Accell, Europe's biggest bike supplier heads to Taipei Show


A full contingent of Accell executives is preparing to head to Taipei, as the Dutch-based bicycle and fitness company steps up its investments in Asian markets.
"The Taipei show is unlike any other because it involves purchasing as well as sales," said René Takens, chief executive of the Accell group. "Taipei is where we will hold final discussions with our suppliers about the upcoming range, but it's also an opportunity to strengthen our presence in Asian markets".

The Accell group, behind brands from Sparta to Winora, Batavus, Ghost, Lapierre, Koga-Miyata, will send about 25 people to welcome visitors at its booth in Taipei this year। Along with purchasing and product development staff from many parts of the Accell group, the contingent will include international sales executives from Lapierre and Ghost Bikes, the two brands picked by the Dutch group to spearhead its investments in the Asia-Pacific region.

According to Florian Robin, international sales manager at French brand Lapierre, "The Taipei show will be most important for us, as it should enable us to finalise agreements in several Asian markets," said. "We will move cautiously, building Asian relationships for the long term".

Taiwan's bike exports

Taiwan's bike exports down 20% from 2008 high

Preliminary full year figures for 2009 show that Taiwan's bike exports fell about 20% last year to a total of 4।3 million units (2008 = 5.4m units). The drop should be seen in the light of the extraordinary growth in 2008: exports in 2009 were still higher than 2006's figure of about 4 million. On the value side of the equation, the 2009 statistics show that total export value sales dropped only 9.9 percent to 1.25 billion US$. This is a clear result of increased high-end production within the industry: the average sales price for a Taiwan-made bicycle increased from US$256.92 to US$289.38, a gain of 12.6 percent.

While Taiwan bicycle exports to NAFTA countries were down 13.58 percent to 721,689 units (6.97 percent down in value to US$323 million), bike sales to the EU market dropped 22.49 percent to 2.8 million units and 13.61 percent to US$625 million in value. The EU and NAFTA markets are Taiwan's largest customers followed by EFTA (down 21.19 percent to 109,381 units and 13.51 percent down to US$44.6 million in value). The final statistics will be announced by the Taiwan Bicycle Exporters Association at the Taipei Show, although only minor adjustments are expected.