A Stimulus Bike Boom?
Mon, May 25, 2020 I was recently asked if I thought the Government stimulus checks had created a mini bike boom? Apparently bike stores are doing well, and sales of bicycles are up, but I only know what I read, the same as anyone else.
However, this is how I see the current situation, and if anyone reading this is actually on the front line at a bike store, I would love the hear what is actually going on, and what feedback are you getting from people?
It seems there is demand for anything that has to do with leisure activities, and that includes bicycles. Stores like Target and Wal-Mart are also doing well, and part of those increased sales are, guess what? Bikes.
The traditional way to entertain children is to load them in the car and take them somewhere, but with everything closed, due to the Coronavirus that is no longer an option. Car sales are down and used car prices are at an all time low. Who needs a car when there is nowhere to go?
The alternative for many is a family bike ride and possibly Mom or Dad need a new bike to participate. Not everyone buys their bike from a Big-Box Store, smart people pay a little more at their local bike store, if only to have the satisfaction that it is assembled correctly and safely, and everything works as it should.
The big question is, will this mini boom continue? If it is only because of the influx of extra cash in the form of stimulus checks, then no. When the money runs out, then so too will the sales boom. However, there is talk of a resurgence of cycling, due to the Pandemic itself.
In some large cities essential workers are riding a bike to work rather than take the bus or subway. With less cars on the road, this is actually a practical alternative, and certainly more pleasurable. But what will happen when this is over?
Will everything go back to normal, or will there be a “New Normal?”
Has working from home been a success and will it continue? With less cars on the road we might see more bike commuters. But there has to be some other incentive offered for people to bike to work, and I can’t see that coming from a government level. It might come from employers who are smart enough to realize that healthy workers are better workers.
Globally carbon emissions are down 17% because of COVID-19. If this ends quickly, people will soon get back into their old habits, which means back in their cars. All those shiny new bikes bought with stimulus money will be gathering dust in garages all over the US.
On the other hand, if the situation gets worse or drags on longer, people may just develop new habits, and new thinking. Right now Mother Nature is saying, “Get off me, I’m having a hot flash.”
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Reader Comments (4)
Stimulus checks might be part of it, but here in LA the bike boom has come from people seeking both recreation and transportation. People still working who had used public transit switched to riding bikes to avoid being close to others. And with beaches, parks, gyms and other recreational outlets closed, cycling became an attractive option. For a while, the streets were so quiet that I even saw parents and their kids pedaling along some normally busy thoroughfares. Bike shops have been swamped with repair jobs as well as enjoying increased sales. Alas, traffic is building again, and those other outlets are gradually reopening. So, I imagine a lot of those new and repaired bikes will end up collecting dust. But it’s great that the LBS’s have enjoyed a mini boom given the circumstances. ... Fwiw, I figured this was a good time to buy that touring bike I’ve been dreaming of. My shop is building my Rivendell Atlantis at this moment. Should be ready in a few days 😊
My LBS is sold out of bikes, a lot more people than normal on the bike trail.
Bike trainer sales were way up too, something to do stuck at home.
Lots garage queen bikes being made serviceable at the bike shop.
Sort of like back when gas got to $4 gallon, there was a run on 27in tyres,
to get the garage queens back on the road.
This too will pass.
Dave, last weekend we cleaned out the garage and donated a couple of frames and parts to our our local non-profit bike shop. They are doing a great service providing education programs, repairs and low-cost bikes to homeless people and low-wage earners. Business there is non-stop from opening at 11:00 to closing at 7:00. In addition to the work stations in the shop, multiple repair stands have been set up outside. Most work is tube and tire replacements and adjustments. There are also used bicycle sales. It was really great to see a mom get her bike fixed and to see her daughter so excited about getting her first bike.
Dave,
out here western Canada, bike sales range between up in the smaller communities, to crazy numbers in the bigger cities. Bike shops can’t get bikes from the distributors as they are near out of bikes especially in the retail price of 5-8 hundred (Canadian) dollar range, light MTB and hybrids being most popular. The LBS I help out in when they need a wrench is selling mostly light MTB and hybrids, the odd gravel bike and I can’t recall a road bike being sold, even a well priced consignment.
Repairs are up with the usual fixes and garage bikes getting a once over, with a lot of awful clunkers beyond cost effective repairs needing a “tune – up”. The local used ads. are now full of said clunkers that should have been recycled eons ago, decent used bikes are a sticking a bit.
Will it last.? Hmm, bike sales should take a dive when everyone gets back to work or whatever passes for normal as these level of sales can’t go on for ever, a few folks will stick with their covid cruisers and the rest will languish in garages or out in the rain out back, as most bikes did previously to this pandemic.
Had the pandemic hit in the middle of a northern hemisphere winter and not the spring, then nothing would have changed, but good for the bike shops, make it while you can.