The e-bike industry has seen significant growth in recent years as technology has advanced and the idea of riding an electric bicycle has gained ground. Now, at least in the United States, the pace of that growth might have reached an uphill incline. That would be the tariffs imposed by the current administration, which has thrown a wrench in the works of a number of companies with overseas supply chains.
In an update on their website, State Bicycle Company announced that they were adding an 8% Tariff Recovery Fee to items affected by the recent tariffs. “[W]e expect this to result in bike and component shortages, especially on high-demand models, much like what we saw during the early COVID pandemic,” the company stated. They went on to explain why they were adding this as a standalone fee rather than increasing their prices across the board.
“We believe in transparency,” they wrote. “Rather than bury the increase in our pricing, we’re itemizing it. When tariffs drop, so will this fee.”
State isn’t the only company opting for transparency. In a lengthy blog post, Aventon explained their reactions to the new tariffs while also detailing how some of their supply chains work. They noted that several industry players, including Aventon, have relocated where their bicycles are made from China to elsewhere in the region. That’s come with some costs, however. “Southeast Asia’s supply chain infrastructure is less mature,” they noted — and went on to state that a number of “critical parts” are still made in China, and thus still fall under the purview of the new U.S. tariffs.
Is It Time to Buy an E-Bike?
If you’re thinking about getting an e-Bike, consider buying it through Upway.Aventon stated that this had increased some of its costs, but that it was opting to absorb those due to concerns over inflation. “We recognize that rising living costs weigh heavily on our customers,” they wrote.
Writing at Electrek, Micah Toll has a good analysis of Aventon’s announcement — and points out a few areas where that announcement may have understated the issues at hand. Toll pointed out that the amount of expertise in bicycle manufacturing in China is significantly higher than almost anywhere else in the world, and that replicating it may be difficult or impossible. This isn’t an issue confined to one industry; board game manufacturers are experiencing something similar, to cite one example. But it’s certainly a sign of rough waters ahead.
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