Around 25,000 bikes are stolen every year in Ireland, and Stephen and Louise Murphy believe that bicycle locks don’t cut it anymore. So the husband-and-wife team devised a more robust solution to bike thefts with Cyc-Lok bike lockers.

The modular system contains up to 12 enclosed lockers in which to store bicycles. Users access the lockers by means of a coded keypad or card on a tower at the end of the unit. Stephen, 36, runs Meridian Motors, a car dealership in Carlow, while Louise spent 17 years in the pharma sector in various sales and marketing roles. The target market is employers with multiple cyclists in the building as well as colleges and councils.

Cyc-Lok bike lockers

The couple got their startup off the ground with a combination of bootstrapping and support from Laois LEO and Enterprise Ireland. Bank of Ireland is providing loan finance for the venture. Cyc-Lok currently employs three full-time and three part-time staff, and exhibits its product in showrooms in Barrow Valley Business Park in Carlow.

Stephen says that the biggest challenges faced thus far was perfecting the design and tech functionality. “Bicycle theft is a real problem and current locking systems do not prevent it,” he says. “Our solution is neither site nor user specific, and other possessions can be safely stored in the lockers too. The setup is self-managing, so no extra security is needed. We also think that Cyc-Lok makes for attractive street furniture, so it can be placed nearer to building entrances for easier access.”

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