Our Story
The story of Beachman begins in 2016, as an idea for a retro brand that stood for the best in life. Experiences like enjoying an afternoon by the water or a weekend on the road. The goal of Beachman was to build incredible things that would make these moments even better. The iconic Beachman logo was designed in 2018 by Jeremy Grice after Ben described his vision over a casual Tuesday afternoon lunch. 3 years later, Beachman paid Jeremy for his pro-bono design with the delivery of his very own bike.
Fast forward to 2019, and our two founders Ben Taylor and Steve Payne have a chance encounter at a coffee shop. Ben, the creator of the Beachman name with the dream to build a wildly new 50cc cafe racer, and Steve, the wild cafe racer builder who could bring that dream to life - on the condition that the bikes were electric. This simple suggestion changed the course of Beachman forever.
In the fall of 2020 Steve completed work on the first prototype, a modified 1979 Kawasaki KZ200 which we simply refer to as "Zero". With a battery system hand-built by Steve, a modern electric drivetrain, and authentic café racer styling, the pair knew they had something special.
Around this time they found a factory who trusted the vision and was capable of building a production model. Using queues from Bike Zero and building off of a classic 70s 125cc platform, the first production bike was designed using mostly standard motorcycle and E-bike parts. After crossing their fingers, the founders ordered 30 bikes to be produced and prayed they would live up to the dream.
In march of 2021, the first shipping crate was cracked open and unloaded by hand in the parking lot of a self storage facility. What Ben & Steve found inside were bikes that that exceeded their expectations. They dubbed them the Founders Edition E-Bikes.
Two weeks later all 30 bikes had been sold and Beachman was off to the races.
Since then we've been working day and night to build Beachman into the company we always thought it could be. From road trips across the country to get that perfect shot of the bike, to hand building our own retail store in the West End of Toronto.
In 2022, we hit two major milestones; the release of our iconic '64 E-Bike, and the contstruction of our Toronto-based factory, where we now build every single Beachman by hand from a blank frame to a beautiful ride. Opening up our own assembly line was a goal of ours from day one and we are so proud to now say that our bikes are designed and assembled by Canadians.
In 2023, we expanded to the United states, with the first ever US Beachman landing in southern California.
There's much more to come from Beachman, from apparel and outdoors, to the home, and the beach. We're excited to embark on this journey and we're glad you're along for the ride.
See you down the road.
Ben & Steve
Co-Founders
Media Directory
All our best press so far!
"A McCool Ride" - Toronto Star
Beachman’s e-bikes in Toronto find inspiration in vintage motorcycles - The Globe And Mail
California Dreaming: Canadian E-Bike Maker Beachman Tapping Into Surf Culture - MCN
The e-bike revolution is coming - CPA
Retro Beachman "ebike" channels the spirit of the sixties - New Atlas
This vintage electric motorcycle is actually… an ebike - The Next Web