Bicycles Still Mean Business Despite the Economy

BRUSSELS, Belgium – The European Cyclists’ Federation (ECF) investigated the importance of an emerging ‘Cycling Economy’, and why the bicycle industry means business. “The long-term prospects for the bicycle industry could not be better”, says ECF President, Manfred Neun. “Although political leaders look worried, markets shake and totter, and economists and bankers speak of failing industries and dire consumer prospects.

“For long the bicycle industry has been considered small business”, claims Manfred Neun. “Therefore the concept of the Cycling Economy, I presented last year, never really took off due to a few persistent misconceptions. It is erroneously thought that there is a permanent lack of market volume, that cycling is cheap – no money to be made, there is no political classification, and the low status of cycling to mention just a few misconceptions.”

“But now my big business call seems to create an echo in the business world with Bloomberg Business Week reporting that “with uncertain gas prices and consumers looking for green alternatives, the global bicycle market is posed to show significant growth revenues exceeding $61 billion thru 2011”.

“Recent moves within the bicycle industry itself would suggest that this trend is true. Derby Cycle went public this year on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. Mathias Seidler CEO of Derby Cycle noted early on in January that: “Our aim is clear: we want to drive our strategy of expansion further. Experts are forecasting strong growth in this sector in the coming years in Europe and beyond. We want to benefit from this trend. While the car industry debates whether or not peak car is a reality, bicycle use around the world looks set to boom.”

Manfred Neun underlines the importance of e-bikes for the cycling economy. “Sales are sky rocketing in Germany according to ZIV, the German bicycle manufacturers’ association. 2010 saw sales of more than 200,000 e-bikes in Germany alone and their expected to hit 300,000 this year. E-bikes are anticipated to reach a 15% market share in the near future, which translates into roughly 600,000 units a year. Unlike E-cars, the bicycle industry has already tapped into this trend without financial assistance while generating a considerable economic impact to the national bottom line.”

“It’s important to see how these industry trends fit into the broader political picture. The concept of the cycling economy calls for more cycling investments to be made into cycling and cycling products and refers to the far-reaching economic effects that cycling has on sustainable growth in terms of energy use, health, the environment, climate change, the quality of urban living and the economy of both developed and developing countries.”

Click here for Manfred Neun’s presentation and more data on the ‘Cycling Economy’