Dahon
Encyclopedia
Dahon is the world's largest manufacturer of folding bicycle
s with a two-thirds marketshare in 2006. The company was founded by David T. Hon, a former laser physicist, in 1982 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California
, with assembly factories in China
, Macau
and Bulgaria
. Dahon markets bicycles under its own name as well as other brand names, including Ridgeback
, the affiliated Yeah Bicycles, and Novara for REI
in the U.S. The company is a member of the Global Alliance for EcoMobility
.
while Dr. Hon re-located to Taiwan
to build a factory. One year later, in 1983, Dahon folding bicycles were rolling off the assembly line.
Under the continued leadership of Dr. Hon, now recognized as the father of the modern folding bike, Dahon and its team of 70 engineers continue to set the pace with new technologies and innovations.
, China
. Plans are also in place for a completely new factory in central China
with an initial production capacity of 700,000 bike units per year. Another facility, near Beijing
, produces Dahon bikes for the Chinese market, a market that continues to grow strongly for the U.S.-based company.
Beginning in 2012, all Dahon brand bikes destined for Europe
will be made in Bulgaria
. In a strategic partnership with Maxcom Ltd., the company is setting up a full-scale production base at one of the most modern facilities on the continent. All of the bikes for the European market will be made at the ISO 9001:2008-certified facility in Plovdiv
, which specializes in the manufacturing of bicycles and features state-of-the-art machining technology and modern quality inspection equipment.
campaign specifically designed for both b2b
and b2c markets. The company’s new strategy reinforces its positioning as a technology-rich brand with a broad product portfolio while also communicating the brand’s emotional values in a more personal way. As part of the shift to further enhance the focus on the brand’s emotional appeal, Dahon also introduces the new tagline, “Freedom Unfolds”.
The new global campaign, themed “Express Your Personality” was launched at Eurobike
2011 in Friedrichshafen
, Germany
in a live-stage performance where several of the campaign’s leading characters lit up the runway with their personal pick out of the 2012 Dahon bicycle range.
Several Dahon bicycles use a patented single hinge frame design, whereby the handlebar folds down and the frame hinge swings to the left, leaving the handlebar inside. Biggest sellers are the models with 16 or 20 inch wheels, but models are available with wheels from 12 inches to 700C. Models are available with derailleur or hub gear
shifter, or both or none.
"break apart" technology.
One of the company's best selling bikes is the Boardwalk D7, an entry-level, steel-frame commuter bike.
In March 2009 they announced that they would produce 1,000 sets of a special edition bike based on its Curve D3 folding bike with the Spanish design firm Kukuxumusu
.
Dahon received an Innovative Products Award each for a folding bike entry and a suspension postpump, which combined an air suspension system and bicycle pump inside a single seatpost, at the 2009 Taipei International Cycle Show.
In September 2009, Dahon's Ios XL, a bike designed for the urban commuter, was awarded a Eurobike
Gold Design Award. Only 77 entries out of a total of 400 applicants from the bicycle industry worldwide were awarded with Eurobike Awards in 2009, and out of those only eight received a Gold Award for outstanding achievements in design and innovation.
, both rode Dahon folding bikes. Keith Henderson took first place in the Novice Commuter category riding a Mμ SL while James Norton was first in the Seasoned Commuter category on a Mμ EX.
Folding bicycle
A folding bicycle is a bicycle designed to fold into a compact form, facilitating transport and storage. When folded, the bikes can be more easily carried into buildings and workplaces or onto public transportation or more easily stored in compact living quarters or aboard a car, boat or plane...
s with a two-thirds marketshare in 2006. The company was founded by David T. Hon, a former laser physicist, in 1982 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, with assembly factories in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, Macau
Macau
Macau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
and Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
. Dahon markets bicycles under its own name as well as other brand names, including Ridgeback
Ridgeback (bicycles)
Ridgeback is a brand of cycles under the Madison Brand which in turn is part of the H. Young group of companies. Madison, based in Stanmore, London, also owns the Genesis and Saracen brands of cycles....
, the affiliated Yeah Bicycles, and Novara for REI
Rei
-People:*Rei, the Biblical term for those who retained their allegiance to King David when Adonijah rebelled, as mentioned in 1 Kings 1:8*Rei Hiroe*Rei Igarashi*Rei Kawakubo*Rei Kikukawa*Rei Mikamoto*Rei Munakata*Rei Okamoto*Rei Omishi...
in the U.S. The company is a member of the Global Alliance for EcoMobility
Global Alliance for EcoMobility
The Global Alliance for EcoMobility is a non-governmental organization founded and launched in Bali on 10 December 2007, on the occasion of the 2007 United Nations Climate Change Conference...
.
History
Dahon was founded in 1982 on a vision of “green” mobility, a form of transportation that not only serves to keep people healthier, but also preserves the environment for the next generation. As a relentless innovator, Dr. Hon toiled in his garage for seven years to create the perfect folding bicycle that would uphold these ideals. After presenting his invention to several established but uninterested companies, Dr. Hon and his brother Henry decided establish their own company from scratch. The two gathered venture funding and established their headquarters in Southern CaliforniaSouthern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
while Dr. Hon re-located to Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
to build a factory. One year later, in 1983, Dahon folding bicycles were rolling off the assembly line.
