Today we’d like to introduce you to Luke Hsiao.
Hi Luke, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Growing up in Texas, I was a very active child and loved sports, and all things outdoors. This included football, basketball, baseball, soccer, bike riding, skateboarding, wakeboarding, and just being outside. My parents would always take us skiing or snowboarding at least once a year. I grew up in the DFW, Texas metroplex and as we all know mountains and snow are hard to come by in Texas. The fact that we could only go once or twice a year made skiing and snowboarding seem so much more fun! Our snowboarding trips always consisted of a handful of church families caravanning together up to Colorado or New Mexico. I loved these type of trips so much! Once I got to college at Texas A&M, I started organizing snowboarding trips with my friends. I became the trip organizer among my friend group. I graduated from Texas A&M in 2009, fast forward to 2017, I started seeing Onewheels on my targeted ads. I had been researching electric skate boards to ride instead of golf carts for when I played golf. Well, Google, Facebook, and Youtube did their thing and bombarded me with targeted Onewheel ads left and right. The onewheel was an electric skate board, with only one go-cart sized wheel in the middle of the board that kept you balanced as you were on the board. It was unlike anything I had seen at the time and I was immediately intrigued. After a lot of “research” (AKA watching way too many Youtube videos about the Onewheel), I finally pulled the trigger. I paid almost 2 grand, for a glorified toy that I had never seen in person or tested before. Was I crazy? When I made that purchase I was certainly questioning whether the money was worth it. Little did I know, that purchase would change the course of my life! The second I started riding the Onewheel, I was blown away. I felt that same exhilarating feeling I got from snowboarding but I was in Texas! I didn’t need to buy a lift ticket, or winter gear, or a plane ticket, or organize a road trip. I simply unlocked my front door and stepped on my Onewheel. I felt free to explore the world around me as if I were snowboarding or floating through the streets of Austin! Soon after, I joined the Austin Onewheel Club on Facebook groups and started to organize group rides around downtown Austin. I felt like I was snowboarding through downtown Austin, and it reminded me of the snowboarding trips I used to organize as a student at Texas A&M. The Austin Onewheel Club only had about a few hundred members at the time ( we now have 2000+ members). I started posting regular group rides every Wednesday and Friday. As the years went on the group rides got bigger and bigger. When I first started hosting rides, we would consider 8 to 10 people a huge turn out! As of today our biggest group rides have hovered around 200+ people! Seeing me post regular rides and growing the group, the admin of the group, Erik Goodlad ended up giving me Admin rights to the group as well. During this time, I was working in Finance as an Investment Consultant at Charles Schwab. While still working in Finance, I started a side business and was selling and renting Onewheels out of my garage. This was all around 2020, when the world was about to change. Covid hit and everyone all of a sudden wanted to get into outdoor activities and hobbies. The government also started sending out stimulus checks that coincidentally was the same amount of a new Onewheel. My side hustle, started to pick up a little as a result. What started as a few Onewheels soon started to take over my foyer. We had just had Toren, our son, and our house was chaotic enough as it was. My wife quickly reminded me we didn’t need any more chaos, and that the foyer was not my storage facility. She encouragingly suggested I find a new solution as we needed space for our new born! Enter Duane Anderson, one of my best friends and business partner. Duane and I met during one of my weekly group rides. He soon became a regular rider and friend that saw my vision. Duane lived in downtown Austin at the time and had extra space in his garage. I pitched my business idea to him in hopes he would let me use or rent his garage space. I am thankful he saw my vision and decided to let me run with my business idea in his garage. After about a year, I think he was surprised I was still trying to carry out this crazy business idea and showing up at his garage regularly. We soon kicked the idea around of what it would look like to have an actual brick and mortar. We decided to go in together as partners, and Electric Surf Co was born. Around 2021 I took the leap of faith, and left the finance industry and went all in on Electric Surf Co. It was and still is one of the scariest things I have done but I am so glad I did it! The journey has been filled with lots of ups and downs and we are still figuring out things along the way. Today, the Austin