Getting out while the getting is good
It looks like the used bike market is starting to collapse around here. It's not just road bikes, it's all bikes. I've been staring down this fact for awhile now, and think now might be a good time to exit. To that end, I stopped buying awhile ago and started selling off remaining stock. Thought I'd share a few thoughts.
I'm not sure what led to the collapse of the used bike market here, but I suspect two main forces: bikeshare and uber/lyft. We might be able to sustain a hit from one of those, but not both. A third factor might be the glut of cheap new bikes from mass marketers, but in my mind it's a distant third.
How people get around now, especially young people, is radically different than when I was growing up. I didn't have bikeshare or uber/lyft. Would I have grown up differently if I didn't have to rely on a bike to get around? Can't say for sure, but there would have been less incentive to own and maintain a bike if someone or something else could have served all my transportation needs.
The end result is that bikes, at least in urban areas, are becoming less attractive to own and more attractive to rent. Bikeshare solves the storage problem big time, especially in crowded apartment buildings. You can go crosstown without having to return the bike to the same spot you took it. That makes a lot of interesting one-way trips possible if you're using another method to get home.
And if all you're using is uber/lyft, why even hop on a bike at all? Like the old saying goes, why walk if someone will carry you?
Lately, I've been seeing a lot more no-shows and more aggressive buyers, and a general decline in prices from just a year or two ago. That's when I decided, let's put a stop to this and see what comes next. Who knows, the market may come back someday, but I wouldn't count on it.
In the meantime, I'm selling out piecemeal. Not even sure I'll keep most of my tools, might keep a core supply and sell off everything else. So I'm not planning on a market return. If it happens, great. If it doesn't, also great. I'm good either way. I've had my fun.
I'm not sure what led to the collapse of the used bike market here, but I suspect two main forces: bikeshare and uber/lyft. We might be able to sustain a hit from one of those, but not both. A third factor might be the glut of cheap new bikes from mass marketers, but in my mind it's a distant third.
How people get around now, especially young people, is radically different than when I was growing up. I didn't have bikeshare or uber/lyft. Would I have grown up differently if I didn't have to rely on a bike to get around? Can't say for sure, but there would have been less incentive to own and maintain a bike if someone or something else could have served all my transportation needs.
The end result is that bikes, at least in urban areas, are becoming less attractive to own and more attractive to rent. Bikeshare solves the storage problem big time, especially in crowded apartment buildings. You can go crosstown without having to return the bike to the same spot you took it. That makes a lot of interesting one-way trips possible if you're using another method to get home.
And if all you're using is uber/lyft, why even hop on a bike at all? Like the old saying goes, why walk if someone will carry you?
Lately, I've been seeing a lot more no-shows and more aggressive buyers, and a general decline in prices from just a year or two ago. That's when I decided, let's put a stop to this and see what comes next. Who knows, the market may come back someday, but I wouldn't count on it.
In the meantime, I'm selling out piecemeal. Not even sure I'll keep most of my tools, might keep a core supply and sell off everything else. So I'm not planning on a market return. If it happens, great. If it doesn't, also great. I'm good either way. I've had my fun.