Under the continued leadership of Dr. Hon, now recognized as the father of the modern folding bike, Dahon and its team of 70 engineers continue to set the pace with new technologies and innovations.
Production
Primary production takes place in the company’s main factory in ShenzhenShenzhen
Shenzhen is a major city in the south of Southern China's Guangdong Province, situated immediately north of Hong Kong. The area became China's first—and one of the most successful—Special Economic Zones...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. Plans are also in place for a completely new factory in central China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
with an initial production capacity of 700,000 bike units per year. Another facility, near Beijing
Beijing
Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
, produces Dahon bikes for the Chinese market, a market that continues to grow strongly for the U.S.-based company.
Beginning in 2012, all Dahon brand bikes destined for Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
will be made in Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
. In a strategic partnership with Maxcom Ltd., the company is setting up a full-scale production base at one of the most modern facilities on the continent. All of the bikes for the European market will be made at the ISO 9001:2008-certified facility in Plovdiv
Plovdiv
Plovdiv is the second-largest city in Bulgaria after Sofia with a population of 338,153 inhabitants according to Census 2011. Plovdiv's history spans some 6,000 years, with traces of a Neolithic settlement dating to roughly 4000 BC; it is one of the oldest cities in Europe...
, which specializes in the manufacturing of bicycles and features state-of-the-art machining technology and modern quality inspection equipment.
Marketing
For 2012, Dahon launches its first-ever global advertising campaign, which incorporates a two-tiered marketingMarketing
Marketing is the process used to determine what products or services may be of interest to customers, and the strategy to use in sales, communications and business development. It generates the strategy that underlies sales techniques, business communication, and business developments...
campaign specifically designed for both b2b
B2B
B2B may refer to:* Business-to-business* Back to Back * Back to Basics * Budapest-Bamako...
and b2c markets. The company’s new strategy reinforces its positioning as a technology-rich brand with a broad product portfolio while also communicating the brand’s emotional values in a more personal way. As part of the shift to further enhance the focus on the brand’s emotional appeal, Dahon also introduces the new tagline, “Freedom Unfolds”.
The new global campaign, themed “Express Your Personality” was launched at Eurobike
Eurobike
Eurobike is an international exhibition around the bicycle and is held annually since 1991 in the first week of September, on the grounds of Messe Friedrichshafen, one of the largest and most modern exhibition centres in Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany. The bike show is from Wednesday to Saturday for...
2011 in Friedrichshafen
Friedrichshafen
This article is about a German town. For the Danish town, see Frederikshavn, and for the Finnish town, see Fredrikshamn .Friedrichshafen is a university city on the northern side of Lake Constance in Southern Germany, near the borders with Switzerland and Austria.It is the district capital of the...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
in a live-stage performance where several of the campaign’s leading characters lit up the runway with their personal pick out of the 2012 Dahon bicycle range.
Folding bikes
Hub gear
A hub gear, internal-gear hub, or just gear hub is a gear ratio changing system commonly used on bicycles that is implemented with planetary or epicyclic gears. The gears and lubricants are sealed within the hub-shell of the bicycle's rear wheel, as opposed to derailleur gears, where the gears and...
shifter, or both or none.
Models
Dahon in its 2009 product catalog offers 35 models of folding or portable bicycles in wheel sizes ranging from 16-26” with aluminum alloy or steel frames. Most of the 2009 offerings are true folding bicycles with some, like the Flõ mountain bike, using RitcheyTom Ritchey
Tom Ritchey is an American bicycle frame builder, designer, welder and founder of Ritchey Design. He is an accomplished road and mountain bicycle racer.-Early years:...
"break apart" technology.
One of the company's best selling bikes is the Boardwalk D7, an entry-level, steel-frame commuter bike.
Special bikes
In 2008 to celebrate 25 years of production Dahon produced a special edition based on the Mµ series of bikes - the Mµ XXV. 250 of these machines were produced.In March 2009 they announced that they would produce 1,000 sets of a special edition bike based on its Curve D3 folding bike with the Spanish design firm Kukuxumusu
Kukuxumusu
Kukuxumusu is a company from Pamplona, Navarra, Spain specialising in clothing and product design. Its name means flea kiss in Basque....
.
Awards
In September 2009, Dahon's Ios XL, a bike designed for the urban commuter, was awarded a Eurobike
Eurobike
Eurobike is an international exhibition around the bicycle and is held annually since 1991 in the first week of September, on the grounds of Messe Friedrichshafen, one of the largest and most modern exhibition centres in Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany. The bike show is from Wednesday to Saturday for...
Gold Design Award. Only 77 entries out of a total of 400 applicants from the bicycle industry worldwide were awarded with Eurobike Awards in 2009, and out of those only eight received a Gold Award for outstanding achievements in design and innovation.
Smithfield Nocturne 2009 Folding Bike Race
The winners of the Smithfield Nocturne 2009 folding bike race, held in the Smithfield Market area of LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, both rode Dahon folding bikes. Keith Henderson took first place in the Novice Commuter category riding a Mμ SL while James Norton was first in the Seasoned Commuter category on a Mμ EX.