Demand for vintage bikes soars at Portsmouth's independent bicycle shops

Demand for bikes at Christmas has largely been overtaken by technology and gaming gifts in recent years.

But this year has seen sales surge, after demand for both kids and adult bikes soared during lockdown as people looked for things to do locally outdoors.

This renewed demand, coupled with import delays, had led to some gaps in supply.

Smaller independent bike retailers such as Portsmouth’s Cycle World, said fluctuating stock levels in the summer had made a change to what is available this winter.

Simon Osborne from Cycle World, in London Road, Hilsea, said: ‘There are still some holes in the supply chain.

‘Although I’ve worked hard really hard with all the suppliers over lockdown, some of the bikes I’ve had through now have been ordered in March or April – that’s how long the lead time has been…but now we’re pretty much back to normal stock levels.’

However, it appears that the pandemic also affected which types we choose, as Victoria Knight who has been running Portsmouth Cycle Exchange, in Victoria Road North, Southsea for the last three years has noticed.

She said: ‘Before you used to get one labelled as “this year’s bike” at Christmas but, what’s happening now, is that wholesalers will send you the brand, but there will be lots of different models. Merida, GT and Ridgeback are our top three sellers for adult bikes.’

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She also said that this year, the pandemic has seen a throwback to vintage-style children’s bikes, with the Pro Cycle Vintage starting at £149 being the most popular.

Simon said he has also seen a rise in popularity for the vintage bikes.

He said: ‘Our most popular bike now is the cute Dawes Heritage style bikes with the baskets on. All our stock earlier in the year went within two months and I had people have been phoning me every single day, asking if they’ve come in yet.’

However the stores are hoping that the demand for bikes last past this Christmas.

They hope that the huge increase in home working, plus council support to promote the greener and healthier method of transport, will see bikes become an even more important part of life.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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