Bicycle
Sales Taking New Turns
By
Paul A. Paterson
May 1, 2003
Baby
Boomers Drive Sales—Yet Again
National
Bicycle Dealers Association |
On
the positive side, there are signs that, in the face of North
America's generally low fitness level, the low-cost, easily-accessible
exercise that bikes provide might be gaining popularity among
both aging Boomers and their Generation-Y offspring. While this
may not immediately expand the market as the emergence of the
mountain bike line did in the mid-1990s, Fred Clements, Executive
Director of the National Bicycle Dealers Association
believes it bodes well for the long term.
"The baby boom generation has driven a lot of brackets, including
ours," said Clements. "They are getting older and, lucky
for us, they are more health conscious. The question is what generation
replaces that? That's why the youth market is so important."
Clements believes that, while the center of the market moves from
year to year, an increase in cycling as an alternative mode of
transportation may catch on. The current popularity of road bikes
and a new comfort-first model known as an “event “or
“charity bike” might indicate that trend.
"I
think we will be appealing to more casual riders," Clements
said. "People who want to ride their bikes around town for
transportation and still be stylish."
This trend will receive a significant boost if lobbying efforts
aimed at re-envisioning city planning in order to accommodate
bicycles succeeds. Already, the “Safe Routes To School”
program has been included in the next transportation bill. This
program is designed to encourage youth to walk or bike to school
by reducing traffic and other hazards along the route.
"The use of bikes as transportation has been under-utilized,
especially in the United States," Clements admitted. "We've
been making real progress in Washington for highway designs and
bike lanes and paths and so forth. Every product we make is dependent
on the infrastructure. We need the government to realize that
transportation is not all cars and trucks. If the roads are safe,
you might prefer [to commute] that way."
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