Onewheel Club on Facebook groups has 2,000+ members and we have 3 to 4 regular group rides every week. Electric Surf Co now, not only sells Onewheels, but all things electric including; e bikes, e skateboards, Fliteboard e-foils, e surfboards/jetboards, e scooters, and more. We also rent and service e-rides and provide lessons as well! I also co-own a Onewheel lifestyle brand with another friend from the Austin Onewheel Club, C.J. Maxwell. The company is called Lemonade Float Co and we host the annual Texas Onewheel Festival AKA Lemonade Float Fest every year in Burnet, TX. We also hose numerous community events such as “Meals on Onewheels” and “Onewheel Clean up rides” where we make sack lunches and pass them out around downtown to those that are hungry. Or we go around picking up trash on the streets of downtown Austin while riding the Onewheel. The onewheel community loves having fun while doing these events. It is truly amazing to see how these electric rides (onewheels, e bikes, etc.) have shaped my life, my family, and our local community!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It has not always been a smooth road, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything else. We have had to learn a lot along the way as retail was not something Duane or I had experience with in the past. We have had to learn and navigate city permits, operating systems, insurance, management, hiring, inventory systems, and more. When we first started, getting insurance coverage for such a new business idea was near impossible. We worked with numerous agents before we could come up with a suitable solution. We even had a to deal with break ins, theft and heightened security measures. Another concern we had was selling enough product to even stay open. When we began, the idea was to only have board sports. We had a water side (e foils and jet boards and electric stand up paddle boards) and a land side (e skateboards and onewheels). Soon after we realized how niche the market was and quickly shifted strategies to include all electric rides, including e bikes, and e scooters and more. On top of all that you also have to deal with naysayers, and self doubt. However, when everything starts to come together and you look back and see the progress, it truly encourages you to keep pushing forward!
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
At Electric Surf Co, we bring the thrill of the electric future to life! Our mission is to power the future of play by making electric board sports, and personal electric rides accessible to the masses-delivering joy, freedom, and unforgettable experiences. Surf the electric wave with us as we redefine movement, adventure and play. The future is electric-and it’s a whole lot of fun!
We are set apart from others because we get to sell fun for a living. I tell all of my employees how lucky we are, because we are “fun dealers”! We get to make people smile and feel like a kid again for a living! We are most proud when we see that ear to ear smile you can’t wipe off your face! After jumping on a onewheel, e bike, or FLiteboard e foil, this is a very common reaction and it never gets old to witness! We offer free demos on most our products so stop by the shop and find the right electric ride for you!
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
Yes, I have had numerous supporters along the way. My wife has always encouraged me each step of the way. No matter, how discouraged I may be she always sees the greatness in me and focuses on how far I have come. Also, my business partner Duane Anderson, deserves tremendous credit! I wouldn’t be where I am today, without his partnership, support, and encouragement. He has been an amazing mentor, supporter, and advocate! The team at Electric Surf Co is also second to none. Some of my employees have been with me since the opening of the shop and we wouldn’t be where we are without them. Each and everyone team member has contributed to our success. If you ever stop by the shop, I am confident Rikki, Ford, Jeron, Paul, or Rourke will take great care of you! Lastly, all my family and friends in our community have been amazing cheerleaders and supporters. Without the community behind us Electric Surf Co, would not be here today! You ALL deserve credit!
Pricing:
- Onewheel Rentals as low as $42/day
- e-bike rentals as low as $39/day
- e-foil lessons as low as $249
- New e-bikes for sale starting at $999
- New Onewheels as low as $749
Contact Info:
- Website: https://electricsurf.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/electricsurfco/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/electricsurf/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKaVv9OqdjVogkaYo-ULP1g
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/electric-surf-austin-2
- Other: https://g.co/kgs/4PNX8JS
Image Credits
Photo Credit: Alex Lepoutre
https://www.instagram.com/alepoutre/
https://www.youtube.com/c/AlexLepoutre
