Its difficult to believe that we managed to do so well despite the difficult economic conditions in 2003, said Dr. David Hon, Dahon president, referring to the flat US market.
We put it down to lots of hard work and a bit of good luck. Whats especially encouraging is that the demand for folding bicycles is broadening to a much wider consumer base. Our customer base used to be limited to the older, casual cyclist but now we are getting young and old, casual and hard-core.
Dahon recorded growth in all of its major markets: the United States, the EU, and Japan. Almost all of Dahons existing customers recorded strong year on year growth.
In the UK, the new London congestion charge contributed to 105% sales growth. In 2003, Dahon established new distributors in Spain, Portugal, Korea, and China.
What is even more exciting is that even though weve grown at a strong 20-30% over the last several years, the demand for quality folding bikes is actually accelerating in 2004, said Hon.
Our order book for the first four months of 2004 is more than 70% ahead of 2003 and we are on pace to produce at least 250,000 bikes.