State of the industry: a running thread

[manwell]

Giant predicts continued short-term "challenge" for bike industry as profits almost halved and sales down 16% last year

Taiwan-based bike brand saw pre-tax profits fall 45% in 2023, but remains "optimistic" with long-term prospects and believes e-bikes are key opportunity to "broaden global cycling population"

road.cc

 

[highlandsflyer]

Headline reductions “up to 40%” but most actually around 10-20%. Pretty standard click bait for this time of year. Summer stock coming in and need the space for it and next winters new colours already ordered.

As mentioned by someone else, it a symptom of consumerism in general. Difficult problem to solve. You need to order far in advance to get your product in time, but you still don’t know how much stock you will actually need so over order. Then you have to price in sale prices to ensure you make a profit on the batch as a whole. On top of this the general public love thinking they got a bargain. They’d rather buy a product marked down from £60 to £50 than an identical product being sold full price at £50.

There are genuine bargains there to be sniffed out. Crossing fingers our latest basket full is sent out before it goes belly up.

 

[al-onestare]

Giant predicts continued short-term "challenge" for bike industry as profits almost halved and sales down 16% last year

Taiwan-based bike brand saw pre-tax profits fall 45% in 2023, but remains "optimistic" with long-term prospects and believes e-bikes are key opportunity to "broaden global cycling population"

road.cc

45% with their size are biiiiig numbers

 

[bikeworkshop]

Although that's only a fall in profit.
They are still making money, but perhaps not as much as their shareholders would like.
WCR just lost money, until they could lose no more.

 

[al-onestare]

Although that's only a fall in profit.
They are still making money, but perhaps not as much as their shareholders would like.
WCR just lost money, until they could lose no more.

Still very big numbers

 

[Agency_Scum]

OLD FARTS QUESTION:
Weren't we warned by the windsurfing industry ( that collapsed in the 90s ), when mountain biking took off globally, not to over-specialise? Warned not to have massive ranges of niche models that would induce trail/road snobbery if you turned up with the " wrong " bike?
CHEAP COMPUTER/PHONE CHALLENGE:
Try, just try, getting onto the Trek UK website and finding a bike that suits you.

 

[minor_LEGEND]

Try, just try, getting onto the Trek UK website and finding a bike that suits you.

I'd really rather not. I hate the big brands tbh, Spec, Trek, Giant. I have no sympathy for their downturn in profits or the warehouses full of unsold stock. Karma for what they have done to the industry maybe.

 

[bikeworkshop]

To be fair they only gave the people what they wanted - insanely complex lightweight disposable showpieces suitable only really for sponsored riders and obsolete after a couple of years.
The local framebuilders and expert bike shops didn't vanish because they'd lost interest - they'd lost customers to the big boys, and especially online sellers of "the dream bike"

 

[Agency_Scum]

Which eloquently gets me back to why I ( dis ) organise the monthly Bristol Bike Jumble. Turns out Retro Biking isn't a silly, nostalgic fad but a bloody good financial plan if you want to continue cycling.
Well done " minor_LEGEND " and " bikeworkshop. " I couldn't put it better myself.

 

[bikeworkshop]

Ultimately the industry isn't that interested in a bike that's great to ride, lasts almost for ever, and you can fix yourself.
Not since around 96 anyway