Germans buy more bikes than any other European nation
European manufacturers produce 13 million a year
Germany plays a special role in the European bicycle industry as the venue for EUROBIKE, the annual trade fair held in Friedrichshafen on Lake Constance, which last year attracted almost 40,000 trade visitors and 1,550 journalists from 75 countries. It has long been the leading global event of its kind. This year’s EUROBIKE will be held between September 1 and 4.
Increasing numbers of European countries see the bicycle as playing a key role in solving transport, environmental and health problems. As well as being a popular means of transport and leisure activity, cycling makes an important contribution to the European economy, with manufacturers alone employing some 21,000 people. The leading European producers are Italy, Germany, the Netherlands and Poland. According to a study by the trade associations COLIBI and COLIPED, European manufacturers produce some 13 million bikes each year. Unlike other industries, a high proportion of their output is sold in Europe, where total sales amount to some 20.4 million.
The biggest European producer is Italy, which makes 2.38 million bicycles a year. Germany comes an extremely close second, with 2.37 million. In terms of parts production, the gap is much wider, with Italian companies such as Campagnolo and Cinelli having an output in value terms of €559 million, followed by Germany at €190 million.
In terms of numbers, the biggest European market for bicycles is Germany, where 4.3 million are sold each year, followed by France with 3.4 million and Britain with 3.3 million.
As far as retail value sales are concerned, the picture is slightly different: Germany still heads the list at €1.7 billion, but the Netherlands, that quintessential cycling nation, ranks second with €954 million. The average Dutch buyer invests €688 in a new bike, compared to €386 in Germany.
EUROBIKE takes place from Wednesday September 1 to Saturday September 4, 2010. The first three days are for trade visitors only, and the event is also open to the public on the Saturday. The EUROBIKE demo day for dealers and journalists takes place in Argenbühl im Allgäu on Tuesday August 31.
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