Market and Competitors
Bicycle manufacturing has been a local industry for many years. National tradition, people’s transportation behaviors, and other underlying factors are all driving forces behind the development. Net income level and a badly designed infrastructure are also influencing factors. Over time, commodity products have been developed in many local markets. Globalization has opened up low cost regions for many industries. The bicycle industry is no exception. It has become more global. Today most of the commodity products are produced in China, Taiwan etc.
Today, many companies in the industrialized world are niche players, and focus on smaller segments. It is in one of these small segments that Sapa, Inc. has become a significant player as a sub-supplier. Our market is global. We serve customers around the world, and our operation is located in USA. USA, which has a very good reputation in the bicycle industry, is a large supplier of for high-end bicycle products. The market is diversified and has a steady yearly growth. Many companies focus increasingly more on their product mix. Models are developed to meet different lifestyles, and to attract new target groups. Improvements in operation processes are also something that gets more attention. For example, project management and faster time-to-market. Many companies in the industry understand the value of a partnership relation with a company like Sapa, Inc. We know how to manufacture frames, and we constantly work with improvement projects to be able to bring value to our customers. For us, it has been a successful business concept.
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Percent of Trips by Travel Mode (all trip purposes) | Country | bicycle | walking | public transit | car | other | Netherlands | 30 | 18 | 5 | 45 | 2 | Denmark | 20 | 21 | 14 | 42 | 3 | Germany | 12 | 22 | 16 | 49 | 1 | Switzerland | 10 | 29 | 20 | 38 | 1 | Sweden | 10 | 39 | 11 | 36 | 4 | Austria | 9 | 31 | 13 | 39 | 8 | England/Wales | 8 | 12 | 14 | 62 | 4 | France | 5 | 30 | 12 | 47 | 6 | Italy | 5 | 28 | 16 | 42 | 9 | Canada | 1 | 10 | 14 | 74 | 1 | United States | 1 | 9 | 3 | 84 | 3 | Source: John Pucher, Transportation Quarterly, 98-1 (from various transport ministries and depts., latest avail. year) |
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Bicycle mode split by city: | Paris, Marseille, Lyon, Toulon, Metz and Reims, France | less than 2 percent | Rennes, Bordeaux, Toulouse and Nantes, France | 2-5 percent | Grenoble, Lille, Orleans, and Valence | 5-10 percent | Strasboug, France | 15 percent | Copenhagen, Denmark&Basel, Switzerland | 20 percent | New Dehli | 22 percent | Moscow, Russia | 24 percent | Tokyo, Japan and Odense, Denmark | 25 percent | Erlangen, Germany | 26 percent | Dhaka, Bangladesh | 40 percent | Beijing, China | 48 percent | Groningen, Netherlands | 50 percent | Shenyang, China | 65 percent | Tianjin, China | 77 percent |
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Bicycle Production of Selected Countries, 1990-2000 | | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | | Million Units | China | 31.9 | 36.8 | 40.3 | 41.0 | 42.0 | 41.0 | 38.0 | 30.0 | 23.1 | 42.7 | 52.2 | France | 1.5 | 1.2 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 1.6 | 1.8 | 1.9 | Germany | 3.9 | 4.9 | 4.6 | 4.1 | 3.5 | 3.2 | 2.9 | 2.8 | 3.2 | 3.2 | 3.2 | India | 8.4 | 8.8 | 9.0 | 9.9 | 10.5 | 11.5 | 11.3 | 11.0 | 10.5 | 11.0 | 11.0 | Indonesia | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.2 | 2.5 | 2.8 | 3.0 | 2.3 | 3.0 | 2.8 | 2.6 | N/A | Italy | 3.5 | 3.6 | 4.1 | 5.2 | 5.8 | 5.3 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 3.3 | 3.2 | Japan | 8.0 | 7.5 | 7.3 | 6.9 | 6.7 | 6.6 | 6.1 | 6.0 | 5.9 | 5.6 | 4.7 | Korea | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.3 | 1.1 | 1.2 | N/A | 0.9 | 0.8 | 0.6 | 0.6 | N/A | Malaysia | 0.3 | 0.4 | 0.6 | 0.7 | 0.8 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 0.8 | 0.7 | 0.8 | N/A | Taiwan | 6.8 | 7.7 | 7.5 | 7.9 | 9.2 | 9.7 | 7.4 | 11.9 | 10.1 | 8.3 | 7.5 | Thailand | 0.7 | 0.8 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.1 | 1.8 | 1.5 | 1.8 | 1.6 | 1.5 | N/A | United Kingdom | 1.3 | 1.2 | 1.2 | 1.1 | 1.2 | 1.2 | 1.2 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 1.3 | 1.2 | United States | 5.6 | 7.6 | 8.9 | 7.7 | 7.3 | 8.8 | 8.0 | 6.0 | 2.5 | 1.7 | 1.1 | N/A indicates not available. | Source: Bicycle Retailer & Industry News Directory, from Cycle Press, European Bicycle Manufacturers Association, Japan Bicycle Promotion Institute, Bike Europe, and Bicycle Retailer & Industry News. |
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United States Bicycle Market, 1991-2000 | Year | Total Shipments | Imports | Domestic Production | | Million Units | 1991 | 15.1 | 6.5 | 8.6 | 1992 | 15.4 | 6.3 | 9.1 | 1993 | 16.8 | 7.1 | 9.7 | 1994 | 16.7 | 7.0 | 9.7 | 1995 | 16.2 | 7.2 | 9.0 | 1996 | 15.5 | 7.5 | 8.0 | 1997 | 15.2 | 9.8 | 5.4 | 1998 | 15.8 | 13.8 | 2.0 | 1999 | 17.5 | 16.3 | 1.2 | 2000 | 20.9 | 20.2 | 0.7 | Source: Bicycle Retailer & Industry News Directory, from The Bicycle Council, U.S. Department of Commerce, and Bicycle Retailer & Industry News. |
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