Bicycle vendors are experiencing a real golden age! This is certainly one of the “beneficial” consequences of Covid-19 if any can be found.
More and more cyclists
With repeated confinements and curfews, but also with the state bonus of 50 euros to repair our cycles, which is extended until the end of March, more and more of us are returning to this mode of transport. .
Demand is strong from consumers
This is what explains Thierry cornec, the new CEO of the group Lapierre to Dijon. “We can feel it every day since June. Demand is strong from consumers who want to move around or use the bike for their trips rather than taking public transport.”
Sales exceed 20% compared to before Covid
This is how sales have been soaring since last June at Lapierre, some months we are at +20 and most often at + 30% compared to before Covid. At Lapierre it takes between 500 euros to afford a bike, for the first prices, and up to 8,000 euros for the more elaborate. Who are the most attractive to customers?
Electric bike sales boost the market
“Very clearly these are electric bikes in price zones between 2,000 euros and 4,500 euros. To a lesser extent we also sell more so-called ‘performance’ bikes, that is to say the bikes of enthusiasts of sport. But it is mainly electric bicycles that are benefiting from this increase in demand “ expose Thierry cornec.
A dozen additional employees
To face the business Stone which already has a hundred employees in Dijon but also in southern Europe will still hire. “We are recruiting or are going to recruit a dozen or even a dozen additional people. For example, we have hired a mechanic who is shared between the various sites in Dijon, including the Experience Center, to compensate for the increase in demand for repairs bikes” confirms the business manager.
Mechanics and salespeople on permanent contracts
The other positions are sales and project monitoring positions, but Lapierre is also looking for other mechanics. These new employees will be hired on permanent contracts in Dijon and in Southern Europe but Thierry cornec is nevertheless cautious. “I am very attentive to the evolution of all indicators (…) to know in which segments we can bet on sustainable growth and which parts of our teams we must strengthen”.
A new “Experience Center” will open mid-March
The Lapierre group, which is continuing its development with a new “Experience Center” which is due to open in Besançon in mid-March, the store will not be managed directly by Lapierre but by another company.
Thierry Cornec, the new CEO of the group is the guest of the Nouvelle éco de France Bleu Bourgogne, you will hear him on the radio at 7.15 am this Tuesday January 26, 2021 (98.3 or 103.7) or by clicking on the link above .
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