/colleges/universities (UCL, King's College London, Coventry, The Oratory School, Reed's School, Bradfield College, London South Bank University), UK prisons via HMPPS, cycling charities (Upcycle Brixton), and international mission partners (Urumuri Rwanda, a school in Regina Canada, UT San Antonio chapter). Distribution is primarily direct via Shopify D2C, the in-person workshop locations, and direct B2B sales into schools, corporates and the prison service. Strategic partners include Investec (flagship corporate partner and £24,000 Beyond Business 2025 award winner), The National Lottery Community Fund, HMPPS, OCN London, Swansea and Oxford Brookes universities, and a network of European workshop partners. The company is founder-led with a small (1-10) team and operates without external equity investment.

Name

Bamboo Bicycle Club

Legal name

Bamboo Mobility Project CIC

Website

https://bamboobicycleclub.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Bamboo Bicycle Club (Bamboo Mobility Project CIC) designs and sells hand-built bamboo bicycle frame kits worldwide from London, runs in-person frame-building workshops in the UK, Netherlands and France, and uses profits and grants to fund OCN-accredited prison rehabilitation and school STEM programmes.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Bicycle frame kits

NAICS

Motorcycle, Bicycle, and Parts Manufacturing (336991)

SIC

Motorcycles, Bicycles & Parts (3751)

akta.pro primary industry

Bicycle Retail (New Bikes) (CRAMAHAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Cargo & Utility Bike Retail (CRAMAHAF), Kids’ & Family Bike Retail (Youth, Trailers, Seats) (CRAMAHAG), Cycling & Bike Retail (Sales, Service & Accessories) (CRAMABAH)

Keywords

• Bamboo bicycle frames
• Frame-building kits
• Sustainable cycling education
• Bicycle workshop services
• Bicycle component packs

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Frame kit sales: One-time e-commerce sale of bicycle frame kits (Road £375, MTB £385, Gravel from £385, City from £375, Fatbike £385, Road Lugged £795, Gravel Lugged £595, Balance Bike Lugged £165, Balance Bike Flax from £66, Custom Frame £495). 53 SKUs total on shop, with 10 in the main home-build-kits collection. Hand-packed in London workshop and shipped twice weekly.
2. Frame-building workshops: In-person 2–3 day workshops at London E8 (Hackney), Amersfoort (NL) and Toulouse (FR). £595 Road (2 days), £595+ Gravel (2–3 days), £695 MTB (3 days). Materials, tools, expert tuition, lunch and refreshments included. Quote-based booking (email-led, no instant checkout) because every frame is built to the customer's measurements.
3. Corporate team-building days: Bespoke team-building events for 5–50+ people at the client's UK venue or the London workshop. Quoted per group; bikes can be kept or donated to community charities (e.g., Upcycle Brixton). 3-hour to full-day formats.
4. Education & school programmes (Make Engineers): Accredited OCN Level 1 & 2 programmes for schools, colleges and universities. Foundation 'Speaker' build is free; subsequent Frame II, Additive and Systems modules priced by quote.
5. Component packs & bike-finishing parts: Component packs to finish bamboo frames — Shimano 105 (£725), Shimano GRX 12-speed (£955), Campagnolo Ekar 13-speed (£1,889), Microshift Sword 1x9 (£432), Single Speed (£425), MTB Component Pack 650B (£962), Sram NX City (£885) — plus forks (Road Disc £195+, Gravel Carbon £195+), bottom brackets, jigs, tools and resin.
6. Apparel & accessories: Print-on-demand branded apparel and accessories (T-shirts from £18.50, beanie £28.37, hats £16, tote bags £14, mugs £12, aprons £26). Eco-friendly fabrics, printed locally when possible to reduce shipping distances.
7. Gift cards: Bamboo Bicycle Club gift cards redeemable on the webshop in £50, £100, £300 and £500 denominations.
8. Cycle to Work scheme transactions: Frame kits accepted via all major UK Cycle to Work providers (Cyclescheme, Cycle Solutions, Evans, Halfords) with typical 25–39% saving through salary sacrifice.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion5 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Bamboo Bicycle Club designs, sources materials for and sells hand-built bamboo bicycle frame kits (road, gravel, MTB, city, fatbike, custom and balance bike variants) that customers assemble at home using basic hand tools. Revenue is generated through a Shopify e-commerce storefront shipping to 36+ countries, 2-3 day in-person frame-building workshops in London (Hackney), Amersfoort (Netherlands) and Toulouse (France), bespoke corporate team-building days, and accredited OCN Level 1 & 2 STEM programmes in schools (Make Engineers) and UK prisons (Build to Bond).

