Bicycle industry: Canyon boss: “The cliché of the racing cyclist changes”

Younger, female, price -conscious: the bicycle manufacturer Canyon is preparing for a new clientele. “The cliché of the racing cyclist, in his mid-30s and well earned, changes,” said Canyon boss Nicholas de Ros Wallace of the German Press Agency. “We see more and more women who are interested in cycling and more young customers who pay attention to their fitness.”

The boom at Gravelbikes – off -road bikes with racing wheel drivers – helped to win more women for cycling, said Wallace. More and more women are also on the racing bike. “It wasn’t the case a few years ago.” In the meantime, a fifth (21 percent) of the Gravel customers at Canyon are well a fifth.

For bicycles, Wallace sees several trends, including wider tires with 50 millimeters and more with gravel bikes or integrated wheel computers in the cockpit. There is also no way around Canyon at the trend towards the e-bike.

Canyon is known for sports wheels and sponsors Radstar Mathieu van der Poel and Ironman winner Laura Philipp as well as the Tour-de France teams Movistar and Alpecin-Deceuninck. But the Koblenz company, which is in competition with manufacturers such as Rose, feels the late consequences of the past Corona boom. High stocks and discounts add the bicycle industry and let the sales figures drop there. “The situation improves, but the effects are still ongoing this year,” said Wallace.

Canyon focuses on affordable models, also to address young customers, and expect a stable business in 2025. “This is a success in these times.” With sponsoring, such as the Tour de France Femmes Avec Zwift, where Canyon is represented with three teams, you want to address potential customers. New flagship stores such as the last in Munich are also supposed to boost business, said Wallace. However, canyon holds onto the business model as an online direct sender.

Last year, Canyon achieved sales of 792 million euros – similar to 2023 (EUR 791 million). However, discounts would have burdened the operational result, said Wallace. The Belgian financial investor GBL is behind the bicycle manufacturer, and recently devalued his participation in Canyon.

Canyon currently benefits particularly from the demand for gravel bikes. Racing bikes remained the backbone of Canyon with a percentage high single -digit growth, said Wallace. The Gravel category recently increased in two digits. “Many of our customers are looking for adventures, for example with bike packing tours.” This leads to new developments such as Gravel suspension or integrated charging options for electronic devices.

Tour de France as marketing

The Tour de France helps to sell racing bikes. She inspires hobby drivers, men like women, said Wallace. Canyon tries to address all target groups with a wide range of model – from beginners to ambitious.