“There is still a huge amount of bikes on back order. There is still demand for bikes and there is a long lag in getting bikes into the country,” he stated.
Jamie Walsh, from bike wholesaler Global Fitness & Leisure, stated in the beginning of the pandemic there was a scarcity of all forms of bikes.
“We went from lead times of 60–90 days to 400-500 days,” he stated.
Now, the comparatively late arrival of a number of shipments means there’s a glut of entry-level bikes costing lower than $1000. That means there are loads of youngsters’s and decrease finish bikes being bought at huge field retailers reminiscent of Kmart, Big W, Toy World, Amazon and Aldi which, by some estimates, account for half of motorcycle sales in Australia.
But producers of extra pricey, higher-end manufacturers, haven’t stored up with demand. “If we do an order today for some Shimano products, the lead time is 420 days,” Mr Walsh stated.
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Prices are additionally rising, pushed primarily by rocketing transport fees. “The inflation cost of shipping goods has gone up dramatically in last two years,” Mr Walsh stated.
Before the pandemic it value round $15 to ship every bike, now sea freight has blown out to $60. For a baby’s bike that’s almost a 3rd of the associated fee, he stated.
Yaniv Shahar, sales supervisor at Happy Wheels Bicycle Shop in Sydney’s Waterloo which trades primarily in higher-end highway and triathlon bikes, describes the final two and half years as “pretty mad.”
Sales supervisor Yaniv Shahar within the Happy Wheels Bicycle retailer.Credit:Louise Kennerley
“Customers used to be able to walk in and order a bike on a Monday and pick it up on Friday. Now the next available shipment is in five months,” Mr Shahar stated.
There’s an excellent longer delay, as much as 18 months, for some fashions and spare components. “We have no idea when it will get back on track.”
Graeme Moffett, from Pon.Bike Australia which imports Cannondale, Cervélo, FOCUS, and German-made Kalkhoff e-bikes, stated Australia was being impacted by a world scarcity of bikes and spare components. “If it’s a road or gravel bike, we just can’t get enough,” he stated.
As Europeans and Americans head into the northern summer season, they may buy extra bikes. “That will impact supply into Australia for the next six to 12 months,” he stated.
Demand for e-bikes can also be rising. “They have grown to be more than 50 per cent of our business. It’s now a significant proportion of what we do.”
Jake Southall, who owns eight Sydney Electric Bikes shops, stated e-bike sales aren’t essentially rising on the expense of regular bikes. “A lot of people who don’t ride normal bikes are getting e-bikes. They just wouldn’t ride a normal bike,” he stated.
Metrocount, a agency that specialises in monitoring bike site visitors for native authorities, estimates biking exercise has jumped 69 per cent in comparison with pre-COVID ranges.
E-scooter use can also be rising dramatically. Metrocount’s websites recorded almost 3 times using e-scooters in 2020 in comparison with 2019.
Cargo bikes are additionally extra widespread, their use rising almost 50 per cent in areas the place leisure biking is frequent.
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