FEATURE Ison sees potential in the ‘etility’ market from Benno Cargo Bikes
Ison weathers the storm
Managing director Lloyd Townsend runs BikeBiz through an unpredictable 18 months for the distributor
How was 2021 for Ison? I suspect similarly to many of our counterparts, we’ve had consistently huge demand for products and several unexpected and unwelcome headaches with the supply chain. The high demand and added pressures on the supply became more obvious when the outcome of the pandemic options for folks became clear in summer 2020. Frankly, cycling just went crazy. I think this was primarily driven by cycling being one of the few things that folks could do as an activity, and also offered a safe and affordable alternative to urban public transport. Aside from unprecedented demand on the supply chain, complications were added with Covid staffing issues in the factories and the container shipping headaches that most folks will have heard about.
Ison Distribution managing director Lloyd Townsend
12 | December 2021
Any brand changes this year? No brand distribution changes have occurred so far in 2021. That said, the planned introduction of many new lines – such as the Vincita bags brand – have been delayed due to how hectic we have been in managing everything we already have going on. Similarly, we haven’t been actively looking to add any new brands, but there are likely to be some opportunities for Ison to expand with new brands if they fit into our strategic requirements for the longer term. New brands aside, we have some really exciting brands that were already added new into the Ison portfolio just prior to Covid that are set to see significant growth – such as Princeton Carbon Works, Redshift and Squire. With bricks and mortar retail now starting to come back into focus for consumers, we are expecting to see significant growth with brands like Squire locks that are especially well suited to IBD bricks and mortar sales – a great product with good margins for IBDs and next day availability from us. Squire and Ison are continually investing heavily in new products and a significant boost in sales and marketing activities with the aim of establishing Squire locks as the premium bicycle
www.bikebiz.com
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