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The cycle to work has opened at work and as a result a friend has decided to indulge in a Nukeproof Scout 290 Race. Only problem is that every website everywhere is showing them out of stock. Surely they can't all have sold out everywhere? I know gym equipment is at a premium due to gyms being shut and lockdown etc. But this can't be the reason for their being no bikes any where?
Short supply, sudden increase in people riding means things aren't hanging around at the moment. Sounds pretty typical from what folks are saying about stock etc.
I work in a shop. People have been buying lots of bikes. As an example, Trek have sold out of almost everything.
Wiggle have 147 different mountain bike models in stock. So, loads of new bikes.
Our shop has been nearly cleaned out and our suppliers have nothing left as well... We've never been this busy before.
Only thing left is kids bikes really as I guess they can't roam about as much.
Wiggle say they have 147 different mountain bike models in stock. So, loads of new bikes.
ftfy
No Nukeproofs at Wiggle though.
Silverfish keep advertising new bike models.
60 bikes in one day sold out of my local Halfords recently!
The cycle to work has opened at work and as a result a friend has decided to indulge in a Nukeproof Scout 290 Race. Only problem is that every website everywhere is showing them out of stock. Surely they can’t all have sold out everywhere? I know gym equipment is at a premium due to gyms being shut and lockdown etc. But this can’t be the reason for their being no bikes any where?
Believe it!
Nukeproof is effectively an in house brand for CRC/Wiggle, as it is a Hotlines Brand. Hotlines is owned by the same people as CRC/Wiggle. If they don't have any in stock, your only option left is to ring round every dealer exhaustively, and hope that one has one left in stock!
The deal with Nukeproof bikes is always that you've only got about 2/3 months from when they hit the shop floors, to when they run out of stock anyway. Hotlines keep demand high, and supply low, and it always sells out. This year has been VERY strange because demand of sub £2k bikes has massively outstripped supply anyway, even on the less popular models.
Our shop has been nearly cleaned out and our suppliers have nothing left as well… We’ve never been this busy before.
Same story across the board... Those shops that have stayed open during this pandemic are making a killing! Those that haven't, are quickly trying to re-open to sell whatever stock they have got left...
Short supply, sudden increase in people riding means things aren’t hanging around at the moment.
I sold a Cannondale F29 on Facebook classifieds 10 days ago, I bought it cheap as an experiment, gave it a service, rode it a couple of times, decided it wasn't for me. I put a little bit on top of what I paid for it for my time servicing it, and the new cables etc.
It sold within 10 minutes!
Since then, I have had several other people phone me about the bike, saying they were willing to pay £150 more than I'd asked for it!
I was perusing eBay for a hardtail for my mate. I was just looking to see what was around. I witnessed a 2013 model Whyte 629, that was in good used condition, all original but certainly been ridden, go for £832 + postage... That bike was £999 brand new in 2013 ffs!
I closed my bike shop last year after almost 6yrs or running it. People I have known for decades, who never once came to see me in the shop, who never once showed any interest in cycling or my business, are messaging me on Facebook constantly asking for advice on what bikes to buy! People who used to use my shop for workshop work are contacting me directly to see if I want to fix their bikes from home, cos the only bike shops that are open, are booked up for weeks (I have a full time job now, and really CBA unless it's for someone who really looked after me whilst I had the shop).
I work in the trade now for a manufacturer, sales for April were up quite significantly on expected, and a good chunk better than for April last year. Our warehouse manager has increased orders from our factories as we're selling through on certain product lines much faster than expected...
The strange thing though, is there really is a glass ceiling to all of this, and it seems to be around £2k... There's websites such as Pauls Cycles etc. selling off last years high end road bikes and full sus MTBs for as much as 40% discount, and they're not selling quick at all. This is a Boom the likes of the post Wiggins/Olympics boom, only far more extreme... My only hope is that everyone who is buying bikes right now, actually continues to use them in some way, shape or form once this is all over... Or 2021 could be even worse for the bike trade than 2019 and 2018 were! And they were absolutely ******* diabolical for most!
What does a bike shop earn from a £2K or £3K bike these days then? How does the margin compare to banging out £500 starter bikes?
Also maybe a factor is beforehand they could probably build 5 bikes a day somewhere and they’re now more like 1 1/2 maybe as there are less staff with some being furlowed? Might be off the mark but just a suggestion.
Yes I can believe that because cycling is all people can do aside from walk, the demand will skyrocket
And when your LBS has sold out of bikes they'll be dealing with people who bought BSOs.....it doesn't work; how much to fix/replace - you're ripping me off; why can't you do it now - I'll wait and so it goes on.
New market could be....bike maintenance; we'll show you how - and sell you the tools to do it yourself.
Wait - have I done myself out of a job?
Unlikely, as these numpties don't know one of a torque wrench from the other.
There’s websites such as Pauls Cycles etc. selling off last years high end road bikes and full sus MTBs for as much as 40% discount, and they’re not selling quick at all.
There's 2 reasons behind that.
1: People want to walk into a shop, sit on the bike then pay for it and leave with it the same day. Paul's is currently quoting 10 days just to dispatch, let alone be with you.
2: A lot of the general public haven't heard of them.
It's similar to your neighbour going to B&Q for nuts, bolts and screws for his little DIY project where we know that you get the same stuff from ScrewFix (which is the same company) for a lot.,lot less. Think of any hobby you have no prior knowledge or interest in and it'll be a similar story: the regulars will know how to save money.
Also maybe a factor is beforehand they could probably build 5 bikes a day somewhere and they’re now more like 1 1/2 maybe as there are less staff with some being furlowed? Might be off the mark but just a suggestion.
Pretty sure 2020 bikes quantities were forecast/decided early 2019 and being built mid 2019.
