Merchandise Sales Dip 5%

All merchandise sales at independent bike dealers, totaling $373M this June, dipped 5% when compared to June 2013. Unit sales fell 8% but average retail-selling price grew 4%.

Bicycle units grew 1% but dollars fell 2% due to a 3% drop in average retail-selling price. Road bike units were flat but retail-selling prices and dollars both fell 5%.

Mountain bike dollars fell 8% to $53M on a 7% unit drop and 1% decrease to average retail-selling price. All growth came from 27.5-inch-wheeled bikes’ explosive growth, up 472% to total $9M this June.

Transit/Fitness and Lifestyle/Leisure Bikes did well by comparison, with both categories up 5% in dollar sales.

Helmet units increased 2% over June 2013, helping lift dollars 3%. Shoe units and dollars both fell 3%. Apparel dollars dropped 13% to $17M, its lowest June level in at least three years. Aftermarket parts dollars declined 10% to $62M while aftermarket accessories declined 6% to $69M.

Year-to-date, IBD merchandise dollars fell 1% to $1.7B. Bike dollars remained flat, apparel/helmets/shoes declined 2%, aftermarket parts dropped 6% and aftermarket accessories declined 1%.

June 2014 vs. June 2013:Dollar Sales

Modest Growth that Started in March Continues

All merchandise sales at IBDs, totaling $387M this May, dipped 1% when compared to May 2013. Unit sales fell 6% but average retail-selling price grew 5%.

Bicycle units jumped 6% but dollars grew just 1% due to a 5% drop in average retail-selling price. Road bike units slid 1%, retail-selling prices fell 10% (-$158) and dollar sales dropped 11% to $64M.

Mountain bike dollars fell 5% to $56M on a 10% unit drop and 5% increase to average retail-selling price. 
All growth came from 27.5-inch-wheeled bikes’ explosive growth. Sales reached $10M this May. Twenty-niner dollars plunged 18% to $28M and 26-inch models dropped 24% to $18M.

Positively, the less “hard core” categories did quite well. In dollars, lifestyle/leisure bikes grew 7% and transit/fitness jumped 19%.

Helmet units increased 16% over May 2013, lifting dollars 14%. Shoe units and dollars rose 4% and 6%, respectively. Apparel dollars dropped 10% to $17M, the lowest May level in at least three years. Aftermarket parts dollars declined 9% to $61M while aftermarket accessories remained even at $67M.

Year-to-date, IBD merchandise dollars remained flat at $1.3B. Bike dollars grew 2%, apparel/helmets/shoes remained even, aftermarket parts dropped 5% and aftermarket accessories inched up 1%.

May 2014 vs. May 2013:Dollar Sales

Modest Growth that Started in March Continues

Independent bike dealers grew merchandise dollars 2% compared to April 2013, reaching $366M. Units and average retail-selling prices each rose just under 1%.

Bikes 5% unit growth pushed dollars up 2% to $204M. ARSP dropped 3% due to road bikes 10% plummet to $1,458 per unit, the lowest since June 2011. The price drop for roadies did little to spur unit growth, which increased 2%. Road dollars dropped 8% to $66M.

Mountain bike dollars rose 2% to $57M despite the 4% unit contraction. All of the growth came from 27.5-inch-wheeled bikes’ tenfold sales increase to $7M. Twenty-niner dollars fell 5% to $32M and 26-inch models declined 15% to $19M.

Helmet units surged 26% over April 2013, lifting dollars 23%. Shoe units and dollars rose 6% and 3%, respectively. Apparel dropped 9% to its lowest April level in at least three years, $15M. Aftermarket parts dollars declined 2% to $57M while accessories rose 2% to $61M.

Year-to-date, IBD merchandise dollars rose 1% to 911M. Every major category saw dollar growth of 2% or less with the exception of parts, where dollars declined 4%.

April 2014 vs. April 2013:Dollar Sales

Sales Rebound After Slow Start To Year

After a down beginning to the year, IBDs posted growth for the first time in 2014. Compared to March 2013, all merchandise sales gained 3% in units and 4% in dollars to total $255M. The month’s gain mitigated early year losses and left first quarter sales even with last year at $546M.

While up 13% in units and 5% in dollars to $135M, bicycle sales proved to be a mixed bag. Road bikes continued their steady decline, shedding another 8% to settle at $47M. Twenty six-inch mountain bikes dropped 18% to $11M and 29ers slipped 8% to $22M.

Positively, 27.5-inch MTBs leapt from just over $100K in sales last March to an impressive $6M. The wheel size accounted for 15% of the month’s MTB dollars compared to 56% for 29ers and 28% for 26-inch wheeled models. Transit/fitness (+21% to $27M) and lifestyle/leisure (+33% to $7M) bikes also enjoyed large gains. Children’s bikes posted double-digit growth too, up 24% to $8M.

Compared to March 2013, helmets (+23% to $8M), shoes (+6% to $7M) and apparel accessories (+4% to $5M) gained while apparel (-2% to $11M) fell.

With the notable exception of tires/tubes, up 10% to $12M, nearly all subcategories negatively contributed to aftermarket part’s overall 1% decline to $43M. Aftermarket accessory sales grew 3% to reach $46M.

March 2014 vs. March 2013:Dollar Sales