BOULDER, Colo. (BRAIN) — Bicycle Product Suppliers Association members picked up $49 million in business in 2014, and shipped 201,722 more units to retailers last year compared with 2013, according to numbers compiled by The NPD Group for the BPSA.
The 5 percent dollar sales gain was driven primarily by increases in recreational categories of lifestyle comfort and cruiser bikes, and fitness hybrid bikes. These two categories added $39 million in new business for suppliers.
Fat bikes, another high-performing category, saw a 44-percent jump in unit sales to 36,865, and added $14 million to supplier pockets. Even with the stellar growth in fat bike business, the entire mountain bike category only picked up an additional 884 units in sales last year. Higher sales of 650b bikes were unable to offset losses in other wheel sizes.
Meanwhile, road bike sales continued to tumble, down $18 million overall. High-end categories, such as performance men’s and women’s and triathlon bikes, fell the hardest. High-end men’s road bikes were down $22 million alone. Cyclocross and lower-cost sport men’s and women’s bikes picked up $3 and $5 million, respectively.
