FEATURE
How have supply chain shortages affected the e-bike industry?
Lisa Conibear, Zoomo UK and Europe regional director, tells BikeBiz about the recent challenges affecting both the business and the wider industry
L
ike the parts of a bike, the global supply chain is intricately connected. It goes without saying that all parts need to be working in order for things to move
along smoothly. For the past 18-24 months, the business has had to navigate missing critical parts due to supply chain issues. We’ve been presented with a number of sizable industry roadblocks, everything from the unparalleled delays caused by Covid-19, skyrocketing shipping container costs, microchip shortages, and the cherry on top, finding out that our main shipment of batteries, parts and a few hundred bikes were on the infamous Evergiven, stuck in the Suez Canal. Despite witnessing some of the most intense supply chain challenges of our time, we’ve adapted and continued to thrive.
www.bikebiz.com
No business grows when things are easy; you grow through adversity. We have had no other option but to push forward. The rise of quick commerce is faster and more aggressive than we could have imagined. Hot food delivery is also keeping pace and increasingly food
delivery companies are hiring their workers and providing them with e-bikes. This presents an incredible opportunity for the bike industry as a whole – but also puts more pressure on the supply chain. To weather the storm, our key to success was planning and
getting ahead of the curve. We were lucky in a sense that we planned for mass growth two years ago. We put orders in early and got in front of the trend before it kicked off. As a result, the disruptions didn’t hit us as hard as others in the industry.
December 2021 | 29
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
