For bicycle brands, sourcing teams and suppliers, the challenge is no longer simply finding manufacturing capacity. Increasingly, success depends on finding partners that can manage compliance requirements, provide transparent supply chain data, support software-enabled products and coordinate increasingly complex international operations.

Let's be honest: finalising pre-orders is the most stressful moment of a retailer's year. You commit a large part of your budget to a product you have often never seen, and then hope it arrives before the customer you promised it to loses patience - late deliveries deserve their own article. How can you enter conversations with brands as a strategic partner, rather than someone who simply takes orders?

The on-off reporting on whether hostilities in the Middle East will end is causing significant business uncertainty. Moreover, the heavy reliance on deliveries of parts and components from Asia leads to major cost fluctuations. As this uncertainty persists, suppliers and bicycle manufacturers will factor this into their pricing. The consequences are ultimately higher costs and higher bicycle prices in stores, as evidenced by the most recent Global Bicycle Purchasing Index (GBPI).

Where last year's Women in Cycling event at Eurobike centred on the industry's gender pay gap and the launch of new national networks, this year's programme opened with a freshly released market study and pushed the conversation onto a harder question: what should manufacturers and retailers actually do about the €950 million the bicycle industry is potentially missing out on.

The 2026 Eurobike, the European International Bicycle Trade Show, drew to a close at Messe Frankfurt after four days of intensive industry exchange. Folding-bike innovator DAHON captured attention with the debut of its new 'DAHON-V' technology suite and a portfolio of new bicycles built around it.

The rumours intensified during the Accell Dealer Days and at Eurobike last week. The name of Singapore-based investment company, DuTech Holdings, was frequently mentioned as the potential new owner of Accell Group, once one of the industry's largest companies. Last Friday, DuTech Holdings officially filed a request with the German antitrust authorities for approval to acquire Accell Group.

"We want to stay on top of innovation, and we love to be leading," Avinox's Product Experience Director, Ferdinand Wolf, told Bike Europe on the final business day of Eurobike. True to his word, the Chinese drivetrain maker surprised many with the launch of its MG concept motor during the tradeshow. The progression from a shared outdoor booth in 2024 to one of Hall 12's defining exhibitors in 2026 marked a shift in how the company is positioning itself as a long-term industry player.

Eurobike 2026 was in size a shadow of its former self, a far cry from the industry's leading trade fair it once was. The industry brought this debacle upon itself by no longer participating in what was once the largest bicycle show in the world. Obviously, the visitor and exhibitor numbers for this transformation edition didn't come close to what they were in the past, but that also reflects the current economics in the bicycle industry.

Brompton has brought in two new strategic investors as the British folding bike manufacturer looks to accelerate international expansion following a challenging period for sales. Decathlon Pulse, the investment arm of Decathlon, and Shanghai-based BA Capital have each acquired minority shareholdings through a secondary liquidity transaction, becoming long-term strategic partners while leaving Brompton's ownership structure and management unchanged.

In 2024, a team of investors acquired the insolvent bicycle helmet factory of D-H-G Knauer GmbH Kunststoffverarbeitung. Since relaunching as KED Ahead GmbH, the new owners have made significant strides. It turns out it wasn't enough. The asset that was repeatedly touted as a key selling point - namely, the "Made in Germany" production facility in Freiberg am Neckar is now being phased out.

For bike makers, sourcing components is about more than specifications and price. It is about finding partners that consistently deliver on quality, innovation and timing. For Finnish component specialist Herrmans, trust and reliability have been the foundation of its business for more than six decades.

UK retailer Halfords reported a recovery in its cycling business for the financial year ended 3 April 2026, with cycling like-for-like sales increasing 6.4% as the British bicycle market showed signs of improvement after several difficult years.

The e-bike industry is moving at a rapid pace, and few brands have made as dramatic an entrance as Avinox. After making a strong debut at Eurobike 2024 with close ties to tech giant DJI, Avinox has taken a major step forward. By 2025, the transition was complete: Avinox became a fully independent, standalone business.

At Eurobike, Gates Belt Drive showcases three new sprocket product families — Cruise, Cruise Plus, and Commute — designed to bring clean, durable and low-maintenance drivetrain technology to more bicycle categories. Alongside the launch, Gates highlights the European support network that helps OEMs turn belt drive innovation into market-ready bikes.

Bicycle tyre manufacturer Schwalbe has announced the completion of a long-planned generational leadership transition, with the new management structure taking effect on 1 January 2027. After around three decades in executive leadership, Frank Bohle, Andreas Grothe and Holger Jahn will step down from their managing director roles, while Nico Simons will remain Managing Director and Chief Commercial Officer, responsible for global sales.

A new draft for the revision of the bicycle trailer standard EN 15918 has been presented by the European standardisation working group. The revision is intended to replace the existing standard EN 15918:2011+A2:2017 and adapt the safety requirements for bicycle trailers to the current state of the art.

The global e-bike industry has arrived at a crossroads, and the arrival of the Gobao System X platform signals a definitive shift in where the market goes next.

In the first quarter of 2026, the average turnover of Dutch retailers in the H&L Benchmark group increased by 1.6% compared with the same period last year. At the same time, costs rose by an average of 1.4% during the quarter. Partly as a result, profitability in the first quarter of 2026 declined by 0.5 percentage points compared with the previous year, according to the H&L Benchmark.