eBliss Global has been selling imported e-bikes for several years under the Always Bikes brand through a variety of channels. The e-bikes that will be assembled in Utica will be sold exclusively at IBDs and bear the Ride label, a brand initially developed by former boutique bike maker Tony Ellsworth, who is a partner and chief design officer at eBliss.
Several e-bike companies assemble in the U.S., including Electric Bike Company in California (Editor’s note: EBC closed down in early October, after this article went to press) and Life EV in Florida. Before shutting down, Detroit Bikes also made e-bikes in the U.S., using a steel frame made in-house. Guardian also assembles bikes and builds some frames at its Indiana plant. High-end e-MTB brands like Pivot and Yeti also assemble bikes in the U.S., and Blaupunkt recently announced plans to assemble its folding e-bikes in the U.S.). But we are aware of no e-bike brand currently with U.S.-made frames and assembly.
eBliss’s plan is to reach that milestone in several steps, said Bill Klehm, the company’s CEO and chairman. “It’s a progressive roadmap,” Klehm told BRAIN.
Phase 1 is assembling e-bikes from imported parts including frames and wheels. By Federal Trade Commission rules, these bikes can be labeled “Built in the USA with Global Parts.”
By early 2026, the company plans to start building wheels in New York. And Klehm said running changes will add “four to six” U.S.-made components to the bikes next year. That will allow a “Built in the USA with USA and Global Parts” label. He declined to say which parts he expects to be able to source from the U.S.
The final phase includes frame welding and finishing, allowing the “Made in the USA” label.
Klehm said he’s not intimidated by domestic frame building.
“That’s not a big scary ghost. Laser welding or automated welding of frames: It’s been done a few times around the world. There’s no unobtainium in frames,” he said.
Klehm said in five years, the roadmap calls for only about 8-10% of the value of eBliss bikes to be imported (and subject to tariffs). That includes tires, wiring harnesses, controllers, and rear hub motors that he doesn’t expect to be made in the U.S. soon.
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