KITCHENER -- Bicycle sales are booming a year into the pandemic, which is making it tough to buy and sell them at shops in Waterloo Region.
The shortages are being experienced worldwide as well and leaving many cyclists without a ride.
“You’ll find one and you call on it and it’s gone,” said cyclist Dave Kirby. “And you find one and you call on it and it’s gone.”
He adds that he was lucky to snag the only bicycle left in stock at a Toronto shop, but had to spend $3,000 over budget.
“I just didn’t think I had to work this hard to find a bike,” said Kirby.
Ziggy’s Cycle in Kitchener has been struggling to find inventory as bike factories have slowed their supply due to the pandemic. They’ve ordered 1,000, but don’t know if that will be enough to meet the demand.
“We’ve experiencing delays of nine to 12 months from when we place the order,” said Dan Morgan of Ziggy’s. “We do still have some bikes coming in this year, but a lot of them already have someone’s name on them with a reserve.”
Clifford Vanclief, the co-owner of The Hub Bicycle Shop in Cambridge, says there are only 10 bikes left for sale, while an order of 400 more has already been placed.
“We have a list right now of about 100 people that are confirmed that will want to buy a bike,” he said. “Will we see our order within the spring? It’s hard to say, depending on when product availability hits the supplier.”
The shop’s also dealing with shortages in bike parts and accessories. Bike repair times are currently estimated to take up to three weeks.
“We’ve actually decided to close Mondays and Tuesdays just to focus on doing repairs only,” said Vanclief.
The Waterloo Bike Shop is also dealing with a low supply and a wait list of about 20 customers.
“We’re selling bikes a lot faster than they can actually manufacture them,” said co-owner Doug Cota.
He adds that those looking for a bike should be patient and to buy the one they like before it’s too late.
“Don’t just come back tomorrow, because chances are it won’t be here an hour later,” said Cota.
