HEERENVEEN, Netherlands (BRAIN) — Accell Group N.V. said its bike sales rebounded in May after a steep decline in March and April. Bike shops in Germany, Accell's largest market, began to re-open at the end of April. May sales were up 23% over the same month last year.
The company also announced that it had increased production, although it was still running at about 70-80% capacity due to COVID-19 precautions in factories. It said it expected global supply chain issues due to COVID-19 for the remainder of the year which might delay the launch of new models this year.
Accell recently secured a two-year amortizing bank facility of 115 million euros ($130 million). "It mainly serves as an extra financial buffer in the case the impact of COVID-19 lasts longer and turns out to be more severe," the company said. Accell said it will not distribute a dividend for the remainder of its fiscal year.
Ton Anbeek, the CEO Accell Group, said, "The strong recovery of bike sales in May is clearly a very positive development, yet we are still trailing behind last year's numbers. The duration and impact of COVID-19 currently remains unpredictable and we anticipate that our 2020 results will be hampered by the ongoing disruptions in the global supply chain. The current uncertain environment requires us to be more prudent and this is also why we are glad to have improved our financial buffer. At the same time we are excited to see so many European governments, cities and consumers embrace cycling post lockdown, which contributes to a bright future for our brands and our business in the post-COVID-19 era."
Accell is the parent of bike brands including Haibike, Winora, Ghost, Batavus, Koga, Lapierre, Raleigh, Sparta, Babboe and Carqonm and the XLC parts and accessories brand. Accell sold its North American business and the Redline and Diamondback brands to Regent LP last year.