Manufacturers will be building 2021 product now but they're still several months off being able to distribute next model year inventory.
Shops can only sell from the inventory available from what the manufacturer built.
Boutique brands aside, they are not building to meet real time demands.
Production of various things can be quite quick. I booked a small run of short cranks from Taiwan. It was manufactured, shipped and landed in Canada in about 3 days just a few weeks into China's covid shutdowns.
I don't see a logistically easy way of a major brand releasing their 'in production' 2021 bikes early without upsetting the balance somewhere.
Do they redesign 2021 color/graphics and release a batches of 2020.5 bikes then have to put the graphics team back to work on catalogs and new paint colors to differentiate 2021 again. Re book their drivetrain, wheel, tire, suspension order and hope that those other suppliers can meet the new demand.. or just sell through their forecast/produced inventory and call 2020 a success?
Some smaller brands may be positioned to be able to do this, but not to the volumes being suggested, and certainly not at the pricepoint of the bikes that are in demand.
Perhaps shops with zero inventory and continued demand could work out a relationship with online vendors like Pauls and other clearance outlets, or even consumer direct brands to put tangible product in the highstreet stores, make sales and cover the split/reduced margins with the Parts and Accessories sales and after sales service that often go alongside new bike purchases.
Pearce cycles (top bunch of peeps, thoroughly recommended) still have the scout comp in a size large.
https://www.pearcecycles.co.uk/home/bikes/test-bikes/nukeproof-scout-290-comp/
I bought a Canyon during lock down. Wasn't mega fast but the whole thing went through fine
I suspect Europe has more bikes kicking around as not many countries has let people out to ride
Of course they might not have a bike you want but there must be other European suppliers as well (Rose bikes, Radon etc.)
I won't do the whole story but I would love to have had more of my money spent here but all the demoes disappeared and it seemed closest to what I thought would work for me
Surely as Europe goes back to work things will ballance out? They'll just start shipping their bikes here and swap the brakes over at the PDI.
I imagine Scott/Trek/Cannondle/Specialized managers are pulling their hair out with inventory going nowhere on the mainland and no supply in the UK.
The boom is a UK thing because we're allowed outside.
Reminds me exactly of purchase behaviour around the Olympics. Everyone buying the bikes will be back to their normal ways within a year, the industry will overcompensate expecting long term increase in sales.
The people who bought the bikes will return to work, clear their garages when they realise they are unused and need money for other things. Alongside the oversupply there will be bargains for all again... Unless the whole country is pedestrianised.
Secondhand bargains aplenty in October.
I'd guess it's a similar story we have in the IT world.
The moment social distancing was announced there was a massive rush on laptops as every business and lots of individuals all realised they needed to work from home. This was almost perfectly timed with a massive drop off in supply as the last of the units being made in the far east before they closed factories reached us.
The factories have reopened, but it takes time to filter though, it's not just the freight time. It doesn't matter if it's a Bike frame or laptop made in Taiwan a lot of the parts will come from China and take time to reach Taiwan.
Yes, I'd guess there will be a glut of lightly used bikes for sale SH in autumn.
Secondhand bargains aplenty in October.
More like late spring to early summer 2021... In October this year, they’ll still have recent fond memories of using the bike a handful of times through May-August, and they’ll still have the romantic notion they’re going to do exactly the same again next summer...
By the time that everything has returned to the “new normal”, and football is back on the telly, and everyone is busy working in the week again, that’s when they’ll find excuses not to make the time to ride the bikes, and the 2nd hand market will be flooded...
Manufacturers will be building 2021 product now but they’re still several months off being able to distribute next model year inventory.
Double edged sword this one. Manufacturers would happily bring 2021 bikes forward if they could, a guaranteed sale now is far better than a probable one in 6 months time. However... Many/most manufacturers have massively cut back on production scale right now. The UK market is different to most of the rest of the world, here the vast majority of bicycle related purchases are done for the sole purpose of leisure. In most of the worlds markets, especially in mainland Europe, bicycles are purchased as transport far more often than they are for recreational means!
Surely as Europe goes back to work things will ballance out? They’ll just start shipping their bikes here and swap the brakes over at the PDI.
I imagine Scott/Trek/Cannondle/Specialized managers are pulling their hair out with inventory going nowhere on the mainland and no supply in the UK.
The boom is a UK thing because we’re allowed outside.
Where possible, this will of course be done. However... You can’t convince someone who wanted a Carbon Road bike with Ultegra and deep section rims, or someone who wanted a 160mm travel full sus enduro bike, that a Dutch style bike with a hub gear, full fenders and a rack to carry their shopping bags on, is going to cut the mustard, can you...? 🤷🏻♂️
There will be oversupply of certain types of bikes, undersupply of others, and the industry will spend the next 12-18 months playing catch up to sort that problem out, once it is able to fully return to work, and figure out what is required...
FWIW, inner tubes (especially 26” Schraeder ones, which tells you a lot about the bikes being ridden and purchased), are the new Loo Rolls! 😂
It is quite amusing watching the new riders. I went out to the new Forest and you would have thought they had organised a family cycling day there were so many out there.
My favourite moment was when I approach a couple who were looking worriedly at their back wheels. They explained that they were new to cycling and this was their first long ride and their bikes were breaking and the were not sure if they were safe to rise back to the car. I asked where their car was and they said it was about 2 or 3 miles away.
I asked what the problem with the bikes was and they explained that they were fine when pedalling along but as soon as they started going down hill there was a terrible noise from the back wheel. I offered to follow from a safe distance to see if I could work out the problem.
Yep, you guessed it. They were panicked by the click of the freewheel. They were also less than 1 mile from the car but felt they had ridden a lot further.
I guess we all have to learn