IT’S A BICYCLE BOOM!

DEANO’S BICYCLE REPAIRS, 215 VICTORIA STREET, TAREE.

Dean Grace, from Deano’s Bicycle Repairs Taree, is finally a happy man. After catastrophic fires that wreaked havoc on bike trails, minor floods and then the initial scare of COVID-19, his business has gone from quiet to boom.

“Business has boomed in the last 4 weeks,” Dean reports. “With all the gyms shut and everyone instructed not to go out (unless exercising), bikes have become are the new toilet paper. Everyone wants a piece of the action.”

Bike distributors are low on stock and all the new bikes are pretty much sold out. Meanwhile, all around Taree old bikes are coming out of hibernation and customers are turning to Dean to get them back into safe riding condition so they can get out and enjoy the sunshine.

For a bloke with 35 years of bike experience, 5 years in his own business, these are exciting times. Dean and his assistant, Josh, are only too happy to work their magic on your bike. So brisk is business that for each bike repair that goes out, two more will usually arrive.

E-bikes (bikes with mini electric motors to assist riding) are the current trend, especially for people who haven’t ridden for a while or need that little extra help. Dean has created a good sideline, fitting e-bike motor kits to bikes when people have purchased them online and don’t have the required technical knowledge to get them going.

“I really thought Covid-19 could kill my business, but luckily it’s been the exact opposite,” he said.