Inc. Magazine – September 2019

50 ● INC. ● SEPTEMBER 2019 ● ● ● PHOTOGRAPH BY HEAMI LEE

PR

OP

ST

YL

IN

G:

AM

Y^ E

LIS

E^ W

ILS

ON

Spinning

Wheels

“When you’re 15 and trying to

figure out how to get and keep a

girlfriend, showing up to school

sweaty every day is tough,” says

Mike Radenbaugh. He should

know: As a high school freshman

in a small rural town in

California, his commute was

17 hilly miles on his own

horsepower. So, in

2007, the teen

converted his road

bike to an electric

ride, with the

help of a lead-

acid battery, a

brush motor,

and a bit of

Tupperware.

Word spread,

and Raden-

baugh sold

converted bikes.

Fast-forward to

2015, when he

relaunched Rad

Power Bikes with

childhood friend Ty

Collins and college pal

Marimar White-Espin.

“I had to drop the traditional

thought process about adding a

motor to a regular bike,” he says.

“Electric bikes are for replacing

cars—we start there, and then

think through all the features,

from handlebars to hauling.”

—KATE ROCKWOOD

Three-year growth 4,442.3%

2018 revenue $44.6M

Seattle | Founded in 2007

Mike Radenbaugh

RAD POWER BIKES

N

o

.

6

3

Upward Mobility

After Rad Power’s Indiegogo

campaign to raise $40,000

pulled in eight times that

amount, the co-founders

were able to upgrade from

one-off conversions to

original designs, which are

now manufactured overseas.