Posts by Phil Latz
KWT Imports – Kevin William Thompson’s Amazing Bicycle Journey
– Sponsored Content – Yandina, Queensland Kevin William Thompson, founder of KWT Imports has been either racing or selling bikes for 71 of his 86 years… so far. He and his son Eamon who is now managing the business recently sat down with The Latz Report for a long yarn. Unfortunately, some wonderful anecdotes from…
How’s Business? November 2021
Welcome to our monthly chat with retailers across Australia and New Zealand. We all know that bike supply is tight, particularly for higher-end bikes, say anything over $2,000. But just like covid, you can get sick of hearing the same news. And of course, supply is only one of the two key factors that will…
Please Help me Celebrate 60 or Bust!
Link Sports Adds Brands and Relocates to Larger Premises
Sydney, NSW Link Sports has shifted headquarters while adding three bike brands. The company, which has served as a long-term distributor of brands including Burgtec, Spank, KS and Slikoleum, has moved to a larger warehouse in Rydalmere, NSW, while shifting its servicing and warranty support to a satellite service centre in East Maitland, NSW. Director…
How Many More IBDs will Bike Brands Acquire?
San Francisco, California, USA Are we beginning to see a wider pattern of major bicycle companies looking to ‘vertically integrate’ by buying out some of their dealers or starting new stores from scratch? Already for several years, Trek has been progressively buying dealers and in some cases starting new stores. This is USA head office…
Sponsorships and Community Engagement
‘Community Engagement’ is a sometimes misused buzzword. We define it as ‘a relational process that occurs at a local level.’ But it doesn’t just have to mean a local geographic level. You could be engaging with a community of people who have a common interest. They might even be a geographically dispersed community that meets…
If You Read Nothing Else Read This! Bike Supply… The Sequel
From conversations with various industry members over recent weeks it seems that, after a brief respite, bicycle stock supplies are tightening again – just as we lead into our busy summer season, potentially leading to a bike shortage in Australia. Right now, some of the biggest questions on most Australian bicycle retailers’ minds include, ‘When…
Vietnam Shut Down Impacts Australian High End Bike Supply
When you think about bicycle and component manufacturing countries in Asia, chances are that your list would start with China, Taiwan and perhaps Japan. But Vietnam has become an increasingly important production hub over recent years. This has been partly as a way for global brands to avoid the ‘anti-dumping’ measures imposed upon Chinese manufacturers…
Why Has Global Shipping Become So Chaotic and Expensive?
If you’re a wholesaler, you know first-hand that shipping prices have gone through the roof since covid hit. If anything, the situation is getting worse, not better. It’s not just the price that’s problematic. There are long delays, fewer ships sailing to Australia and New Zealand and our ports are chocked with empty containers while…
How’s Business? Stock Supply Special! October 2021
Welcome to our monthly chat with bicycle shop owners and managers across Australia and New Zealand where we simply ask ‘How’s Business?’ In keeping with our stock supply theme for this month, our follow up question was, ‘How much bike stock do you have now and how confident are you that you’ll have enough for…