Daily London
Research by industry analysts IBISWorld shows bikes were then flying off the racks as Australians embraced the activity, spurring a jump in profits from 2020 to 2022.
One bright spot has been continuing high demand for parts, accessories and repair services.
Bicycle Industries Australia chief executive Peter Bourke said retailers, manufacturers and importers were counting on the festive season this year.
“Christmas and the summer months have traditionally been our strongest periods … the wrapped bicycle under the Christmas tree is still a popular present,” he said.
Traditional bike shops continue to hold advantages over online retailers, including expert fittings, personalised advice and a skilled repair service, but they face a shifting market.
One example, highlighted by the IBISWorld research released in 2025, was Pedal Group’s 99 Bikes chain of stores across Australia.
The company expanded rapidly, increasing its number of physical stores to boost its market share.
But since the close of the pandemic, slumping demand caused the company to deal with oversupply issues, hampering its expansion.
And Australian cycle companies are not alone in facing a post-COVID sales slump.
Remember Peloton? The sports company turned out millions of exercise bikes and treadmills fitted with smart technology, fuelled by demand from fitness enthusiasts who were confined to home.
Sales boomed during lockdowns, but Peloton’s fortunes began to fade as vaccinations increased, gyms reopened and rivals offered competitive products.
Once the darling of the US stock market during COVID, by February 2022, its share price had collapsed and a painful company restructure followed, including shedding 2800 workers.
The rising popularity of e-bikes is also another challenge to sales of conventional, or analogue, bicycles.
The technology is expanding the market by appealing to a wider range of consumers than conventional, or analogue, bikes, requiring less pedalling and easier hill-climbing.
Many bike shops are now stocking e-bikes, but they’ve been competing with sales from private individuals and online suppliers, often spruiking powerful and illegally altered machines.
Australian import regulations controls on e-bikes were relaxed in 2021, leading to a flood of such e-bikes capable of travelling at more than 50km/h.
But in December 2025, after a spate of deaths and serious injuries of e-bike riders, federal and state authorities agreed to reinstate a key import standard to define legal e-bikes.
This would include the motor cutting out at a maximum assisted speed of 25km/h.
Looking ahead, the hope is a safer and better-regulated market will create a level playing field for established bike dealers.
Bourke says the industry is adapting to the heady changes, but the traditional local bicycle store selling everything, from children’s bikes with trainer wheels, to mountain bikes, commuter machines and racing cycles is probably on its way out.
“The general type of range will gradually fade away … what you will see is shops becoming more specified in what bikes they sell,” he said.
