FEATURE


What consumers want?


Last month Specialized, one of the biggest bike brands in the world, announced it would start selling its bikes direct to consumers online. The announcement has caused waves in the cycle trade, but how are retailers reacting to the news? BikeBiz digs into the response


T


he direct to consumer bike sales are nothing new in this industry.


Canyon, founded more than 20 years ago, has sold


bikes directly to the public since its inception, while in recent times more big names have launched into the direct sales market, including US supermarket giant Walmart, which unveiled its own high-end bike brand, Viathon, in 2019. While the trend to online sales has been no secret,


26 | March 2022


especially to those retailers feeling the sting, the news that Specialized Bicycles would now be offering direct sales to its customers online may have been eye-opening for many. The decision to make bikes available over the internet is an unexpected move from California-based bike brand Specialized, owing to the unequivocal words of its CEO Mike Sinyard, who 10 years ago assured dealers: “We will never sell bikes over the internet.”


www.bikebiz.com


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60