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The European bicycle market is booming, with over 20 million ebikes being sold there

Last Updated on 1 March 2023 by Stefano

The much anticipated 2022 European Bicycle Industry and Market Profile Report was published by CONEBI, the Confederation of the European Bicycle, E-Bike, Parts & Accessories Industries. According to the most recent figures, sales of bikes and e-bikes in the EU27 and the UK increased by a staggering 40% in 2021, reaching a 20-year high of 18.3 billion euros or 22 million units sold.

According to CONEBI President Erhard Büchel, “Investments/innovation topped 1.5 billion euros, up from EUR 1 billion in 2019, driven by booming consumer demand, investments in cycling infrastructure, and political commitments to a transition to the Green Economy. The EU-UK industries continue their upward spiral year over year. 2021 was the best year since we started analysing data. This has stimulated unheard-of industrial expansion throughout Europe.

E-bikes are quickly taking the top spot among consumers, says Manuel Marsilio, General Manager of CONEBI. “European residents are choosing more environmentally friendly e-mobility options over owning vehicles or using public transportation, which led to an astounding 52% surge in sales for e-bikes. In 2020, e-bike sales increased significantly to 10.6 billion euros, he notes.

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The manufacturing of parts and accessories also increased significantly in Europe in 2021, reaching 3 billion euros, underscoring the beneficial effects on the entire production value chain. However, the current state of the global supply chain serves as a significant warning: we must increase our investments in domestic production and in Europe. According to current estimates, we anticipate that by 2025, the value of components and accessories manufactured in Europe will have doubled to 6 billion euros.

More positive news for European bicycle makers has come as a result of a slew of new national regulations centred on cycling infrastructure and motivated by changes in customer behaviour: 3.6 of the 4.5 million electric bicycles sold in the EU and UK were made locally. This meant that 80 per cent of all goods sold in the EU and UK were also made here. The chief executive Bosch e-bike system Klaus Fleisher predicts that half of all ebike in Europe to be sold in the UE will be electric.

A significant 30% rise in employment was recorded across the sector as a result of the remarkable performance of the bicycle, e-bike, parts, and accessories sectors.

Marsilio emphasises that there are currently over 1,000 healthy sustainable manufacturing SMEs operating in Europe that support 155,000 direct and indirect green manufacturing jobs. “Our industry supports almost 850,000 green jobs,” he notes, “taking into account bicycle tourism, cycling services like cycle logistics and bike-sharing, and the retail sector.”

With more businesses reshoring production to the EU and UK to support their investments there, every 1,000 bicycles manufactured in Europe annually generates three to five skilled jobs. And every year, for every 1,000 E-Bikes that are re-shored or produced in the area, six to nine skilled jobs are created.

The Covid-induced “bike boom” and pleasant spring and summer weather were mostly to blame for the surge in sales, which added 40% to 2019’s volumes and left the industry short on supplies.

Similar to how investments in bike infrastructure were linked to a 20-year high sales boom, it is anticipated that many European nations would feel the need to maintain this momentum in light of their commitments to the Green Economy.

“Our industry generates jobs, investments, entrepreneurship, and innovation that have a real impact on the European economy. Additionally, our environmental impact is favourable in terms of the Green Economy. Local production in the EU and the UK leads to an annual reduction of more than 2 million tonnes of CO2 emissions, says Marsilio.

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