BCBusiness

15 B C B U S I N E S S . C A M A R C H 2 0 2 5 G o F i g u r e : S e r g ii P a v l o v s k y i /A d o b e S t o c k ; M I Ts t u d i o /A d o b e S t o c k ACCORDING TO CANADA REVENUE AGENCY TAX FILINGS, THE AVERAGE SINGLE PERSON AGED 25-34 IN B.C. MADE $46,030 IN 2022. THE AVERAGE SINGLE-PARENT FAMILY IN THAT AGE GROUP GROSSED $38,760 AND THE AVERAGE TWO-ADULT FAMILY WITH THE OLDEST MEMBER AGED 25-34 MADE $95,830. BY COMPARISON, THE ALL-AGE AVERAGE FOR COUPLE FAMILIES WAS $108,570; SINGLE PARENTS AVERAGED $59,020 AND SINGLE PEOPLE AVERAGED $36,930. Return-to-office mandates are unpopular among all demographics, but most of all among young workers. In a 2023 poll, 39% of those aged 18-34 in B.C. who worked at home during the pandemic reported switching jobs since 2020 to work from home more often. S o u r c e s : S t a t i s t i c s C a n a d a , B C S t a t s , S t a t i s t a , R e s e a r c h C o . capital was no exception," says Heilbron. "We believed the partnership would work and we had a great relation- ship with their new CEO, Ken Meidell, an avid cyclist who immediately understood the quirkiness of our brand." Meidell, however, did not last long, and things went side- ways quickly. Kent took pos- session of thousands of new bikes just as the pandemic was ending and made a major deci- sion to abandon its dealers and adopt a direct-to-consumer business model. Desperate to generate cash flow to finance its acquisition, Kent/Kona dropped a bomb—it would offer a "buy one, get one free" (BOGO) deal on all its existing inventory. To the consumer, it was a bonanza, but to many long-time Kona aficionados, it reeked of desperation. In hindsight, it's hard to say whether COVID was good for the bike industry or not. Certainly, shops sold out of stock in 2020 and 2021 and did big business servicing steeds bought on Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace or hauled out of the basement. Ken Maude is the founder/ owner of Lynn Valley Bikes, located close to the famous North Shore trails. "During the pandemic, we were so short on bikes that we were taking $200 deposits on new orders. By the time the bikes arrived, COVID restrictions had been removed, and people were spending their money on other things. We have a lot of existing inventory to clear out before we start tak- ing new orders," he says. Which raises the question: Can Kona come back from the dead? Vancouver-based retail consultant Rick Bohonis of DIG360 thinks so: "There are many cases in retail where founding partners sell out to private equity and then buy the company back for next to noth- ing. The founders simply can't stay away—it's their legacy." Bohonis, who co-founded the highly successful Urban Barn chain, is also a keen mountain biker. "If you look at the categories that Kona is strongest in—mid- to premium- end mountain bikes as well as the high-growth gravel bike niche—you'd have to think that Kona's future is as secure as any in the cycling mar- ketplace," he says. "Staying focused will be the key." Since taking the com- pany back in May of last year, Heilbron and his team—includ- ing many former employees who'd been laid off by Kent some time ago—have been patiently rebuilding the brand, re-establishing all-important relationships with former deal- ers (many of whom felt burned by the infamous BOGO deal) and getting fresh inventory like the highly regarded Ouroboros gravel bike back into stores. "We relaunched our two e-mountain bikes in August, and our pro rider Cory Wallace won his sixth straight World Endurance Mountain Bike Organization title in October," says Heilbron. "We're back on track and creating major buzz in the bike world." HELMET HEADS In their 30-plus years in the B.C. bike industry (docu- mented in an archi- val shop photo of Gerhard, above, and road race action shot of Heilbron, left) the Kona bike founders have steered their company through highs and lows

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