Cake高端电动摩托车押注失败，C轮融资无果，于2024年2月破产

做的是什么生意

Stockholm-based maker of premium electric motorcycles and mopeds (Kalk, Osa, Makka, Bukk) sold direct to riders at high price points.

启动资金：$74M raised — $14M Series A (2019), $60M Series B led by AMF (2021)

起因

Founded in 2016 in Stockholm by Stefan Ytterborn, Cake set out to build high-design electric motorcycles and mopeds (Visordown; Electrek). It raised a $14M Series A in 2019 and a $60M Series B in 2021 led by Swedish pension fund AMF, meant to fund plants in Europe, North America and Asia plus retail expansion (TechCrunch).

经过

Cake began trying to raise a Series C in August 2022; by late 2022 VCs were pulling back and, in Ytterborn's words, 'the whole space just collapsed.' The Silicon Valley Bank crisis spooked late-stage interest in spring 2023; Cake hired Deutsche Bank and Numis to pitch automakers including Harley-Davidson, but no deal closed. Recalls in late 2023 — a steering column that could break on a moped, and a Kalk that caught fire at a South Korean dealership — plus suspended January 2024 salaries signaled the end. A lead investor's withdrawal tipped the company into bankruptcy on 2024-02-01 (TechCrunch; Electrek).

结果

Filed for bankruptcy on 2024-02-01; a Swedish trustee was appointed and most US inventory was sold off. In June 2024, Norwegian automotive company Brages Holding AS acquired the Cake brand and its intellectual property, planning to relaunch it through a dealer network (Electrek 2024-06-19).

可借鉴之处

设计热潮不能替代分销：一个资本密集型硬件品牌，若定价过高、零售渠道薄弱，在风投关闭时会倒闭，无论产品多受喜爱。