OSAKA, Japan (BRAIN) — Shimano is on a roll, pocketing an extra $518.7 million in new business last year and adding to that $187.7 million in additional sales it earned over the first quarter ended in March. The company has grown so fast and picked up so much additional market share that suppliers are worrying about its ability to maintain delivery dates.
Sales over the first quarter of this year were $824 million (98.022 billion yen), a 30 percent increase over sales of $636.3 million a year earlier. Shimano's bike sales increased 34 percent to $688.8 million. Growth in the company's other divisions was slower: Fishing sales grew 10 percent to $134.5 million, and the company's other business fell 12 percent to $714,500.
The extra business came from growth in all major markets, as well as being helped by the depreciation of the yen. Steady bike sales during the European and U.S. winters suggest the market is shifting away from sports use to everyday transportation in these two big markets. Japan's bike market was just the opposite as strong growth in its sports segment offset falling city-bike sales. Sales to China, which had been growing robustly quarter over quarter, were flat compared with last year.
Such strong growth in the company's bicycle division caused it to revise its 2015 forecast up to 357 billion yen, projecting 7 percent growth in 2015.