Product overview

Bamboo Bicycle Club's offering is a vertically integrated, social-enterprise ecosystem rather than a single SaaS product — a Shopify-hosted shop, a workshop programme, and a prison/school rehabilitation mission running as one Community Interest Company (Bamboo Mobility Project CIC, Reg 16257348). The product portfolio is anchored by a single craft (hand-built bamboo bicycle frames) delivered through three interlocking channels: at-home Frame Build Kits (Road, Road Lugged, Gravel, Gravel Lugged, MTB, Fatbike, City, Custom, and Balance Bike Lugged/Flax kits ranging £66–£795) that buyers assemble with basic hand tools; in-person 2–3 day Frame-Building Workshops in London, Amersfoort and Toulouse; and structured programmes for schools (Make Engineers, free bamboo-speaker taster through to full Frame II builds) and prisons (Build to Bond, OCN-accredited courses at HMP Lowdham Grange, HMP Lindholme, HMP Foston Hall). Kits are completed via a Component Packs range (Shimano 105, Shimano GRX 12-Speed, Campagnolo Ekar 13-Speed, Microshift Sword, Single-Speed, MTB 650B) and supported by an after-sales Builder Support Centre backed by YouTube tutorials, Facebook community, WhatsApp, email and a free expert video call. Underpinning the kits are Parts & Tools (Frame Building Jig V6, Bamboo Tubing, Bamboo Offcuts, Biotex Flax Fibre, Permabond ET5429 epoxy, CNC metal parts, bike tools, tool packs, frame drawings, brake adapters), a Gift Card range, and a printed-to-order Clothing & Accessories line (T-shirts, hats, beanie, apron, tote, mugs). Profits from the kits, workshops, component packs and apparel directly fund the accredited skills programmes in prisons and schools — one craft, one engine for change.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bamboo Bicycle Frame Build Kits At-home bamboo bicycle frame kits in Road (from £375), Road Lugged (£795), Gravel (from £385), Gravel Lugged (£595), MTB (£385), City (from £375), Fatbike (£385), Custom Frame (£495), Balance Bike Lugged (£165) and Balance Bike Flax (from £66) variants. Built with basic hand tools from heat-treated Moso bamboo, flax fibre, carbon tow and epoxy; 25-45 hour build for full-size frames, 8-12 hours for balance bikes. Worldwide shipping to 36+ countries.
• Component Packs Matched groupset packs to finish a bamboo frame build, including Shimano 105 Hydraulic Disc (from £725), Shimano GRX 12-Speed (from £955), Campagnolo Ekar 13-Speed (£1,889), Microshift Sword 1x9 (from £432), Single-Speed (£425) and MTB 650B SRAM NX City (£962) packs.
• Frame Building Parts and Tools Maker-shop parts and tools for bamboo frame building, including the Frame Building Jig (from £75 entry; V6 workshop grade at £595), heat-treated Moso bamboo tubing (from £42), bamboo offcuts, Biotex Flax 2/2 twill, Permabond ET5429 50ml two-part epoxy cartridge, CNC 44mm knurled headtubes, 68mm/73mm bottom brackets, eccentric bottom brackets, seatstay splitters, flat-mount brake adapters, fork options (Road Disc from £195, Gravel Carbon from £195), bike hand-tool packs, tool packs for carbon kits and flax kits, and frame drawings for custom builds.
• Branded Apparel and Accessories Print-on-demand branded merchandise in eco-friendly fabrics, including the Bamboo Bicycle Club Logo T-shirt (£24), Beanie (£28.37), Organic Cotton Hat (£16), Organic Cotton Apron (£26), Organic Tote Bag (£14), Enamel Mug (£12) and White Glossy Mug (£12.50). Printed locally where possible to reduce shipping distances.
• Bamboo Bicycle Club Gift Cards Digital gift cards redeemable across the webshop in £50, £100, £300 and £500 denominations; every purchase funds accredited prison and school programmes.
• Bicycle Frame-Building Workshops Guided 2-3 day all-inclusive bamboo frame-building workshops held in London (Hackney E8), Amersfoort (Netherlands) and Toulouse (France). Road from £595, Gravel from £595+, MTB £695. Materials, tools, expert tuition, lunch and refreshments included; ~95% of attendees are first-time builders. Quote-based booking via email because every frame is built to the customer's measurements.
• Corporate Team-Building Days Bespoke 3-hour to full-day team builds of real rideable bamboo bikes for groups of 5-50+, delivered at the client's UK venue or at the London workshop. Finished bikes can be donated to charity (e.g., Upcycle, Brixton). Quoted per group with one-working-day response.
• Make Engineers Schools and Colleges Programme Curriculum-mapped STEM programme for schools, colleges and universities. Foundation Speaker build is free; Frame II delivers a full bamboo gravel frame; Additive covers 3D-printed lugs; Systems covers electric mobility. OCN London accredited Level 1 Award in Practical Manufacturing Skills. Designed to help schools evidence Gatsby Benchmarks 4 and 5.
• Build to Bond Prison Rehabilitation Programme

