The Bike Industry Needs More Cooperation

Last Updated on: 31st March 2025, 09:10 am

Like many other people, my first new bike came from Walmart. I was a kid getting into mountain biking, and it was what my family could afford to pool together to get me for my birthday. I rode it for years, had a lot of fun in the New Mexico desert, and even went on some group rides as I got more into it. But, as I got into high school, things got busy and I didn’t have much time for biking. Sad face.

In college, I rode a bike overseas (in Taiwan) for serious transportation duty. I figured out pretty quickly that the mix of better Asian food and regular exercise was quite good for me. But, back in the States, I got out of shape again as the demands of work and family pulled me away from riding, food quality was lower, and I settled back into car dependency (the only choice where I lived, really).

As a working adult, I realized that I needed a better way to stay fit than just running or lifting small weights at home. So, I decided to get back into mountain biking to have more fun while burning those calories. So, I did some internet research to get something that would last better than my young teenage bike. Everyone and their dog online said that the best way to get a bike was to head to the local bike shop (“LBS”).

I figured out pretty quickly that this was the right choice. They were able to work with me on my limited budget (I had three kids and a degree in journalism and history) by selling me one of last year’s models that they needed to clear out. The shop was there for fitting, getting the bike started, and several maintenance visits. Later, they taught me (at no extra charge) how to do some basic things myself.

They were more than just a place that took my money and gave me a bike. They were the gateway to a community of bike riders, experts who could help solve problems, and a source for great service after the sale. In other words, the “LBS” is like a car dealer, but with less ripoff and more good things.

So, when I saw this video by a local bike shop owner, I paid attention. (Article continues after.)

Obviously, this is the biased view of a LBS owner and we have to take it with a grain of salt. The local bike shop is just one part of a larger bike industry that now includes not only manufacturers and big box stores, but also direct sales companies, direct sales by traditional manufacturers, and a vibrant used market on Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace. I’m NOT saying that we should ignore the fact that manufacturers are struggling, nor am I saying that anyone is bad for buying a Chinese bike online.

That all having been said, we do need to see this video as a good temperature check on the whole industry. Everyone’s struggling right now, and everyone is trying to eat everyone else in the industry alive.

Importantly, the owner in the video does admit that local bike shops do need to change and adapt. Hating on people who bought a bike directly and turning them away isn’t going to work. Refusing to work on Chinese e-bikes is also not going to fly. He points out that the shop owner has to take a place in the biking community to thrive in today’s environment.

His honest introspection doesn’t negate the need for other parts of the bicycle industry to change, too.

Manufacturers that have traditionally worked with local bike shops thought they could get ahead with corporate-owned stores and direct sales to buyers, but that didn’t work out for them like they’d hoped once the COVID boom calmed down. Fear of losing a contract with bike companies has led to less feedback from bike shops, and manufacturers are definitely losing out on valuable industry insight by perpetuating that environment of fear. Requiring shops to buy quotas of different bikes is also counterproductive because it ignores local needs and the niche that each bike shops serves.

Chinese manufacturers could also learn a thing or three from this situation. The biggest one is that service after the sale matters. Selling a bike to people directly obviously works, but when someone doesn’t know where to turn for help with adjusting the gears, fixing bent wheels, and other common problems, things can get painful fast. Instead of bypassing these shops completely, Chinese manufacturers would be wise to find ways to work with them, even if they don’t want to deliver through them. Something as simple as rounding up a list of bike shops willing to work on the bike would go a long way.

Government Can Also Do A Lot Better At Serving The Bike Market

Before I get into my main problem with government and bikes, I do want to briefly acknowledge that support for infrastructure and the purchase of e-bikes is important. If people can’t afford to buy a quality e-bike and they don’t have a safe place to ride the bike, this is all an academic exercise. Even for purely recreational bikes, being able to use them a bit here and there for transportation can be a gateway toward bike commuting, and a healthier lifestyle.

But, there’s a much bigger way in which many state and local governments have been failing bike owners: protecting property.

Really, this is a basic tenet of modern representative democratic republics. As the U.S. Declaration of Independence (a model document that led to freedom elsewhere) radically laid out in the late 18th century: governments exist to protect life, freedom, and our pursuit of happiness (they substituted this for Locke’s use of “property” as the third use of government). When people are safe, free, and aren’t having everything stolen, markets can thrive and people can prosper.

But, when people can’t keep their property safe, things can grind to a halt. Who wants to buy a $2000+ e-bike just to have some crackhead user of undocumented pharmaceuticals steal it and sell the parts off?

Sadly, the extremes of the right (not funding infrastructure or incentivizing purchase) and the extremes of the bleeding heart center (not punishing bike thieves or addressing addiction) have made the United States a fairly inhospitable place for bikes. We need to get this right if the industry is going to have a chance to thrive.

Featured image by Jennifer Sensiba.