In a perfect collaboration of functional design and 3 Wise Men’s classic fashion style, New Zealand’s homegrown electric utility bike, UBCO has had an urban update that will see it staking a claim in the cities of the world.

Created as an electric farm bike in 2014, the UBCO 2×2 was founded on the idea of a Utility Electric Vehicle (UEV) that would transform the way people ride, work and play. The bike is now sold globally, with a fast-growing market in the US where it has captured the imagination of the outdoors enthusiast.

But while it has won a number of design awards, the UBCO 2×2 has unashamedly worn its ‘utility’ heritage with pride – available in one color (white) and rugged all-weather fitout that can cope with all kinds of terrain.

All that is now set to change, with the team at 3 Wise Men (3WM) and UBCO team working together to create a limited edition co-branded urban bike and capsule collection. The UBCO 3WM bike could be the most stylish urban transport option for 2020. 3WM created a capsule collection of garments and accessories that can be worn on the bike, or at any occasion where the 3 Wise Men man just wants smart casual style.

3 Wise Men founder (and one the three), Richard Miles said the collaboration was an exciting opportunity to bring the best of both brands together.

“We love the UBCO 2×2’s Kiwi essence and its heritage. In many ways it is like the 3 Wise Men brand itself, being born of the desire to provide honest, reliable apparel, that can keep a man looking stylish and on his game throughout the business day. The colab allowed us not only to work with UBCO to add our vision to the bike, but also to extend our 3 Wise Men brand out of the office and into the urban jungle, with four great items of clothing and leather accessories that any man would be proud to own. Our mantra is that we ‘only work with good buggers’ and this is a critical part of the 3 Wise Men way. The team at UBCO definitely met our ‘good buggers’ test and we’re proud to partner with them,” Miles said.

UBCO CEO Timothy Allan agreed with those sentiments and is excited with the limited edition UBCO 3W bike and is considering extending production beyond the five units made in the test run.

In fact, Allan loves the bike so much he’s agreed to be the face of the collaboration, modeling the collection and the bike in an upcoming campaign.

“The UBCO team is incredibly excited by what 3 Wise Men has done with the capsule range and the design team have been able to create a bike that matches the slick urban style of their collection. Our team have been able to retain the essential values of the bike; utility, UBCO Limited reliability and sustainability, but blend it with an effortless urban style that is instantly recognizable and desirable. We can see real interest internationally for both the bike and the apparel,” Allan said.

The stunning midnight blue, black and leather UBCO x 3 Wise Men bike plus clothing range and accessories is due to be launched on November 1, with the full collection featuring at the UBCON conference in Queenstown where it will be shown to the entire international team, stakeholders and network.

UBCO x 3 Wise Men clothing range includes:

• Shirts to roll your sleeves up for a bike that does the same. Made of hard-wearing poplin with elbow patches and button down collar. With eight colors in the range, choosing one will be harder to pick than the weather in Auckland.
• A waxed cotton quilted jacket that’s right at home whenever you leave yours. Showerproof on the outside and ugly-proof on the inside with our good-looking contrast camo lining. (Available in navy and olive).
• Travel in style and comfort with our Merino wool/Coolmax blend jersey. 60% wool and 40% Coolmax construction for perfect body temperature regulation, and elbow patches and thumbholes to keep everything where it should be – in style (black, navy or charcoal).
• Superbly cut raw selvedge denim jeans featuring specially designed logo stitching on rear. And whether you dress these up or down, with 3% elastane inside you’ll still be able to pull a pretty decent wheelie. (Available in blue and black).
• Keep all your important stuff safely tucked away with a canvas and leather satchel. It comes with an in-built suitcase handle sleeve which also handily slots neatly onto the rear pannier rack on the bike.
• Accessories: UBCO x 3 Wise Men leather key ring $30, and leather and canvas bi-fold wallets $80 each.

Link: 3 Wise Men, UBCO