Quantifiable outcome

• 4,000+ builders trained since 2012 across 36 countries
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers20 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• HM Prison & Probation Service (HMPPS)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic delivery partner for the Build to Bond prison programme. Build to Bond runs at HMP Lowdham Grange, HMP Lindholme and HMP Foston Hall, delivered hand-in-hand with HMPPS and the prison teams. The partnership underpins the OCN Level 2 accredited course and the Financial Times coverage of September 2025.
• University College London (UCL) — Mechanical EngineeringflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerThree-year Masters research partnership (2016–18): students ran finite-element analysis on bamboo, built a cargo frame rated to carry 150kg, and produced a UK-compliant electric build. UCL also appears in the testing and credibility logos on the Why Bamboo page.
• Swansea UniversityflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndependent three-point flexural testing of Bamboo Bicycle Club's actual bamboo tubes to BS ISO 22157 / ISO standard. Provides the engineering evidence underpinning the bamboo-vs-steel/aluminium/carbon performance table on the Why Bamboo page and the product pages.
• Oxford Brookes UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPeer-reviewed testing of bamboo vs aluminium ride comfort (bamboo frame significantly improved ride comfort over aluminium). Co-developed the world's first 3D-printed bamboo bike live at London's Design Museum with Oxford Brookes. Logo appears on the Why Bamboo engineering-credibility block.
• London South Bank UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNew hub for sustainable bike building — Bamboo Bicycle Club partners with London South Bank University to expand the university's sustainable bike-building provision. Logo appears in the As Taught At block.
• King's College LondoncoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerKing's College London teaching staff participated in a hands-on bamboo-frame workshop before weighing it for the curriculum — a model for university-level curriculum integration.
• Coventry UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBamboo Bicycle Club led the hands-on workshop at Coventry University's UK Bamboo Summit 2024 — the first national gathering of bamboo academics and engineers.
• OCN LondonflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerAccreditation partner — OCN London accredits both the Make Engineers Level 1 Award in Practical Manufacturing Skills and the Build to Bond Level 2 Sustainable Design & Manufacturing qualification, providing nationally recognised credentials to programme participants.
• Four Seasons Hotel HampshirecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate team-building partnership — Four Seasons' senior management team built a bamboo bike in a half-day and donated it to Upcycle, a Brixton cycling charity. Featured as a flagship corporate case study.
• Upcycle (Brixton)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerCharity donation partner — Upcycle is a Brixton-based cycling charity that receives finished corporate-built bamboo bikes (including the Four Seasons team build and a separate corporate balance-bike build) to get more children cycling.
• Urumuri (Rwanda)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSustainable-mobility partnership — supporting local bamboo building skills and transport in Rwanda. Featured as an international impact story.
• Tim (Amersfoort workshop partner)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPartner-led workshop in Amersfoort, Netherlands — Tim built his own bamboo gravel bike with the Bamboo Bicycle Club and now runs workshops serving the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.
