The biggest problem (as I see it) with this, is compared to the market they are serving (mainland China) even a huge interest level in this small market would be negligible. So unless there is a high demand for an "olympian" hub motor from within the PRC, you won't see one.
If you look at the numbers the US e-bike market is just tiny, and most US based e-bike manufactureres have a fairly short lifespan. I believe Currie just went into bankruptcy protection for reorganization, and many other e-bike firms have closed their doors or had to do similar reorganizations. The top e-bike and e-kit sellers in the US probably sell no more than 20,000-30,000 units in a year. Compare that to the domestic PRC market of up to 10 MILLION units sold per year. This is completely reversed from most markets, where getting a piece of the US market pie (with western consumer spending being what it is) is a major thing. The e-bike market in the US is for use as a toy, a hobby, or an esoteric mode of transportation. In China, the e-bike is a normal transportation option.
I have become convinced this is why we are seeing the customer service issues that surface on this forum. Phillip is working multi-thousand unit orders for the native market, but every westerner he sells to is a major headache. Sure the mark-up potential is much higher, but with the local market he clearly makes up for it in volume. If he ever sets up a system which is mostly automated for ordering and shipping, and eliminates the in-transit damages he'll have a high mark-up market that doesn't take so much of his attention--the best of both worlds.
I think that is about the best we can hope for.
