Tuesday, June 15, 2021
Canyon Bicycles to bike boom
“Won ten years in rethinking”
In the Corona year 2020, over five million bicycles were sold in Germany. What is the impact of this unprecedented boom? And what will tomorrow’s mobility look like? The head of the German bicycle manufacturer Canyon Bicycles, Armin Landgraf, is convinced: This trend is sustainable.
The year 2020 was an outstanding one for bicycle manufacturers: During the pandemic, many commuters exchanged their local transport tickets for a bicycle – in order to maintain the minimum distance. Instead of flying to the Maldives, vacationers got on trekking bikes. Over five million bicycles were sold in Germany in 2020, an increase of 17 percent compared to the previous year. From the perspective of the bicycle manufacturer Canyon Bicycles, this boom is likely to have long-term consequences, including for urban traffic.
“We won maybe ten years in rethinking,” says CEO Armin Landgraf in the podcast “The Zero Hour”. Landgraf is convinced that the trend towards bicycles is sustainable, especially “when you look at cities with structural projects like Paris or London”. The cities have learned “how big the advantage is if they go along with it”.
The Koblenz-based company, which had previously specialized in sports and racing bikes, benefited significantly from this boom. In 2020, sales rose by 37 percent to 415 million euros. Canyon sells its bikes exclusively online, so the company was not affected by store closures. The situation in the supply chains was difficult, however, as many components were difficult to find.
From Landgraf’s point of view, e-bikes also play an important role in the future of the industry and transport, especially when it comes to “networking and intelligence”. In order to increase security, “one can offer many electronic support services”. Innovations of this kind could also increase comfort, for example with air quality measurements and route optimization.
Also listen to the new episode of “Zero Hour”:
- How many bicycles Landgraf owns privately
- What similarities are there between e-bikes and SUVs
- Why the company remains loyal to its headquarters in Koblenz
You can find all episodes directly at Audio Now, Apple or Spotify or via Google.
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