Based in Gundelfingen close to Freiburg im Breisgau, Supernova has become a fixture in the high-end lights segment. Driven by its own staff’s experiences and needs, this premium manufacturer continues to innovate and light up the nights.
Like many brands originating in the mountain bike boom of the 1990s, Supernova started off as a side-project. Competing on his mountain bike, Marcus Wallmeyer was not happy with the power and quality of the lights commercially available back then. Before graduating from the technical gymnasium, Wallmeyer had assembled a first light as a school project in 1995, then started small scale production in September 1997. Having studied transportation design in Germany before building robots and model spaceships in Hollywood, Wallmeyer took a daring step: “I founded a company of my own and have been learning ever since.”
At first Supernova focused on the needs of endurance mountain bike athletes riding 24-hour races in teams. The company pioneered the use of Li-ion batteries and put a particular emphasis on dust and water proofing, resisting vibrations and managing heat. This resulted in high-performance products sold on the aftermarket. But the ascent of e-bikes and s-pedelecs has opened up a much larger business opportunities for the company.
“Supernova has been constantly looking at technical innovation in other fields, evaluating if they make sense on a bicycle. Fitting as much performance as possible into a compact housing is a constant challenge,” Wallmeyer says. “With design, quality and sustainability, we always aim to cover three bases. We strive to build products that we want to use ourselves, that last for at least 10 years and are repairable. Since we operate in the premium segment, aftersales service is key. We have done some crazy things to live up to the expectations of some athletes.” Thanks to this attention to detail and follow-up, Supernova has become the first choice for premium e-bike offerings, with the brand’s powerful M99 Pro headlights and svelte, yet bright rear lights being popular choices. Thus, the company’s OE business has seen substantial growth.
Supernova’s current headquarters in Gundelfingen are spread over four buildings within walking distance, with the administrative offices, the R&D department, the service department and the assembly each in its own premises, showing the company’s steady, organic growth. The staff currently counts 57 employees, as Wallmeyer plans to move more production to Germany to meet the rising demand of local manufacturers. “For utility and e-bikes assembled in Asia, we also run an assembly in the Taichung area. The key to keeping lead times low and supply chains resilient is to produce close to the respective markets. Of course this also reduces our eco footprint, a thing we are constantly striving for.”
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