Virgile Caillet, the general delegate of the Union of Sports and Bicycle Companies, points out “new consumption patterns for bicycles” with a 10% increase in repairs.
Published on April 24, 2026, at 3:23 PM
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/2026/04/24/69eb6ebd29ea8083151053.jpg "Decline in new bicycle sales in France in 2025, according to the Union of Sports and Cycle Companies")
New bicycle sales are declining in France in 2025, according to the Union of Sports and Bicycle Companies (UESC). In 2025, 1.84 million new bicycles were sold, about 100,000 fewer than in 2024 (1.95 million bicycles sold). “It’s quite confusing,” reacted Virgile Caillet, the general delegate of the Union of Sports and Bicycle Companies.
“More and more French people are using their bicycles but buying fewer new bicycles,” notes the general delegate of the Union of Sports and Bicycle Companies, who also highlights “new bicycle consumption patterns” with a 10% increase in repairs. “In France, we repair three times more bicycles than we sell new ones,” he says.
This decrease in sales is also attributed, according to Virgile Caillet, to the reduction in state or local government subsidies for purchases. A decrease that he considers “incomprehensible” and “in the current context.” “The message sent [by the state] is deplorable,” “it has had an impact on the willingness of the French to buy a new bicycle,” he asserts.
According to the general delegate of the Union of Sports and Bicycle Companies, this decline in sales “also has direct consequences on the bicycle industry and trade in France” as well as “employment,” as there have been “almost 150 stores that have had to close,” he points out.
