Halfords hit as cycle mania is rained off

tHE cycling fever that swept Britain last year has been washed out by wetter and cooler weather, according to bike and car parts retailer Halfords.

in a surprise trading update, Halfords revealed bike sales tumbled 11pc in the eight weeks to august 28. the grim news sent shares skidding 8.6pc.

new chief executive Jill McDonald, who joined from fast-food chain McDonald’s in May, admitted the sales were disappointing but described it as a ‘blip’.

McDonald blamed the fall on a decline of ‘casual’ cyclists who have been put off by the cooler, wetter weather. she added that the decline ‘comes after two years of very strong growth in the category and has been partly offset by strong growth in both car maintenance and car enhancement sales, which is a testament to the balanced nature of the business’.

Last year Halfords’ bike sales were growing by 16pc in the first half, boosted by the interest in the tour de France. But Halfords said sales of its ‘premium’ bikes were still doing well and it was the lower end of its range that was underperforming. Greater competition from discounting rivals also hurt.

McDonald said she remained ‘confident of the long-term growth opportunities in cycling’ and said she will reveal new plans for Halfords’ cycling business at its results in november.

Weaker demand for bikes dragged down overall sales which were down 1.3pc year on year.

cantor Fitzgerald analyst Mike Dennis said: ‘Halfords is still gaining share and is selling more premium bikes because of men and women taking up competitive and endurance cycling.’

McDonald said she expected fullyear pre-tax profits to be in line with expectations of £86.6m and said that the second-half of the year is driven by car maintenance and is less reliant on bike sales. Halfords shares lost 43.8p to 466.2p.