E-bike shop opens in Wigan town centre

E-Tec Bikes has opened its doors in The Galleries and sells a range of electric motorcycles and e-bikes.

The store is the brainchild of Lindsay and Marcus Pollard, who are both avid bikers and decided last year to turn their passion for two wheels into a business.

Marcus said electric motorcycles and e-bikes are an ideal way to get about as they cause less congestion than larger vehicles and are also greener.

He said: “The ease of using bikes over cars for commuting has always been logical to us and now, with the increasing need for transportation to be more environmentally-friendly it’s even more logical.

“Before the pandemic it was plain to see that we couldn’t carry on in the direction we were going.

“You need only to sit on the M6 for an hour and watch the motorbikes filtering through traffic and you can understand there is a better way but we all agreed that there should be a greener way too.

“The business came from a weird conversation we had in late 2020, when I guess everybody was having weird conversations.

“Before this Lindsay worked in a school and I was in data protection. We’ve gone in a completely different direction but 2020 was the year for change. We wanted to open here because Lindsay is from Wigan Everybody is friendly. We’ve been speaking to so many people and everybody’s really excited about it.

“We’re very much community based. I do a lot with the military and the RAF Association and Air Cadets and Lindsay has done Guides and helps with the Air Cadets too. Our ethos is about making sure we do this right and for the right reasons.

“We’ve got plans to expand but we want to base everything in Wigan.”

The company has launched with a range of electric bicycles including fixed-frame commuter and road cycles and also foldable ones for commuting.

E-Tec’s range of electric motorcycles are on their way to Wigan and will be unveiled this summer.

Marcus says one of the major hurdles people face when thinking about getting an electric motorbike or cycle is that many of them are “ridiculously expensive”.

This means slashing the price tags without compromising on quality has been one of the firm’s major ambitions.

He said: “Our aim is to help anyone access green motorcycles and e-bikes, so they can enjoy less expensive, effective and environmentally-conscious transportation.

“We source our products directly from the manufacturers and we have a dedicated team working with them to ensure quality.

“This means we don’t have the handling costs and can offer great products at more affordable prices. “

E-Tec Bikes has also partnered with Ride to Work and Cycle Scheme, two Government initiatives which allow the shop to provide tax-free e-bikes.

It is also offering electric mopeds which can be ridden at 15 and give teenagers more independence and transport options.

The arrival of the new shop in the unit near the outdoor market has been greeted warmly by the retail hub’s boss.

The Galleries centre manager Simon Tucker said: “It is fantastic to welcome an innovative company such as E-TecBikes to The Galleries.

“Their offering, whilst a relatively new concept, will no doubt thrive as environmental concerns continue to dominate. We look forward to having them on board and wish them the very best of success.”

For more information visit www.e-tecbikes.co.uk/

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