Posts by Phil Latz
Cannondale and GT to End Model Year System
As every dealer knows, most of the world’s bicycle brands have for many years operated on a model year system. The theoretical upside of this system is to drive consumer demand through a desire to own the current year model. But the reality is that most models don’t really change that much from one year…
Former Shimano President Yoshizo Shimano Dies
Yoshizo Shimano, third son of company founder Shozaburo Shimano has died at the age of 85. After earning his economics degree from Keio University in Tokyo, he briefly worked at an automobile sales company before joining Shimano Industrial Co., Ltd., now Shimano Inc. He established the company’s first overseas operation, Shimano American Corporation in New…
Have You Used Your 2020 Yearbook Yet?
What do you do when you’re looking for a source of supply for a particular brand or product category? Since 1996 most bicycling trade members have relied upon the Yearbook to tell them who is supplying every brand and product type. Just in case you missed it, last month we launched The Latz Report Yearbook…
BikeSportz Picks up Alpinestars
BikeSportz is broadening its product portfolio with the well known brand Alpinestars that’s most closely associated with MTB. From 9th July 2020 onwards, Alpinestars cycling apparel and protective gear is available for dealer orders in Australia. Kahill Teirney, Alpinestars Australian Brand Manager said, “Designed to perform on epic mountain adventures and local bike trails, Alpinestars…
Mavic Secures a New Owner
Having gone into receivership in May and gone through the courts to find new backers, no less than 15 different parties expressed interest in purchasing this iconic French company. On On 22nd July the new owner was announced by the court. Mavic is now owned by the Bourrelier Group, a French investment firm. According to…
European Cargo Bike Sales Growing at Over 50% Per Year
Results of a comprehensive European Union funded survey into the cargo bike industry’s sales suggest that sales across Europe are likely to increase by just over 50% this year. The ‘CityChangerCargoBike’ project undertook the inaugural study of 38 brands operating in the sector who provided anonymised data. Here is a summary of European cargo bike…
Let’s Seize This Golden Opportunity!
Clearly we’ve seen a global tragedy unfold over the first half of 2020. At the time of writing this (23rd July 2020) we’ve seen over 15 million Covid-19 cases leading to over 624,000 deaths worldwide, according to official figures, with actual numbers likely to be much higher. Meanwhile Australia is battling the much feared ‘second…
Australian Wholesalers Want Faster eBikes
A survey of 55 Australian wholesalers who sell ebikes found that 73% of them would like our legislation changed to increase the maximum speed of power assistance from the current 25kph to 32kph. Bicycle Industries Australia (BIA) conducted a three question survey of wholesalers. In answer to the first question as to what their preferred…
Heavy Duty Cargo Trailers Coming to Australia
Melbourne based Dutch Cargo Bike will distribute Carla Cargo’s heavy-duty cargo trailers to commercial customers. Based in Germany, Carla Cargo was founded in 2018 and is now exporting its trailers across the UK, Europe and USA. The trailers have their own electric drive system and can handle loads of 150kg in trailer mode and 200kg…
Vittoria Tyres Sold After 30 Years of Growth
The owners of Vittoria Group, including founder and president Rudie Campagne, have sold their global bicycle tyre business to Wise Equity, an Italian group. Campagne, who is 76, will retire this month. Wise Equity partner Stijn Vriends is being named president and CEO. Campagne bought the Italian company Vittoria Spa in 1990, when it was…