Charlie: The COVID-19 pandemic led many people to take up biking as a socially distant hobby. There was one issue, there were very few bikes being sold here in Central New York and across the country due to major supply chain disruptions. Syracuse bicycle sales manager Zak Field says this caused a ripple effect.
Zak Field: So, we would see one plant that makes one specific bike part in Malaysia shut down for a week or two and that had months of repercussions afterwards and playing catch-up was quite difficult but hopefully we don’t have to navigate that ever again.
Charlie: Supply chain Issues not only led to less sales and higher prices here at Syracuse bicycle and other stores like it in the area and around the nation, but it changed the job of servicing bikes according to the service manager here.
Zach Ryan: When parts were so difficult to get the job often was keeping people informed trying to do the best you could, often just consoling and more customer service based where now we are able to turn bikes around so it’s less explaining and more being able to do the repairs and get people riding.
Charlie: According to field, costs for parts and bikes as whole were constantly rising during the pandemic. Now that it’s over, doing business has become a lot easier on both his team and consumers’ pockets.
Zak Field: So that was a little stressful having to change prices so frequently and so suddenly but now what we’re seeing is things have stopped raising in price or in fact they’ve gone back to their old ways and actually dropped in price.
Charlie: I’m Charlie Ben-Ami, NCC NEWS.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News)–During the pandemic, biking became a very popular hobby. It was a way for one to get outside while avoiding the dangers of Covid-19 contraction from close contact with others. A major issue emerged as interest in riding bikes rose, but the supply chain was completely unable to match demand.
Problems emerged for local bike vendors such as Syracuse Bicycle when suppliers across the globe had to shut down for periods of time in order to contain Covid outbreaks in factories. Syracuse Bicycle sales managers Zak Field says that shutdowns, in any form, had major effects on the business.
“So, we would see one plant that makes one specific bike part in Malaysia shut down for a week or two and that had months of repercussions afterwards and playing catch-up was quite difficult but hopefully we don’t have to navigate that ever again” said Field.
Not only did this mean that less bike parts and bikes were available for sale here in Central New York and across the country, but it meant a raise in prices by manufacturers. Field says that his store was helpless to these price changes but still was frustrated at the confusion that it caused consumers.
