August 4, 2022 - (Montreal, Que.) Allo Velo Inc. operates avant-garde bike shops that presents a new-age vision for cycling as the smartest and coolest means of transportation. Importing unique, stylish and practical brands from Europe, it’s leading edge bike shops embrace e-cargo bikes and combine the lifestyle of cycling with a boutique café atmosphere to meet today’s modern vision of green mobility for both personal and commercial use.

With two locations in Canada, starting in Montreal and expanding to Vancouver, it has quickly gained a reputation as “the cargo bike shop”. The company also distributes brands across the country as the landscape continues changing to accommodate a new mindset of mobility. Owner, Lamar Timmins shared his thoughts and vision with eBikes International, on their humble beginnings and plans ahead.

Please give us a brief history of Allo Velo.
Lamar Timmins: Allo Velo was conceived of in late 2012 and we first opened in the neighbourhood of Saint Henri Montreal in 2013. The idea of Allo Velo came about after spending time working in Munich, where I was exposed to a “foreign” way of using the bicycle; commuting. Germany was where I used the bicycle as a means of getting around efficiently. It was also where I saw brands like Vanmoof, Gazelle, LarryVsHarry, Creme Cycles, etc. I learnt a lot about bike mechanics as well. When I returned to Montreal, I realized cycling culture was also changing and growing here, but most bike shops still focused on typical generic brands. Nobody was offering practical commuter-style bicycles, and definitely no cargo bikes.

My mother (Fiona) had a small commercial space available and helped by partnering with me to start Allo Velo, a specialized bike shop importing unique brands from Europe. The cafe concept was inspired by my time in Australia. The idea of combining a cafe with another type of business was quite common and kinda of cool.

We started with Gazelle, Vanmoof, Biria and LarryvsHarry. Admittedly, it was a slow start, because we weren’t operating along the traditional bike shop path, in a very seasonal city for cycling. Navigating the rules of importation, warehousing, while starting a new business had its challenges.

What brands and types of e-bikes and e-cargo bikes do you currently stock?
LT: Allo Velo has grown since then, and we’re now located in Griffintown (Montreal) where we offer rentals, a full service repair shop,  a cafe bar, and a lot more bike brands such as Triobike, Crème Cycles, Schindelhauer, Rondo, Muli Cycles, BlackIronHorse, Butchers&Bicycles, Veloe and Pelago. We also expanded west, opening a store in Vancouver in December 2020, in a nice retail space on Nanaimo Street. There you will find all of our brands and a full service repair shop as well. Our reputation has grown fast there and we are now known as “the” e-cargo bike shop of Vancouver.

What made you choose Vancouver over other cities?
LT: I know Vancouver having spent time there and the climate favours cycling which has always been popular out west. No one was promoting or selling cargo bikes and we saw this as an opportunity for our more European style mobility solutions.

Were e-cargo bikes always on your agenda of cycling products to import and sell ?
LT: Yes, our history with e-cargo bikes has always been very strong. Meaning we have always been committed to promoting this segment as much as regular bikes, and have always had availability. At first, we focused on 2-wheel long-John style e-cargo bikes for their nimbleness, space saving size, and speed. However, early on a family showed us their Triobike Mono to see if we might offer them as well. I was immediately interested and went to Triobike’s headquarters in Denmark. Since then their two-wheel and three-wheel models have been our main stay e-cargo bike brand across Canada

Tell us about the reaction to e-bikes and e-cargo bikes as part of Allo Velo’s offerings and who your customers are?
LT: Selling e-cargo bikes in the early days was not easy as most customers didn’t know what the product was, or thought it was perhaps a home-made bike. It took a lot of effort and consistency, from showing e-cargo bikes at consumer shows like the Toronto and Montreal bicycle shows – even as far as New York – to local events, to cycling across Canada on an e-cargo bike back in 2014. Families are our main customers but also many professionals as well. We offer a broad range of bicycles for different types of consumers and as cycling grows in popularity more residents are motivated to bike. Today, our clients walk in already informed about what type of cargo bike they are looking for. Also the demand for the commercial use of cargo bikes has grown as well.

How has the recent pandemic impacted interest in your products and have sales increased?
LT: As a business, we benefited from the early stage of the pandemic, because as demand skyrocketed we were fortunate to have all of the inventory necessary. In 2021, we suffered due to continued demand and lack of inventory. This year, demand has shown signs of slowing, probably because most stores have inventory and people are choosing to travel, or are scaling back due to inflation. Still, we expect the category of e-cargo bikes and commuter bikes to experience continued growth as people look for more affordable, efficient, practical and greener transportation solutions.

Montreal has a progressive cycling culture with initiatives like REV (Réseau express vélo)… tell us more.
LT: Thanks to Montreal’s mayor, Valerie Plante, the city has developed some of the best 4-season bicycle infrustrature in North America with efforts like the REV network. This project will be completed in three phases over the next few years. It is now at Phase 2 which will link important arteries throughout the downtown and neighbouring areas. This is one of the best ways to increase ridership among citizens, and therefore increases the demand for more practical bicycles and cargo bikes.

Another example is that the city of Montreal is looking to electrify their fleet with EVs and e-cargo bikes. Montreal also piloted successful commercial projects like Colibri back in 2019, whereby delivery companies drop packages at hubs within the city and use fleets of e-cargo bikes for the last-mile deliveries. Many of the member businesses are our clients.

You distribute Triobikes across Canada along with Fulpra, Gleam and other commercial brands…how is it going?
LT: We plan on increasing our portfolio of heavy duty transport e-cargo bikes with brands like Fulpra and Gleam. Unlike Europe, there is still a lot of work to be done in terms of legislation and what is allowed or not on bike paths and city streets here. We will be testing unknown territory as we get into bigger e-cargo bikes but they clearly make sense given climate change, and the need for sensible, affordable, and green mobility solutions for the commercial sector.

Any plans to open more shops across Canada…?
LT: We’ve talked about it but are more focused just now on our current operations and developing the commercial side of the e-cargo bike business here. We’re also keen to add some fun to the equation and will be announcing a neat cargo bike event coming to Montreal very soon.

What do you ride ?
LT: I currently ride a Triobike e-cargo bike along with a Vanmoof F5, and Bombtrack Hook. No e-bike yet but it’s on the list and I would add that my mother is still part of the Allo Velo team.

Thanks for your time and all the best going forward.
LT: Thanks as well, we appreciate your interest in our bike shops.

For more info on Allo Velo visit here.