Jan-Willem van Schaik

BARNOLDSWICK, UK - Component manufacturer Hope invested this summer around £1.5 million (€1.65 million) to improve product availability. Apparently it is still not enough as dealer inventory is still low and like many others, Hope can't meet demand. Alan Weatherill of Hope Technology explains why.

OSAKA, Japan - The financial statement of the Shimano Group over the first nine months of 2020 clearly shows the impact of the international cycling boom. While the company still reported a double-digit sales slide in the first half of 2020, the turnover strongly recovered over the first nine months of 2020.

WARSAW, Poland - Since production relocation is on the agenda in the e-bike industry, multiple clusters in Eastern Europe have been in the spotlight. Over the past few years some large facilities have been opened, but we have also seen smaller projects successfully investing in the booming e-bike and bicycle market. In the case of Ecoride the anti-dumping duties were the main reason to open-up a factory in Poland, while Atelierele Pegas is a Romanian initiative with the potential to expand into the micro-mobility market.

History always repeats itself, but never in the same way. The 2003 SARS pandemic had a big impact on the bicycle industry at that time, but the outcome was very different than today. In the current crisis, some people have acted based on what happened then, like a former Shell executive who was based in Asia in 2003.

BRUSSELS, Belgium - Making the voice of the cycling industry heard at EU level has been Cycling Industries Europe (CIE) mission since the organisation was founded in October 2018. COVID-19 opened many eyes on all political levels showing the importance of cycling for future urban mobility.

BRUSSELS, Belgium - The European Commission's announcement to review Directive 168/2013 which regulates the type-approval for vehicles with two or more wheels has united the EU cycling advocacy associations CONEBI, CIE, European Cyclists' Federation (ECF).

WASHINGTON, USA - The sales of e-bikes in the US are expected to be given a boost now that the Department of the Interior released final rules for electric bicycle use on public lands. This new regulation more clearly defines electric bicycles and no longer describes them as motor vehicles.

TAMPERE, Finland - The manufacturer of intelligent e-bike drive systems expands its market presence within Europe with the opening of a German subsidiary. Uwe Daniel, Vice President of Sales at Revonte, will be the CEO of Revonte Germany GmbH.

SHANGHAI, China - The 2021 China Cycle show will be moved to another location than the past 5 editions. The 30th China International Bicycle Fair will be held at Shanghai New International Expo Center, the same venue as where the event already took place between 2003 and 2014.

TANNA, Germany - The pandemic caused the pedelec market to expand and fueled an extraordinary rapid growth of the market. "Since this summer, bike dealers all over Europe are sold out, especially all products related to commuting and daily cycling like e-bikes, city bikes, bags and helmets," says ExtraEnergy president Hannes Neupert.