Schwalbe report record turnover for 2022

Schwalbe has reported a 20 percent increased its 2022 turnover, to 335 million euros, compared to the previous year (277 million euros). This means a new record for Schwalbe in the year of the brand’s 50th anniversary.

Frank Bohle, CEO of Ralf Bohle GmbH, the company behind Schwalbe: “The past business year marks another chapter in the success story we have been writing at Schwalbe for 50 years now. This development makes me very happy. The basis for this is above all our high-quality products as well as our permanent innovative spirit.”

A success factor last year was also the constantly high demand for e-bikes, especially in the touring and urban sector, but also for e-MTBs. Schwalbe convinces with a broad and high-quality product range.

At the same time, the family-owned company focused even more on the issue of corporate responsibility last year. The official start of the Schwalbe Recycling System in Germany marks a milestone. Previously, used bicycle tyres were incinerated. Now Schwalbe is the first and only manufacturer in the world to not only take them back via specialist dealers, but also recycles and uses them for the production of new Schwalbe products. This functioning circular economy will reach its next peak in June 2023, when the first bicycle tire produced from used tyres, among other things, will be presented.

With the publication of the first CSR report in 2022, Schwalbe also officially anchored the topic of ecological and social responsibility holistically in the company as well as formulating concrete, measurable goals for the coming years. One example of the social commitment is the newly founded Children’s Advisory Council, which gives children and young people a voice in the company. They decide independently which children’s aid projects Schwalbe should support and to what extent.

Decline in 2023 sales expected, positive medium-term outlook

For the 2023 business year, Schwalbe expects a decline in turnover in the lower double-digit percentage range. This is mainly due to the overall economic situation as well as the dampened consumer sentiment caused by war and inflation. Added to this are industry-specific factors such as the high inventory levels across the trade as a whole. In the medium to long term, the company is optimistic about the future: “The external factors cloud the outlook for this year, but I am convinced that the bicycle industry will continue its extremely positive development of the past years in the medium term. There is no way around the mobility turnaround, even if we would of course like to see a faster pace,” says Bohle.