Swedish retail giant IKEA have announced that they are going to start selling bikes from this summer in European stores. The bike called the SLADDA will feature straight handlebars and will be available in two sizes but just one colour.
The SLADDA which roughly translated from Swedish means to slip or skid sideways was designed in collaboration with Oskar Juhlin, Jan Puranen and Kristian Eke from the Swedish design studio Veryday.
The new design has already won IKEA one of three Red Dot Awards this year, an honour given for excellence in product design. SLADDA won the Best of the Best, which is the top prize in each category.
“The focus has been to develop a bike that needs little maintenance, and is a viable transportation option for the urban environment,” the company commented in a press release.
It’s being marketed as a “low-maintenance unisex bike” with a sleek minimalist design. It has a corrosion-resistant drive belt, rather than a traditional bike chain. Ikea claims the drive belt will last up to 15,000 kilometres, which is two to three times longer than the average chain drive.
The bike also has a ‘click system’ meaning a user can easily add various accessories such as a basket, a rack for panniers, a towing trailer and a bike bag that doubles as a backpack.
The projected price for the SLADDA is €699 ($1023) for the general public, and €499 ($730) for members of the Ikea Family loyalty program.
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Flat pack bike? Interesting.
Made out of MDF
Callum Ferguson
Backup Alan for the Cipollini
Cool – I’ve already got 50 Allen keys!
Well it’s not an earth shattering price for the specification, the only interesting thing is the belt drive. Normally ikea products don’t interchange with other products so you are stuck with what they supply. I doubt that the PDI will be done properly either!