Ray J, infamous for making the Kardashians famous, has moved onto a new endeavor: producing and selling electric bicycles. He and fellow music industry veteran Billy Jones are introducing the bike to the U.S. market under the Raytroniks moniker.
“Companies have been trying to promote this style of electric bikes for about two years now, and nobody was able to impact America,” Ray J told Mashable in an interview this week.
Apparently Ray J’s world travels have given him some keen insights into ways people have found to move about economically.
“I first saw this kind of bike in Miami and then we did our due diligence and started studying [similar] bikes in China. Then we took the bike across the country and started to talk to tastemakers just to see if someone was already ahead of the game. But no one had seen [this kind of] electric bike. So after seeing the way the bike make people feel, we immediately began building the company around this product.”
Vaguely resembling a compass used to draw circles in geometry class, the Scoot-E-Bike, has been endorsed by Justin Bieber, Chris Brown and other celebrities. It’s billed as an “eco friendly,” “Bluetooth compatible,” “foldable,” and “enjoyable” piece of equipment.
Raytroniks already has a retail shop in Los Angeles, and there are plans to open new franchises in New Jersey, Miami, and Atlanta later this year — assuming they can get past the perception of this being another celebrity fad like the hoverboard.
“I don’t think people should look at it just like it’s a celebrity brand, because I’m really trying to stay in the background,” says Ray J. “Also, the functionality of our electric bike shows a different method of everyday use,” says Jones. “Nine times out of 10, you see electric bikes being used for deliveries, but you’re getting in a taxi, using a commuter train, not realizing that you can be a part of the green, clean energy movement as well.”
In order to achieve success, Raytroniks will first have to prove its legitimacy as the new kid on the block relying on a Chinese manufacturer to adhere to international safety standards.
“We moved very fast because we didn’t want someone to beat us to it,” says Ray J. “We took our independent marketing skills from building independent record labels and took that method into the tech space and utilized our relationships to build this buzz. Now it’s up to us to make sure everything is consistent, make sure all the orders go out right, make sure all the consumers are happy and, before anything, make sure we have the safest product for people to use.”
There is a huge upside if the company manages to pull all of that off.
“We want the Scoot-E-Bike to be part of that new wave of alternative transportation,” Ray J said. “We’re aspiring to be the Tesla of e-bikes.”
