Swedish electric motorcycle maker Tarform hit by U.S. tariffs

Swedish electric motorcycle maker Tarform is struggling with U.S. import tariffs, despite aligning with President Trump's call for domestic manufacturing and job creation. The company, which builds its electric bikes by hand in Brooklyn, faces the same supply chain pressures as larger automakers.

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We have thin margins already. But the most important thing for us is to deliver – so we have had to absorb the costs.

Founder Taras Kravtchouk, who has lived in New York for 15 years, explained that the company operates on already thin margins. "We have thin margins already. But the most important thing for us is to deliver – so we have had to absorb the costs," he said. Tarform's first model, Luna, launched in 2018 and began customer deliveries in 2022. It is a hand-built motorcycle with a price tag of around half a million Swedish kronor, offering a range of about 160 kilometers.

The company is also introducing a more accessible model, Vera, priced around 170,000 kronor, with deliveries planned for summer 2026. Tarform aims to scale production to a few hundred motorcycles annually. They are also exploring setting up additional assembly units in the U.S. and Europe, with Sweden being a potential manufacturing location.

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Components can be in stock one day and the next day when we are about to order, they are gone. It feels very volatile.

"It is not logical to build them in the USA and ship them to Europe. Therefore, we are looking at the possibility of assembling the motorcycles in Sweden, for example in Gothenburg or Västervik," Kravtchouk stated. Batteries represent a significant cost, and Tarform is developing its own, though they are assembled in China, which incurs substantial tariffs of 40-50%.

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It is not logical to build them in the USA and ship them to Europe. Therefore, we are looking at the possibility of assembling the motorcycles in Sweden, for example in Gothenburg or Västervik.