The bike industry post covid has become a different place
From Shortage to Glut
The Year of the Bike
2020 saw the largest spike in demand for bicycles in human history. Bicycle shops were wiped of inventory across the county between April 2020 to the late summer of 2021. Everything from bikes, replacement parts and accessories were either unavailable or on a months long waitlist.
Calming Down
Heading into the winter of 2021-2022, the combination of lower seasonal demand and manufacturing/distribution networks getting back on their feet resulted in bikes and parts becoming available again…slowly
Tables Turning
Heading into 2022, something funny started happening in the secondhand marketplace. As normalcy returned, bikes began being listed for sale by private owners in mass.
For each bike sold at ReCycles Bikes, 5- 10 were being brought in the sell to us! It became a space issue fast and we tightened up our criteria on trade ins, accepting only later year models and bikes in need of less TLC.
The Frederick News post asked us about this phenomenon in April 2022. Check out the article below
So Where Do Things Stand Today?
While the marketplace for bikes is beginning to resemble pre-covid times in some ways, with on demand parts availability and shops stocked with bikes again, the pandemic may have delivered some shocks that will forever alter the path forward.
While 2020 and 2021 were banner years for shops, post covid times are proving challenging for many. We are seeing an acceleration of an unusual trend that had been developing even pre-covid.
The bicycle industry and the popularity of riding bikes in general is GROWING. At the same time, bike shops are closing their doors.
How it this possible? Bicycle popularity is increasing while brick & morter bike shops are struggling?
There are a combination of factors contributing to this.
-Online purchases exploded over the pandemic, not just with bikes, but with everything
-Even now, manufactures can offer a better variety online than shops can in store
-Some big players have made big moves leaning into this trend. Most notably, Specialized bikes has gone direct to consumer
So while more bikes are being sold, a larger percentage of bike sales continue to move online. We will likely continue to see this contradiction of more bikes on the road, yet less bike shops around. While this may seem like a gloomy outlook, and things will indeed be more difficult for shops, there are a few great things here from the perspective of the consumer.
-Bicycle will become less expensive and more available
-Only the higher quality shops will stick around
With all these changes happening, are we worried?
Not at all.
Like any rapidly changing industry, only those willing to adapt will stick around. Adapting means finding ways to cost effectively cater to the changing desires of the customer. So in what ways are we adapting here at ReCycles Bikes?
-Full Ecommerce integration. Prefer to shop in your PJ’s at 2:30AM? We’ve got you covered. ReCycles has had a complete website overhaul over the winter, and now includes up to date inventory listings along with a wealth of useful information on our site. We deliver orders locally.
-Our shop phone is text friendly. We’ve been surprised to see the growing trend of customers wanting to text businesses, but in the end it makes sense. Less time on the phone, and messaging is easy. Have all your questions answered without cutting into your busy schedule.
-Increased priority on speedy service turnaround times. One thing that isn’t going to decrease is demand for service. The combination of more bikes on the road and less shops in the long run is going to mean increased efficiency in the service department will be a must.
And then of course there’s the few principles we will always stick to for keeping us nimble and resilient. This includes maintaining the highest lever of quality and customer satisfaction, and keeping our overhead low so we are never in a position of pressure.
Our model is willing to adapt to the times, so expect the name ReCycles Bikes to stick around for years to come.