Now is the Time to Buy as Pandemic-Driven Bike Boom Likely to Continue This Year

A slew of bicycle industry indicators are signaling another year of high-volume bike sales across inventory lines, making late winter/early spring an excellent time to shop for a new ride. Like last year, pandemic-driven sales cleaned out bike supplies across the nation. This year, we expect the cycling craze to continue, boosting sales but depleting our stock and, therefore, limiting variety for our customers.

Latitude 45, as many of you know, was no exception to the bike supply problem that still looms. Our bike inventory flew off the shelves last spring and summer, leaving us with little in stock. COVID-induced supply chain hiccups wreaked havoc on our inventory, but we are recovering.

Now, our shelves are filling up again, and we mean it when we say, “If you’re thinking about buying a new bike for yourself or a loved one, now is the time to do it.”

In driving that point home, Latitude 45 Sales Manager Greg Fuller recalled last year’s sales. “At our peak last spring,” he said, “we were selling roughly 20-25 bikes per day, and we expect the industry to have a similar boom this spring as more people join in the fun. This will mean there’s a good likelihood that people who wait will have more limited options.”

Though Fuller predicted another bicycle shortage in summer and early fall, he said Latitude 45 currently has a good variety of some bikes. “We have a full stock of sizes on e-bikes, entry-level mountain bikes, and hybrids,” said Fuller. “These were some of the first bike categories to sell out last year, so it’s a good idea to check out the website or stop in soon.”

Special order bikes may present another problem for shoppers, according to the shop sales manager. “There will be very little inventory available for special orders,” he explained. “Shops across the country ordered more than what they did in 2020, so there will be fewer bikes left in manufacturer warehouses. This means that our in-store inventory on Latitude45.com is even more important. We have many great options that were unavailable for most of last year, so our customers can shop the website and find the products that we didn’t have last year.”

We’re taking deposits and information for pre-selling bikes before they come into stock. If customers reach out about a product they want, we will do our best to find them products once they become available. Contact Latitude 45 via phone at 231-348-5342) or email sales@latitude45.com if you’re looking for a product you don’t see on our website.