Sudbury bike shop owner asking patrons to be patient as product availability slows

A shortage of new bicycles and bike parts, which started around the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, hasn't abated, a Sudbury shop owner says, and customers are becoming frustrated.

John Lalonde, owner of Sessions Ride Company, said bikes some parts a fork, for example could take over a year to arrive. New bikes are trickling in to his shop, but he's urging customers to be patient.

"People are panicking," Lalonde said. "I mean, it might as well be the new toilet paper."

This isn't the first rush on new bikes. Demand skyrocketed during the 2020 lockdown, and people who were shut out last year started ordering their new wheelsearly.

"People think,hey, I've got to get in front of the line this time. I've got to make sure that I don't miss the opportunity to get that bike. So they're banging down the doors at the bike shops trying to make sure they get in front of the line," he said.

"What they don't realize is coming in early right now doesn't necessarily mean you're going to get the bike, because the bikes are not showing up till later."

Most shops, Lalonde said, start seeing stock arrive in time for the Easter weekend. That's in a usual year. But this year, stores are only seeing a trickle of product.

Lalonde said the trend could continue well into the fall.

"Just yesterday, we got told about a shipping containerfreighter that is stuck in the middle of a massive shipping route that's going to further delay stuff," Lalonde said, referring to the Ever Given, a Panama-flagged ship that carries cargo between Asia and Europe, which ran aground Tuesday in the Suez Canal.

"It's layers on top of layers and layers of logistics problems. But people are getting that people are going to get the bikes eventually. It's just about being patient.

"It's going to be very, very spread out and things are going to kind of arrive very slowly," he said.

But Lalonde said he's still hopeful, especially when it comes to returning customers who frequent locally-owned, smaller stores.

"I think the customers that have the best relationships at the shops and in communicating with the shops what they're looking for, [owners] can keep an eye out," Lalonde said. "And when stuff comes in, give them a call."

"That kind of stuff is really what's going to go a long way this year."

But he's also waving a caution flag for those that are hoping to grab an early spring deal on a bike.

"I think people trying to run into stores and scramble around trying to buy a bike, it's going to be very, very hard to find one."