BOULDER, Colo. (BRAIN) — As this unforgettable year comes to end, retailers are eager for a little off-season rest, but anxious about the prospects for 2021. Will they have enough supply? Enough workers? Will a soft economy or COVID-19 lockdowns curb demand, or has everyone who ever wanted a bike already got one?
For a feature in our December magazine, we touched base with 16 retailers to get their take on the 2020 season and their predictions for 2021. We'll be sharing snapshots from those interviews online over the next two weeks.
David Howard, Pedal the Peaks, Durango, Colo.
We saw a huge service uptick in the beginning of spring 2020. We could barely keep our heads above water from March through May. We are a big demo bike hub and we decided to hold on to our fleet this year because of the uncertainty in the supply chain. We could have sold our available bikes ten times over this summer.
It seems like the supply chain is starting to catch up, but I can't imagine it being 'normal' in 2021. Parts is where we're having the biggest problems: having bikes to work on, and not having the availability of parts to fix them.
All of our bike suppliers have been doing their best with great communication and updates on production. Our parts dealers have been just as slammed. Things are gone minutes after they've been restocked and if you're too slow, you're screwed.
