Following the successful events at Taipei Cycle and Eurobike, Anchor Asia is extending its executive platform to Taichung Bike Week. Participants of Wednesday’s Venture On event will enjoy insightful discussions on current developments in the bicycle industry and valuable networking opportunities. Prior to the event, we sat down with organiser Elisa Chiu to discuss not only the event itself but also her take on the current investment climate in the bike industry.
What inspired you to host the “Venture On” forum at Taichung Bike Week, and what do you hope participants will take away from the event?
Elisa Chiu: Insights, connections, transformation – and perhaps a sense of solidarity as the bike industry recovers from its recent downturn. The motivation behind hosting the Venture On Executive Forum aligns with Anchor Asia’s mission for all of its events: to create a platform for cross-border and cross-industry collaboration. After our presence at Taipei Cycle and Eurobike, we saw Taichung Bike Week as the perfect opportunity to continue facilitating this exchange.
This pioneering forum will open with a fireside chat featuring first-hand insights from Europe’s frontlines (Stefan Reisinger, Managing Director of Eurobike, and Jan-Willem Van Schaik, Editor-in-Chief of Bike Europe), followed by an in-depth discussion on the sector’s outlook (Shu-yu Lin, Investment Analyst at CLSA), with a focus on the transformative role of capital and innovation (Elisa Chiu, founder of Anchor Asia/Bike Venture). Our guest list spans industry veterans, emerging leaders, and key investors. I hope the event sparks dynamic conversations that drive the next wave of growth and innovation within the bike industry and beyond.
Anchor Asia has been described as an “ecosystem builder.” Could you elaborate on what that means and how it aligns with the mission of the company, particularly in the cycling industry?
Elisa Chiu: It takes a village to raise a child – and similarly, enabling innovation and sustained growth in any industry requires bringing various stakeholders together. As an ecosystem builder, we engage with corporates, startups, governments, research institutes, and others, facilitating meaningful connections, injecting forward-thinking ideas, and seeking win-win scenarios that expand opportunities for everyone.
We believe there is immense untapped potential for global cross-industry collaboration, corporate-startup partnerships, and strategic investments in the cycling industry. With our roots in Taiwan, we see tremendous opportunities to attract more investors and startups to partner with us while also encouraging Taiwanese companies to actively participate in global deals and solutions.
As a venture capitalist, investor and ecosystem builder, what are some of the trends you’re seeing in terms of venture capital investment in the cycling industry?
Elisa Chiu: We’re starting to see renewed interest in bike-related startups and venture capital investments. Just in the past month, Bike Matrix raised €1.1 million, Cowboy secured €5 million, and Skarper (a Bike Venture startup honoree) raised €5.1 million. As the industry continues to recover, we anticipate even more interest, along with increased opportunities for mergers and acquisitions as the market consolidates.
What are the biggest challenges for startups in the cycling sector today when seeking venture capital? What did you learn from the panels at Taipei Cycle Show and Eurobike?
Elisa Chiu: The reality is that the majority of startups in the cycling sector may not be well-suited for traditional venture capital, which typically seeks a specific growth trajectory – such as the “hockey stick” model [A hockey stick effect can be described when a startup initially expects low revenues and is willing to accept a minor setback. However, a strong increase is planned afterwards, either linear or even disproportionately steep] – paired with massive scalability. What we likely need is a new breed of investors who strike a more balanced approach, blending the desire for returns with a deeper understanding of the unique dynamics within the bike industry.
Moreover, there’s a pressing need to broaden awareness, increase the attractiveness, and generate more interest in bike-related startups, as well as bike-focused investment funds—which remain relatively scarce at this point. This was a key takeaway from our discussions at Taipei Cycle Show and Eurobike: it’s not just about seeking capital but about cultivating an ecosystem that values and supports the cycling industry’s distinctive growth path.
How do you see capital and innovation transforming the future of the cycling industry?
Elisa Chiu: As Ernest Hemingway put it in The Sun Also Rises: “Gradually, then suddenly.” We’ve seen time and again that your biggest competitor likely won’t come from within your own industry. Instead, disruption often arrives from a startup or a completely unrelated sector. At this year’s Eurobike, for example, DJI entered the e-bike market with an impressive offering. Some emerging e-bike companies, particularly from China, are backed by major tech players like Tencent and prominent private equity funds such as Sequoia, Lightspeed, and Hillhouse. Whether we like it or not, the world is increasingly filled with unexpected business threats and the influence of these “invisible hands.”
This is why internal innovation alone is no longer enough. It’s crucial to stay open-minded, engage with startups, and understand the capital markets. This belief is the core motivation behind the creation of Bike Venture as well as other ecosystem programs we curate.
Elisa, thank you very much for the interview!
The Venture On Executive Forum kicks off on Wednesday at 1:30 PM at the Splendor Hotel Taichung. The Show Daily will be on-site as the official media partner of Venture On, covering the event and its outcomes.