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NewWay Innovation CEO Bryce Killibrew recently graduated from Milwaukee Area Technical College (MATC), but his entrepreneurship journey began years ago.
While in high school, Killibrew and his co-founder Willie Alexander, who now serves as the company's chief operating officer, were among some of the first students to participate in science, technology, engineering and math (STEAM) programming taught by Que and Khalif El-Amin of the Young Enterprising Society (YES), a local organization that promotes entrepreneurship.
NewWay was born sometime after that, in 2018, when Alexander reconnected with Que and asked for a job after graduation, Killibrew said. Que encouraged Alexander to start his own business instead, and Alexander called Killibrew to brainstorm ideas.
Both avid bike riders, the pair decided to create an e-bike company. Early on, they participated in The Blueprint, an accelerator program that YES runs for early-stage companies. Last summer, they participated in another cohort of The Blueprint program before rolling out their GENZ-1 E-bike through a soft launch in October.
"It's rewarding to see their growth and to see how the pipeline played out," Khalif told the Milwaukee Business Journal in a May interview about building diversity in the local technology ecosystem.
NewWay's e-bike is still at the soft-launch stage, Killibrew said. The company is currently "ironing out all the kinks" with feedback from a recent digital audit. The company has sold a handful of bikes so far, he said.
Killibrew has a summer internship with Rexnord Corp. and then plans to work on NewWay Innovation full time starting in the fall, he said.
NewWay is seeking early-stage capital through pitch competitions, grants and venture capital investments to cover marketing expenses, employees, parts, tools and a larger workspace, Killibrew said. It's also seeking a partnership with a larger bike company to propel its growth.
The product: NewWay Innovation's GENZ-1 E-bike is fused with internet-connected technology and can connect to LifeTagger, a mobile messaging platform that allows riders to receive notifications about their bike performance, maintenance instructions and special offers, according to the company.
How it makes money: NewWay expects to earn money through online sales of its e-bike. The company also said it's exploring other revenue streams, such as bike rentals and a business-to-business product. The e-bike is currently priced at $1,750.
Size of the market: The e-bike market was valued at $22.8 billion in 2019, according to the company.
Competition: The e-bike market is extremely fragmented, according to Killibrew, but some major players include Giant Bicycles, Merida Bikes, Trek Bicycle Corp. and Riese & Muller.
Competitive advantage: The GENZ-1 E-bike uses rechargeable batteries that can travel up to 25 km/hour — faster than most cyclers would manually ride, Killibrew said. Through a partnership with LifeTagger, users can sync their e-bikes to a mobile messaging platform.
Co-founders: Bryce Killibrew, Willie Alexander
Advisers: Kendrick Pullen, Que El-Amin, Khalif El-Amin, Cory Nettles, Patrick Jungenblut
Investors: Young Enterprising Society, personal investment from co-founders
Capital raised: $5,000
Capital sought: $1,000,000
Ideal exit: Horizontal merger, product extension merger or acquisition.
AT A GLANCE
Company name: NewWay Innovation
Headquarters: City Century Tower, 4201 N. 27th St., Milwaukee
CEO: Bryce Killibrew
Year founded: 2018
Employees: 3
Website: www.newway-innovation.com
NewWay Innovation is seeking to raise $1 million in capital. A prior version of this article reported an incorrect amount.
