Yorkshire's largest seller of E-bikes and E-scooters, Manfirth, opens a new showroom in Leeds

Manfirth, is the brainchild of business partners Natalie Firth, owner of Just The Fox Consultancy and Will Pugh, owner of Hessian bar and restaurant located in Oakwood.

As a result of the pandemic outbreak back in March they launched ManFirth, a purely online E-scooter and E-bike business, because they realised they needed a plan B if they were to survive the impact of the lockdown on the restaurant industry, and so started to look for opportunities outside the hospitality industry.

With some forward-thinking and entrepreneurial flair, Manfirth was born. The ManFirth Electric showroom, in Holbeck, will not only be the largest E- scooter showroom in the North of England it will also offer a full range of retail, repair and servicing facilities. The store will stock a wide range of E-bikes, E-scooters and accessories from leading manufacturers as well as their own brand The Firth Ion E- bike and The Firth Eco E-scooter.

Customers will be able to test drive and see the product before they buy, which they sat sets Manfirth apart from their online competitors.

Will Pugh, one of the entrepreneurs behind ManFirth said: “Our ambition is to be the largest E-bike and E-scooter retailer in the North of England. To date, all our sales have been online, so opening the store is a huge achievement and milestone for us.

"After seeing a growing trend on Instagram and as a fan of ‘boys toy’s we quickly saw a gap in the market for ‘E-scooters’ aimed at the 20 – 30 male. Within weeks of launching online, the response was phenomenal, and within three months, we were selling £120,000 worth of E-bikes and E-scooters from a lock-up.”

The store opening also coincides with Department for Transport (DfT) consultations to fast-track trials of E-scooters in towns across the UK. In response to Covid-19 and the need to introduce transport alternatives to public transport and private cars, the DfT is inviting applications from any town across Britain to operate E-scooter trials over the next 12 months.

With public transport compromised due to Covid-19 infection risks, E-bikes and E-scooters becoming a hobby as well as short journey alternatives for both business and leisure.

Natalie Firth, one of the owners of ManFirth, added: “Forecasts indicate that the demand for E-bikes and E-scooters is definitely on the up and on a lot of people’s Christmas shopping lists this year."

Support the YEP and become a subscriber today. Enjoy unlimited access to local news and the latest on Leeds United, With a digital subscription, you see fewer ads, enjoy faster load times, and get access to exclusive newsletters and content. Click here to subscribe.