Full camps and discounts
Sales of the bicycle industry drops – and customers benefit
The bicycle industry feels the aftermath of the deflected Corona boom. Customers hold back, prices fall. The crisis benefits consumers.
Requested and price declines: For the first time since 2019, the turnover of the bicycle industry has dropped in Germany. Jobs were also lost last year, show new figures from the “Future Bicycle” association, which were presented in Berlin. Positive from the customer’s point of view: You can look forward to discounts.
“After the upswing of the previous years, the year 2024 marked a relative low for the bicycle industry, similar to the German economy,” it says. “Companies suffered from the declining demand, price declines and the aftermath of overcrowded camps.”
In 2024, the bicycle industry with manufacture, trade, repairs and services – including service bike leasing and sharing services – generated sales of 27.2 billion euros. According to the association, this is around seven percent less than in the previous year (EUR 29.3 billion). The number of directly employed fell to 76,700 after 77,500 in the previous year.
However, the decline follows a boom in Corona pandemic when many people discovered cycling as an outside sport. Between 2019 and 2023, sales with manufacture, trade and services almost doubled. But in the golden times, many traders misjudged themselves: When the demand died off again, they sat on high stocks that slowly empty.
The result is falling prices. According to the two-wheeler industry, an e-bike 2024 cost an average of 2,650 euros, around 300 euros less than in the previous year.
Now the situation stabilizes, it says in “Future Bicycle”. “The current business situation has been assessed much more positively in recent months, and the inventory also normalizes.” The business with business bike leasing, with which companies offer their employees, also proves to be robust.
Funding also for e-pedelecs
The association calls for the “Eurobike” industry fair in Frankfurt (25th to 29th June) to expand bike paths as well as more funding: not only electric cars, but also e-pedelecs should be pushed out with purchase incentives as part of e-mobility.
The association, which more than 100 industry companies belongs to belong, remains a lot of unused potential. The importance of the industry goes far beyond its core areas. For example, the bike plays an important role in tourism.
dpa
Source: Stern
