UpCycle Launches Crowdfunding for Handmade Cargo Bikes

On Thursday 4 September 2025, Luxembourg-based social impact collective UpCycle SIS (Société d’Impact Sociétal) launched its first crowdfunding campaign, Kickstart the UpCycle, at Lëtz Refashion in Luxembourg-Ville.

At the launch, Stéphane Pekala Colles, Founder & Designer, and Adrien Lenert, Public Relation Specialist for UpCycle, showcased their handmade bicycles and invited the public to test-ride them.

UpCycle’s journey began in 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, when a small group of activists engaged in climate protests and community initiatives, first began experimenting with building cargo bikes from discarded materials. They took inspiration from events such as the “Vélorution Esch” (Bike Revolution Esch) that unites citizens in collective bike rides to promote eco-friendly mobility across Luxembourg.

“Our roots come from activism,” Adrien explained to Chronicle.lu. “A lot of things happening right now are socially wrong, environmentally wrong and not future-proof, so we try to convert the energy of being against something into a positive vibe and create.”

The approach of transforming protest into creation marked a turning point, with the group beginning to build cargo bikes from upcycled materials, which they call “EdelSchrott” (noble scrap metal). Discarded steel, broken skateboard decks, abandoned bikes, staircase railings, table legs and even industrial off-cuts were collected and crafted into new frames.

Their philosophy insists on refusing new resources wherever possible instead choosing to reuse, adapt and redesign. For UpCycle, efficiency means sustainability: the less energy, material and bureaucracy consumed, the more natural and respectful the outcome. The result is their flagship prototype, the Alternative cargo frame, which is now being released in a limited edition of ten units. It was assembled from a donated mountain bike, a broken BMX frame, four skateboards and repurposed metal furniture. Only wheels and brake lines were bought new.

UpCycle emphasised that it is not only rethinking the bicycle but also challenging how people move and live. In Luxembourg, 42% of car trips are under 5 km, yet most people still rely on cars, losing an average of 178 hours per year in traffic and every kilometre driven by car is estimated to cost society €0.33 in pollution, infrastructure, accidents and health impacts, while every kilometre cycled actually creates a positive return of €0.03. The team sees this as a cultural issue and calls for moving away from car dependency, the so-called #Stadtpanzer (“city tanks”), toward lighter, simpler and more community-friendly solutions. For UpCycle, cycling is a lifestyle rather than transport that represents freedom of movement, environmental responsibility and empowerment through local production.

UpCycle has made it clear that banks are not part of its plan, choosing instead to turn to the community to fund the next phase of growth. As a crowdfunding campaign, Kickstart the UpCycle aims to raise between €33,000 and €100,000, covering salaries, workshop upkeep, tools, safety certifications, legal recognitions and further research into reusing industrial materials.

EO