Shimano's sales are falling again and they have identified the reason

The downward trend in the bicycle market continues in the first half of 2024, as reflected in the data presented by Shimano for the first half of the year. A trend that can be perfectly extrapolated to the entire market, as Shimano is the world's leading bicycle supplier.

20.7% year-on-year drop in Shimano sales during the first half of 2024

$1.050 billion, this is the net amount of sales that Shimano has achieved during the first half of 2024. A figure that represents a 20.7% decrease compared to the same period last year, confirming the adjustment that is taking place in the market after the boom years following the pandemic and the subsequent inflation crisis caused by events such as the war in Ukraine.

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According to sources at Shimano, the strong interest in bicycles continues as a long-term trend, making this decline that continues the trend of the past two years for the Japanese firm not a huge concern for the brand. They also highlight that inventories have remained high, so supply issues experienced during the pandemic seem to be completely forgotten.

Shimano attributes this decrease in sales to the performance of the markets in Oceania and Central America, while highlighting solid sales in Germany, Benelux, and especially in the Chinese market, where road cycling continues to increase in popularity.

Related to this activity, Shimano highlights the strong demand for their flagship touring group, the Shimano 105, as well as the new Shimano GRX gravel bikes.

With these data and after analyzing the market situation, Shimano has raised its initial sales forecast for the overall 2024 by 7%, a figure that already assumed a 5% loss compared to those achieved in 2023.