CIE President Tony Grimaldi and Industry Manager Jacques Lovell counted among the international delegates taking part in the 2025 Taipei Cycle Show. It was a great opportunity to catch-up with key international contacts, meet new potential partners and take stock of the latest developments driving the bicycle island’s industry forwards.
Our Industry Manager Jacques Lovell was making his second trip to the show after his maiden voyage last year. Here are five things that left an impression on him during this year’s visit, in addition to the obvious one: “Next time I will need to plan a longer stay here so that I can go visit the country properly. Taipei City is an exciting, bustling and culturally rich melting pot of ideas, food and fun, but I need to make the most of the tremendous cycling and touring the East coast offers”.
1. Cautious Optimism About Industry Recovery
Amidst the imminent announcement of the Trump administration’s new trade tariffs, the ongoing struggles to clear excess inventory in the cycling industry and a relatively low international visitor count, the overall mood at the show was somewhat upbeat and certainly more optimistic than during the 2024 edition. Perhaps the quality of Taiwanese hospitality, food and trade show management would inevitably bring me to seeing things in a ‘glass half full’ way.
But the updates given by the Taiwan Bicycle Association during the Opening Ceremony genuinely did give tangible sense that the worst of the ‘covid hangover’ is behind us. I have learned to treat any talk about ‘recovery of demand’ in cycling with a pinch, if not a handful, of salt, but the reduction of excess inventories is happening and the industry is drawing lessons from the past. This echoed the sentiment in CIE’s 2025 Business Impact Survey in which respondents broadly saw their businesses still affected by supply chain and inventory issues, but to a lesser extent than in 2024.
2. Taiwanese Industry Now Walking the Talk on Sustainability
My background in EU public affairs means that I have observed too many ambitious ‘green’ corporate announcements fall flat, to put it mildly, because the good intentions often only seem to last as long as the limelight. Last year, the Taiwanese cycling industry made several major announcements on sustainable bike manufacturing with CO2 emission reductions topping the list of good intentions, so I was very keen to see how things had moved forward one year on.
I was thus pleased to see that last year’s announcements have led to tangible developments. The efforts of the Cycling & Health Tech Industry R&D Center (CHC) and the Bicycling Alliance for Sustainability (BAS) are delivering, with 87% of BAS members having completed greenhouse gas inventories, 48% calculated product carbon footprints, and some members have begun developing Product Category Rules (PCR) for bicycle products. I tend to find that clear methodologies, standards and measurements are much stronger inroads towards sustainability gains than vague calls for ‘net-zero’ in a quarter of a century.
Furthermore, the sustainability topic is being approached much more holistically. Reducing carbon emissions is critical and as such a big part of the picture, but the heightened focus on human rights, working conditions and resource efficiency in Taiwan are good news for global supply chains and strengthen the case for the bicycle as the most sustainable form of transportation.
3. Need to Work More Closely with Sporting Goods Industry
The fact that the Taipei Cycle Show takes place alongside Taiwan's premier sports and fitness B2B expo, TaiSPO, is clearly no coincidence. Both industries have much in common – from diverse usage of raw materials, endless innovate options to cater for athletes’ desire for marginal gains, and products that can be used for performance or day-to-day comfort alike. From my perspective in an industry association, I see a lot of potential synergies and challenges we can address more effectively by working together at international level.
This makes particular sense in the field of sustainability, where major sports brands have moved forward fast on key topics like product passports, CO2 inventory and calculation methodologies, which cycling brands can pick up and adapt to the specifics of the bicycle. At global level, cycling companies and sports’ brands have a common and legitimate interest to promote health and physical activity, reversing a worrying trend among today’s global population and youth. While some might say that cycling competes indirectly with other outdoor activities, I would tend to argue the most important issue is to promote healthy lifestyles built around a healthy mix of outdoor hobbies and ‘active’ mobility, so it makes complete sense to speak, with one voice on these topics.
4. Cycling Industries Europe Start-up Members Rack Up Awards
I remember discovering Dutch start-up Tiler at the 2024 Velo-City conference in Ghent – much closer to home than in Taipei – and thinking that their wireless charging system for e-bike batteries has immense potential for urban mobility and shared bike networks in particular.
It was a pleasure to hear from Tiler again towards the end of 2024 when they joined CIE as a start-up member company, where they immediately took up an active role within our expert groups, and have not shied away from reaching out to the CIE team with questions, comments, suggestions and input. We love members who get quickly involved! I was thus secretly rooting for Tiler during the Best Rising Star Award at Bike Vision during Taipei Cycle. The Manchester United fan in me is not used to seeing the team I root for win of late, so that was a very nice change. Jokes aside, Tiler’s innovation could be a significant game-changer for e-bike charging and shared mobility, and its biggest weakness may be the fact that it comes across as ‘too good to be true’ when you hear about it the first time.
My first exchange with another company offering a ‘too good to be true’ product happened last year in Taipei, when I met Retyre and discovered their rubber-free tyre made from 100% reusable materials. Made in Norway, of all places. Since joining CIE last year in spring, ReTyre have been going from strength to strength and their innovation achievement was justly recognised, receioving the Taipei Cycle d&i Awardin the Tyre/Component category for the Inti 20” tyre.
5. Europe and Taiwan Inspire Each Other to Go the Extra Mile
Ultimately the Taipei Cycle Show 2025 highlighted the industry's resilience, commitment to sustainability, and the power of international collaboration in shaping the future of cycling.
The collaboration between European and Taiwanese industries was evident. European insights into policies shaping cycling were shared, while Taiwan's organized industry structure, exemplified by entities like the Taiwan Bicycle Association and the Bicycle Alliance for Sustainability, provided valuable lessons. From the exchanges I had and witnessed, I have the feeling that Europe and Taiwan can learn from and aspire each other like sparring partners.
One idea I have seen take shape in Taiwan that I would be particularly keen to ‘bring home’ is establishing carbon credits for cycling, whereby cyclists are rewarded financially for their contribution to decarbonising mobility. Green policies in Europe all too often seem focused on the stick rather than carrots, so it would make sense to bring balance and reward those doing the right thing.
Photo credit: Taipei Cycle Show Facebook
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