Mass redundancies loom The e-bike manufacturer Flyer is apparently facing major redundancies
Mass redundancies are imminent at Swiss e-bike pioneer Flyer. 155 out of 170 employees could be affected. The German parent company is considering outsourcing production abroad.
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- The e-bike manufacturer Flyer is facing further restructuring, i.e. mass redundancies.
- The German parent company ZEG is looking into outsourcing production abroad. Administration is also to be reduced to a minimum.
- The company acquired a stake in the traditional Swiss company in 2017. A year ago, 80 jobs were already cut.
The e-bike manufacturer Flyer in Huttwil, Bern, is apparently facing another major restructuring. The German parent company ZEG has initiated the consultation process, as it confirmed on Wednesday.
Flyer employs 170 people in Huttwil. As part of the planned restructuring, the reduction of large parts of the current workforce is being examined, according to a statement from ZEG. SRF reported 155 planned redundancies, citing an internal source. The employees were informed on Wednesday.
According to the ZEG report, the company is looking into reducing Flyer's administration to a minimum and outsourcing production. With this step, the German parent company is reacting to the "difficult market situation in the bicycle industry".
ZEG intends to make the final decision on the restructuring after the consultation process, as the company writes in its press release. If there are redundancies, the employees affected will be supported with a social plan.
Bike boom during Corona, now a saturated market
The Flyer plant is located on the outskirts of the small town of Huttwil in Oberaargau, which has a population of over 5,000. The company is an important employer in the region. An initial restructuring was carried out a year ago, resulting in 80 job cuts.
Walter Rohrbach, Mayor of Huttwil, emphasized that he could not yet say what would happen next. "We can't intervene in the private sector." The municipal council will now explore what it can do.
E-bike pioneer Flyer benefited from the bike boom during the coronavirus pandemic. Since then, however, the market has become saturated and sales are in decline. Flyer CEO Andreas Kessler told Velojournal around a week ago that the company had been able to reduce stocks, but that they were still at a high level. He does not expect any growth for 2025.
Flyer's beginnings date back to the 1990s. Back then, the company BK Tech produced the first small series of e-bikes called "Flyer Classic". Demand for electric bikes increased in the 2000s. The company built a plant in Huttwil in 2009. The German ZEG acquired a stake in Flyer in 2017.
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