Tern is a privately held company that designs, manufactures, markets, and sells bicycles for everyday use. The company is based in
Taipei, Taiwan
, nickname = The City of Azaleas
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, pushpin_map = Taiwan#Asia#Pacific Ocean#Earth
, coordinates =
, subdivision_type = Country ...
and has offices in the US, China, Finland, and the UK. The company's primary products include
folding bicycle
A folding bicycle is designed to be compacted into a smaller, more manageable size or shape, making it easier to store or carry . When folded, the bikes can be more easily carried into buildings, on public transportation (facilitating mixed-mo ...
s,
electric bicycle
An electric bicycle, e-bike, electrically assisted pedal cycle, or electrically power assisted cycle is a bicycle with an integrated electric motor used to assist propulsion. Many kinds of e-bikes are available worldwide, but they generally fa ...
s, and cycling accessories which are currently sold in 65 countries.
History

Tern was founded by Florence Shen and Joshua Hon, wife and son of
David T. Hon, founder of the established
Dahon brand of folding bicycles. Initially the company was the subject of litigation between Dahon and the founders, but a settlement was reached in 2013. The
Arctic tern
The Arctic tern (''Sterna paradisaea'') is a tern in the family Laridae. This bird has a circumpolar breeding distribution covering the Arctic and sub-Arctic regions of Europe (as far south as Brittany), Asia, and North America (as far south ...
was the inspiration for the company name, due to the fact that it travels the longest distance of all migratory animals and is light and small, qualities the company attributes to its bicycles. The company's
website
A website (also written as a web site) is any web page whose content is identified by a common domain name and is published on at least one web server. Websites are typically dedicated to a particular topic or purpose, such as news, educatio ...
favicon
A favicon (; short for favorite icon), also known as a shortcut icon, website icon, tab icon, URL icon, or bookmark icon, is a file containing one or more small icons associated with a particular website or web page. A web designer can create s ...
is of an origami tern taking flight.
Products
Tern currently has ten bike lines: GSD, HSD, Quick Haul, NBD, Vektron, Short Haul, BYB, Verge, Link, Eclipse, Node, and Roji. Each bike line offers different models with different specifications. Tern also has an accessory lineup, which includes its sister brand BioLogic. In August 2014, Tern announced its first electric bike, the ''eLink''. The ''eLink'' weighs and folds in under 10 seconds. It is equipped with mudguards, rack, chainguard, lights, and features a Shimano Nexus 8 internal hub and Schwalbe Big Apple tyres.
Tern partnered with
cargo bike
There have been many human powered vehicles designed and constructed specifically for transporting loads since their earliest appearance in the history of the bicycle, 20th century. They are referred to variously depending on the number of wheel ...
specialist Xtracycles to create the Cargo Node, a folding cargo bike that uses the Tern Node bicycle and Xtracycles' rear cargo extension attachment. The companies announced the product via a Kickstarter campaign on September 17, 2015, and raised US$153,638 to help fund the project.
Dahon lawsuit
From 2011, Tern was the subject of litigation between
Dahon North America Inc. and Joshua and Florence Hon. Specifically, the lawsuit charged that Joshua Hon and Florence Hon breached their fiduciary duties as officers of Dahon to start the competing companies Mobility Holdings and Tern.
On April 2, 2013, industry media reported that Dahon unilaterally declared its legal disputes with Tern were settled.
References
External links
*
*
{{Authority control
Taiwanese companies established in 2011
Cycle manufacturers of Taiwan
Manufacturing companies based in Taipei
Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 2011
Electric cycle manufacturers