Donne le Rythme

Etienne Richelle is a serial inventor.

An engineer by training, he was first a researcher, then very quickly became technical director for a team that participated in the 24 hours of Le Mans.

But Etienne is someone who gets bored quickly and who is always looking for the next technical challenge.

In 2001, he launched Alterwave. Initially, the idea was to create the Tinder of the time via Bluetooth. It didn't work. So they pivot: a Bluetooth marketing solution that sends content directly to phones via hotspots installed in public spaces. Coca-Cola, Disney, Nokia... The biggest brands are adopting its technology.

In 2013, he launched Bike43: the longtail bike made in Brussels. A bike with an extra-long luggage rack that can carry 1, 2 or 3 children.

Local assembly with suitable workers, frames handbuilt in Europe. Etienne assumes the premium and the artisanal approach.

Recently, he ended an association that had lasted for a few years and found new partners, Thibaut Dehem & Miguel Van Damme, to take Bike43 to another dimension.

In this episode, he recounts:

• Its transition from the automotive world to soft mobility

• How to invent a physical product from A to Z, and the technical challenges of the longtail bike

• Its patent strategy and how to protect its innovations

• The transition from Alterwave (B2B) to Bike43 (B2C): two completely different worlds

• Behind the scenes of his recent association and his new projects for Bike43

And also:

• What 30 years of innovation in ultra-different sectors have taught him

• How fatherhood changed his worldview and priorities

An episode about invention, entrepreneurship, and the ability to reinvent yourself when you have a vision.