Oregon Bicycle Industry Regional Economic Significance
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FEBRUARY 2014 OREGON BICYCLE INDUSTRY REGIONAL ECONOMIC SIGNIFICANCE Prepared By: Dean Runyan Associates Inc. Oregon Bicycle Industry Regional Economic Significance 19 February 2014 Prepared for the Oregon Tourism Commission Salem, Oregon Dean Runyan Associates, Inc. 833 SW 11th Avenue, Suite 920 Portland, Oregon 97205 (503) 226-2973 FAX 226-2984 www.deanrunyan.com Cover photo credits: bikeportland.org, sustainablebusinessoregon.com, bikeschool.com, bikefriday.com, westernbikeworks.com Contents PREFACE SUMMARY I. INTRODUCTION 1 Bicycle Industry Identification 1 Data collection 2 II. BICYCLE INDUSTRY CHARACTERISTICS 5 Industry Composition 5 Location 6 Organization 6 Age 8 Manufacturer’s product distribution 9 Other categories 10 III. ECONOMIC SIGNIFICANCE 11 Employment 11 Earnings 14 Sales 15 Customer base 16 Input sources 17 IV. GROWTH POTENTIAL 20 Expansion potential 20 Hindrances to expansion 21 APPENDIX 23 QUESTIONNAIRE 24 Preface This research would not have been possible without the generous financial support of Bikes Belong and Cycle Oregon. Travel Oregon provided oversight for the project and valuable review and recommendations throughout. In addition, several organizations provided valuable support of the data collection process, including the Bicycle Transportation Alliance, Oregon Bicycle Constructors Association, Oregon Bicycle Racing Association and the Portland Transportation Bureau. Our special thanks also goes out to the many shops, manufacturers and other members of the bicycle industry that provided the data necessary to complete the research. Summary Bicycling and the bicycle industry are iconic in Oregon, representing a unique aspect of the state’s identity and economy. Because many bicycle industry businesses are small, and government statistics include bicycle manufacturing and other businesses only as part of larger categories, specific industry information is limited. This study provides basic data for the bicycle industry in Oregon, including its size and geographic distribution, the nature of its businesses, and their sales, employment and earnings. For analysis purposes the industry is broken out into the following categories: Manufacturing Big box retail Wholesale/Distribution Tour operation Bicycle retail/service Event promotion, event services Sporting goods retail Industry representation Industry Characteristics Retail/service businesses amount to over 400 outlets, including over 200 bike shops; Manufacturers total about 90 About half of all bicycle industry businesses and organizations are located in the Portland Metropolitan Area; the Willamette Valley, Southern and Central Oregon are the next most significant Many bicycle industry businesses and organizations are relatively young – nearly two thirds opened since the year 2000; Manufacturers are the youngest on average, and retail and service business the oldest Economic Significance The Oregon bicycle industry provides 2,645 jobs, counting both full and part-time employees as well as business owners that work in their businesses The majority of bicycle business and organization employment is located in the Portland metro area or the Willamette Valley, followed by Central and Southern Oregon Manufacturing and distribution employment in particular is located in the Portland metro area, with much of the remainder located in the Willamette Valley An analysis of bicycle industry employment density shows that Central Oregon is the leader, followed by the Portland metro area and the Gorge/Mt Hood region Total 2012 bicycle industry earnings estimated by this study amount to $83.3 million; Manufacturing/Distribution and Retail/Service are the largest categories Total 2012 bicycle industry sales amounted to $440 million, with the largest portions represented by Retail/Service establishments and Manufacturing/Distribution businesses Bicycle industry manufacturers sell only about 22% of their output in the local area, and export about 53% to other US locations and another 15% outside the US Growth Potential Nearly a third of manufacturing/distribution businesses report “Substantial” opportunities for expansion; retail businesses are more moderately optimistic The three most important hindrances to business expansion are “Overall economic conditions,” “Competition” and “Can’t get adequate funding.” About a quarter report no hindrances to their expansion I. Introduction Bicycling and the bicycle industry are iconic in Oregon, representing a unique aspect of the state’s identity and economy. Bicycling and bicycle enthusiasts are targets for the state’s travel promotions, associated with the state’s desirable quality of life. In addition, the bicycle industry, as part of the outdoor gear and activewear industry segment, is one of the state’s and City of Portland’s economic development priorities. Specific economic information for Oregon’s bicycle industry is limited however. Many bicycle industry businesses are small, and government statistics include bicycle manufacturing and other businesses only as part of larger categories. While some data are available at the national level on bicycle retail and service, specific figures for Oregon are limited due to small sample sizes. This study provides basic data for the bicycle industry in Oregon, including its size and geographic distribution, the natures of its businesses, and their sales, employment and earnings. Because a survey was utilized for data collection, other aspects of the industry could be investigated as well, such as business intentions and hindrances to growth. Bicycle Industry Identification For purposes of this research it is necessary to identify those business and organizations that represent the industrial categories used to define the “bicycle Industry” in Oregon. The focus here is on businesses and organizations that directly involve bicycle manufacturing, sales, service, and use for a bicycle-specific activity. Organizations that represent various segments of these businesses for marketing or public relations purposes are also included. Government units, such as bicycle advocacy offices or transportation pools that include bicycles, are not included. The categories employed are as follows: Manufacturing Bicycles, components, tools, painting, clothing, accessories Wholesale/Distribution Including importing Retail/Service Sales, repair; includes specialized shops as well as retailers that sell bicycles in addition to other items Tour operation Paid group rides, travel or tours that include bicycle events Event promotion, event Bicycle races, shows, other short-term activities or events services Industry representation Bicycle oriented lobbying, public relations, marketing, member services 1 Other Includes certain bicycle-related services and ancillary products For purposes of some data analysis the Manufacturing and Wholesale/Distribution categories are combined, as well as the Tour Operation and Event Promotion categories. For the former, survey findings indicated that the distinction between manufacturing and distribution is sometime difficult to discern – some companies report that they contract for some or all of their manufacturing out-of-state (including overseas) and function within the state largely as a distributor. Others may manufacture some items (which they also distribute) but in addition include other product lines for which they serve just as distributors. The distinction between tour operation and event promotion was also difficult to make, for example when some respondents report that they promote bicycle tours but classified their activity in the survey as event promotion. In addition the number of businesses in these categories is small, so combining the responses improved the size of the category. Data collection The research makes use of data from a variety of sources, including a bicycle industry inventory database assembled for purposes of characterizing the industry in Oregon, and a survey that gathered data not available from any other source. Bicycle industry database An inventory was assembled of all businesses and organizations in the categories above that have a business location in Oregon, including both for-profit and not-for-profit entities. Government agency or agency components are not included. Similarly, companies or organizations that are active in the state but do not have a business location here, such as certain tour companies, distributors and advocacy organizations, are not included. Data were assembled from a number of sources, including: Membership and contact lists provided by the Bicycle Transportation Alliance The Oregon Bicycle Constructors Association’s member list The Bicycle Retailer & Industry News 2013 Industry Directory Mountain Zone’s online list of bicycle shops The Portland Transportation Bureau’s online list of bicycle shops The Interbike trade show’s list of attending retailers The bike shop inventory from RideOregonRide.com Company-specific listings for multi-location companies, Big Box and Sporting Goods outlets in particular 2 Web based research covering all regions of Oregon, including online listings such as Yelp, Manta and Yellowpages The database includes a street address as well as an email address, if available. The former is used to establish the location of the business or organization with respect to the geographic regions of the state. The resulting database is used to represent the bicycle industry in Oregon as of early 2013. Entries total 542 businesses and organizations, counting