News
New Cinelli and Columbus Owner Pledges to Restore Brands
Milan, Italy Italian heritage brands Cinelli and Columbus are part of a business takeover by a US company with its roots in fashion and reputation for building and restoring brands. Asobi Ventures this month confirmed it has now acquired 100% of Gruppo Srl, which includes Cinelli and Columbus – two brands with a combined history…
Harley Offshoot Now Pioneering e-Bike Connectivity
Milwaukee, US The poster child of noisy motorcycles, Harley-Davidson, has continued its move into micromobility by becoming one of the first manufacturers to incorporate Google Cloud connectivity into its e-bikes. The US company’s e-bike arm, Serial 1, last week launched its second-generation CTY e-bikes with the enhanced connectivity, to capture ride data, improve security and…
Crankworx Coming to Cairns
Cairns, Queensland The world’s biggest mountain bike festival, Crankworx, has added Cairns to the event’s destinations in 2022. Smithfield Mountain Bike Park will host this year’s third stop for the Crankworx World Tour, from 5th to 9th October, giving the bike industry another major platform to promote its products and services to the Australian market.…
How’s Business? – May 2022
Welcome to our monthly chat with dealers from across Australia and New Zealand. From a range of previous conversations we’ve been having with wholesalers and retailers over recent months, it seems the pendulum has been swinging in relation to which categories of bikes are now in shortest supply due to covid. The initial surge of…
Early Year Surge for Bike Imports
Melbourne, Victoria Bicycle imports to Australia hit record levels during the first three months of 2022, with an estimated 381,126 bikes brought into the country during what is traditionally a quiet period. Figures release this month by Bicycle Industries Australia (BIA) show imports for the recently concluded quarter were easily the highest for the first…
Expo Bookings Now Open for 2022 Micromobility Conference & Expo
Randwick, NSW All bicycle industry members are now able to book expo space for the 2022 Micromobility Conference & Expo. This new annual event, to be held on Friday 25th and Saturday 26th November, is being presented by The Latz Report and our sister publication, Micromobility Report. “Traditional bicycle industry members should not be put…
Lekker Bikes Opens Much Larger Sydney Showroom
Alexandria, NSW On Thursday evening 28th April, Lekker Bikes held a grand opening party for its new Sydney Brand Store. Lekker is a Dutch brand that actually started in Australia. We spoke with Saskia van Lier, who is Lekker’s Commercial Director, responsible for Australian operations. “We had a very tiny boutique in Surry Hills,” Saskia…
BikeExchange Signs Partnership with Top US e-Mobility Firm
Miami, US Melbourne-based online retailer BikeExchange has boosted its presence in the e-mobility market by signing a partnership with US company Simply EV. The Simply EV chain of more than 50 stores and e-commerce sells a range of e-bikes, e-scooters, electric motorcycles, e-marine and accessories. It is part of Revolution Brands International and stocks one…
Specialized Appoints First Chief of Worldwide Markets
California, US Former Pon.Bike and Canyon chief Armin Landgraf has been appointed Specialized’s Chief of Worldwide Markets. A statement by Specialized says Armin will be “responsible for driving excellence and innovation in rider and retailer engagement to create a modern ecosystem that amplifies benefits to riders, retailers, and the brand”. “Armin knows how to lead…
Samsung Preparing to Trial Solid-State Battery Production
Gyeonggi-do, South Korea Samsung has started constructing a pilot production line for solid-state batteries. The company’s battery development arm, Samsung SDI, is developing its ‘S-Line’ in the South Korean province of Gyeonggi-do, in a bid to become a market leader in solid-state batteries. The rise of solid-state batteries could bring major benefits for the bicycle…