E-scooter hire company Lime has made its return to the Brisbane streets, including Fortitude Valley. The return, which took place on Monday, comes five years after Lime’s initial launch in Brisbane and three years following its exit from the local market.
Lime has introduced a fleet of 2,500 electric scooters and 500 electric bikes, featuring the company’s latest technology and designs. The “Gen4” scooters boast improvements aimed at enhancing rider comfort and safety, including dual hand brakes, swept handlebars, a lower baseboard, and larger front wheels.
Addressing previous concerns about improperly parked or abandoned scooters, Lime has pledged to invest significantly in parking infrastructure. This move aims to tackle one of the main criticisms the company faced during its earlier operations in Brisbane.
Hugo Burt-Morris, Lime’s Regional General Manager for Australia and New Zealand, emphasised the company’s commitment to sustainable urban transit and its alignment with Brisbane’s preparations for the 2032 Olympics.
“We’re committing substantial resources to parking infrastructure and safety education, laying the groundwork for a long-term partnership that will revolutionise place-making and put people first,” Burt-Morris stated.
Pricing for Lime’s services starts at $1, with a per-minute rate of 60 cents or a 30-minute ride pass available for $7.99.
To celebrate its return, Lime has partnered with Brooki Bakehouse in Fortitude Valley. The bakery offered complimentary key lime pie-flavoured cookies on Tuesday, July 23, to customers who showed the Lime app at their shop. These custom cookies included a discount code for free rides.
The mastermind behind this amazing transformation from obscurity to overnight sensation is Brooke Saward, a former travel writer who decided to pivot her career and pursue her passion for desserts.
After opening the doors of her emporium in May 2022, Ms Saward found herself facing the common challenge of attracting customers. Despite her delectable offerings, the bakery struggled to gain traction.
Months of limited foot traffic prompted Ms Saward to explore alternative avenues for promotion. Drawing from her experience as a travel blogger and armed with a taste for social media, she turned to TikTok.
Her first video, a casual “day in my life” glimpse into the bakery’s inner workings, struck a chord with viewers and quickly went viral, accumulating over 3.2 million views.
The impact was profound and immediate. The very next day, a stream of customers flooded into Brooki Bakehouse, citing TikTok as their source of discovery. Saward was in tears, describing the emotional shift from struggling to successful.
Saward’s journey to Brooki Bakehouse began after the pandemic compelled her to move from Tasmania to Brisbane. Drawing inspiration from her solo travel blogging days and fueled by her passion for desserts, she established her bakery in a meticulously chosen 42 square metre space within the Stewart and Hemmant building.
Combining industrial elements with refined touches of burgundy marble and brass finishes, Ms Saward created a space that she aptly describes as “Paris meets New York’s East Village.”
The bakery’s meteoric rise on TikTok has been an inspiration to businesses across Australia, with the platform amassing 8.5 million users nationwide. Ms Saward acknowledges the significance of social media in small business success, especially for those operating without substantial marketing budgets. Her TikTok has since gained over a million followers.
“Social media can be such a positive force for small businesses out there who don’t have big marketing budgets,” Ms Saward affirmed, emphasizing the encouragement and support from the local community.
What began as a solo endeavour has evolved into a team of seven passionate women, united by their dedication to baking. The team’s commitment to their craft extends beyond the local community, as they gear up to launch international shipping for online orders.
“We are an all girls team and still have under 10 employees (but about to grow in the production kitchen!). Sofia (head baker) adds an additional NYC cookie to the trays every day knowing Brooke will steal her daily dose at approx. 11am when she needs her daily sugar hit,” she wrote.
“Mondays are the busiest day in the kitchen with hundreds of orders to ship out each week, but Tuesdays are physically harder as we have thousands of dough balls to roll!
Ms Saward reflects on this journey with humility and pride, noting that no matter where the future takes them, they will always remember their roots as “that little bakery that opened in an unknown street.”
Brooki Bakehouse’s story exemplifies the transformative potential of social media platforms like TikTok, proving that even the most modest beginnings can turn into thriving successes with the right blend of passion, creativity, and community support.