Bicycle and e-bike sales figures slowed by Corona
The Swiss bicycle market lost momentum in the previous year due to corona. Compared with the record year 2020, the market shrank by 1.5 percent in terms of units in 2021 - entirely at the expense of pure muscle bikes. The market for e-bikes, on the other hand, grew by a further 9.4 percent to a new record high of 187302 units.
(SFVE) The momentum that had continued in the 2021 half-year figures after the record year 2020 flattened out as the year progressed. While a 16.5 percent increase in sales of e-bikes and an 8.9 percent increase in sales of bicycles were recorded in the first six months, growth rates fell to 9.4 percent for e-bikes by the end of the year. For bicycles, the figures even turned negative (-7.4 percent) to 306524 units.
The reasons for this are manifold. However, the main cause continues to be the turbulence on the global market, where persistently high demand for bicycles and e-bikes is colliding with limited production capacities. Caused by corona measures in the production countries, shortages of raw materials, and supply chains that continue to get out of step, disrupting production processes and leading to delays in deliveries. Particularly under pressure are the major bicycle component manufacturers, which supply around 90 percent of the market.
The record year 2020 reverberates
In the past, cold and wet weather during the peak season in spring and summer led to massive sales losses in the bicycle trade. This was not the case in 2021. This indicates that part of the 2021 deliveries are still attributable to the 2020 orders. The industry also expects demand to remain high in 2022 - especially as the weather has been much more forgiving so far this year (as in 2020). Selective supply bottlenecks will therefore continue to occupy the two-wheeler industry for some time to come.
Interesting shifts can be seen within the various product groups. In the case of bicycles, the unbroken run on children's and youth bikes is striking. In the case of e-bikes, there has been a shift from e-MTBs and e-city bikes to e-SUV bikes and crossover e-bikes - as can also be seen in the case of cars. E-SUV bikes are full-suspension or front-suspension e-bikes with complete city bike equipment (including mudguards and luggage racks) and voluminous 28-inch wheels, which thus become 29-inchers. This shows that buyers are keeping all options open when it comes to purchasing a new e-bike. The comfortable ride through the city for daily errands, carefree gliding over dirt roads to the wild ride on trails off-road. Tire manufacturers played a decisive role in this development, because until recently there were only a few robust 28-inch tires wider than two inches (50 millimeters in diameter). The e-bike 45, which is popular with commuters, is also on the rise. Here, the increase was 16.6 percent. The E-Road 25 category is also slowly gaining momentum with a five-fold increase in sales figures.
March 14, 2022