Warehouse retail showroom in 2014.
(Photos © J. Maus/BikePortland)

When Velotech announced the closure of their 10,000 square foot Western Bikeworks retail store in the Pearl District in September, gears were already turning to expand the company’s showroom at their warehouse location near the Portland Airport.

Tucked into an industrial park just north of Columbia Boulevard at 87th, the warehouse had always had a walk-up counter to represent their three brands – BikeTiresDirect.com, Western Bikeworks, and TriSports.com. For years there wasn’t much of a display and the space served primarily as Velotech’s offices, product warehouse, and bike assembly facility.

On Saturday (1/18) that will officially change as a new retail showroom is unveiled after significant renovations. [Read more…]

While bike shop closures have dominated headlines of late, there are other parts of the local cycling industry that deserve our attention. Below is a roundup of news from Portland-based bike businesses.[Read more…]

Universal’s Portland warehouse and retail showroom.
(Photos: Universal Cycles)

Another major Portland retail bike shop is leaving town. [Read more…]

Portland’s local bike culture and retail landscape has taken a few more hits. [Read more…]

New bikes at Willamette Mountain Mercantile in Oakridge. (Photo © J. Maus/BikePortland)

The latest receipts from Oregon’s bicycle excise tax show that revenue is still lower than lawmakers hoped for.

The $15 tax on new bicycles was one of several taxes passed by the Oregon Legislature in 2017 to raise revenue for transportation projects and programs. It went into effect on January 1st, 2018 and is collected at retail shops at the point of sale. It applies to all bicycles with a value of $200 and over. As part of the law, retailers must file quarterly returns with the Department of Revenue (DOR).

According to DOR, they collected about $500,000 in bike tax revenue during the 2018 calendar year. As of October 2019, they report payments so far this year of about $724,000.

These numbers show an uptick, but the totals fall short of the $1.2 million per year figure lawmakers were given prior to voting on the tax.
[Read more…]

Another cycling company has decided to pull up its Portland roots.

Parts and accessories distributor Cyclone Bicycle Supply will close its warehouse in Clackamas and offices in southwest Portland before the end of this year. The company is planning a warehouse liquidation sale December 13th and 14th.

Cyclone launched in Portland in 2003 as a small distributor serving bike dealers in the Pacific Northwest. By 2015 the company had grown to 3,000 dealers nationwide thanks to the rise of online sales and their purchase of an east coast distributor. Around that same time Cyclone doubled its Clackamas warehouse space from 50,000 to 100,000 square feet.
[Read more…]

(Photo: J. Maus/BikePortland)

Another large Portland bike retailer has decided to shut down its brick-and-mortar location. Western Bikeworks is set to announce today that their 10,000 square foot shop on the corner of Northwest 17th and Lovejoy will close before the end of this year.

Jay Torborg, CEO of Western Bikeworks’ parent company Velotech Inc, told us via email yesterday that the move comes as their lease is up for renewal and they’ve decided to prioritize their online business. “The expected future costs of operating the store have cast doubt on our ability to operate this store profitably,” he shared. [Read more…]

It’s been a rough few days for the Cat Six crew.
(Photo: Cat Six Cycles)

I’ve got two bits of bike shop news to share…
[Read more…]