Markets see double-digit sales drops

That 2023 was a tough year sales-wise is reflected in double-digit sales drops in the key markets of Austria, Switzerland, Italy and Belgium. Here total units sales dropped 17%, 22%, 23% and 18% respectively. Sluggish sales as inventories increased, coupled with economic uncertainties made clear that the market was rebounding from the Covid boom. Stocks must now first be reduced, with markets expected to stabilise by 2025. E-bikes continue to bring in a growing amount of the market value whether in the urban or sports categories.

Austria E-bikes take the lead in tough market 

Even though the Austrian 2023 bicycle market recorded a double-digit drop in both volume and value sales compared to the previous year, there are several positives to point out. Sales topped €1 billion for third consecutive row and e-bikes now account for three quarters of the market value. Leasing and investments in cycling infrastructure are also positively influencing the market. Although the total sales value dropped 14.7% to €1.18 billion, this amount is still the second-highest value figure since VSSÖ and ARGE Fahrrad began keeping records. What is striking is that for the first time more e-bikes (220,493 units) than regular bicycles (200,711 units) were sold.

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Switzerland Speed pedelecs give market hope

After the sales peak in 2020-2022, the market volume in Switzerland dropped last year by 18%. While sales decreases were reported in all categories, it was the speed pedelec market that made strong gains. Contrary to what was expected, the e-bike didn’t manage to obtain a 50% plus market share. The opposite happened, the e-bike lost market share and went from 45% in 2022 to 43.7% last year. While sales of sports bikes fell by only 5.8%, leisure and everyday bikes were down by 35.8%. In e-bikes the differences were even bigger. The regular e-bike, or the 25 km/h category, declined 25.5%, while the 45 km/h or speed pedelecs was the only category to increase in sales.

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Italy Bicycle market drops 23% in 2023

Italy's bicycle industry association ANCMA reported a distribution of just over 1.3 million bicycles and e-bikes combined, generating a turnover of € 2.6 billion, a decrease of 18% compared to 2022. In sales volume, this was a 23% drop year-on-year. The hard reality is that the sales volume of mechanical bicycles declined by 24% to 1,090,000 units, while the distribution of e-bikes dropped by 19% to 273,000 units. Despite the decline in e-bike sales between 2022 and 2023, the long-term market development is still very positive. In 2023 the Italian market for e-bikes was 40% higher than in 2019.

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Belgium Bicycle market drops 18% in 2023

In Belgium, over 18% fewer bicycles were sold in 2023. Sales decreased from nearly 700,000 to 569,605 units, according to figures shared jointly by Traxio and GfK. However, there are no concerns for the longer term. The e-bike is expected to be the cornerstone of the Belgian market, with specialist retailers playing an essential role in sales. The positive sentiment is partly based on the success of the electric bicycle in almost all categories. The new market figures show that out of the 569,605 bicycles sold in 2023, 290,419 were electrically assisted, compared to 279,186 conventional bicycles. For the first time, e-bikes accounted for more than half (51%) of the sales.

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