• Camden CouncilminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal-authority partner supporting the Camden programme where pre/post outcome capture begins in 2026.
• Aston University (WeJobBox)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNamed as part of the in-schools/colleges/universities delivery list on the Impact page.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Raleigh Bicycle: Historic Nottingham-based bicycle brand with broad consumer cycling product lines. Comparable as a UK bicycle heritage name adjacent to BBC's domestic workshop and component-pack business, but operating at mass-market scale in mainstream alloy/steel bikes.
• Trek Bicycle Corporation: US-headquartered premium bicycle manufacturer with global retail and a strong sustainability agenda. Comparable in cycle-industry scale and component-pack ecosystem (Trek partners on Cycle to Work schemes in the UK), but as a mass-market incumbent competing for the same end-rider.
• Giant Bicycles: World's largest bicycle manufacturer, offering road, gravel, MTB and e-bike product ranges worldwide. Comparable in product taxonomy (frames across disciplines, including bamboo-research-adjacent composite frames) but at mass-market scale with global OEM/distribution.
• Brompton Bicycle: Iconic UK-based folding-bike manufacturer known for premium design, own-store retail and strong brand storytelling. Comparable to Bamboo Bicycle Club as a UK heritage bicycle brand building a devoted enthusiast community and a sustainable-product narrative, but at vastly larger scale and with a different product category.
• Specialized Bicycle Components: Premium global cycling brand spanning road, gravel, MTB and e-bikes with strong sustainability programmes (e.g., Rider for the Planet). Comparable as a frame brand that competes with bamboo for the same enthusiast and commuter segments, though positioned at performance mainstream rather than artisan craft.

Direct peers

• Calfee Design: California-based custom frame builder founded in 2005; makes bamboo and bamboo/carbon composite bicycle frames and is the longest-running Western bamboo bike workshop. Directly comparable to Bamboo Bicycle Club on product (hand-built bamboo frames), heritage craft positioning and DIY/build-your-own appeal.

Emerging players

• The Bicycle Academy: UK-based bike-building school that taught customers to build steel frames in a workshop setting. Closely comparable on the in-person frame-building workshop model, DIY-first customer segment and education-programme angle, although centred on steel rather than bamboo.
• Isen Workshop: UK-based custom frame-building school and workshop. Directly comparable to BBC's in-person workshops on format (multi-day tuition, hand tools, individual build output), customer segment (aspiring frame-builders) and education-led business model, though focused on steel frames.

Others

• Brooks England: Heritage Birmingham-based manufacturer of leather bicycle saddles and accessories, focused on durable, repairable, sustainable cycling products. Comparable as a UK heritage component brand riding the same repairability/longevity/sustainability narrative that BBC's bamboo frames champion, though in saddles/accessories rather than frames.
• Rapha: Premium cycling-lifestyle brand known for direct-to-consumer apparel, content-led community (Rapha Cycling Club) and storytelling. Comparable to BBC in community-led marketing, narrative-first positioning and a sustainability-tinged brand voice, though operating in apparel and experiences rather than frames.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@BamboobicycleclubOrg
• Facebookfacebook.com/bamboobicycle

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bamboo Bicycle Club