2021 Philly Bike Expo Exceeds Expectations
Philadelphia, PA Nov. 8th, 2021: After 24 months of darkness, the light returned to the Pennsylvania Convention Center for the 2021 Philly Bike Expo. The expo was a welcome return to in-person meetings after so much alienation behind the screens of computers. For the organizers, exhibitors, media and consumers, the show exceeded expectations and reasserted its ascension to becoming one of the top bicycle industry trade shows in North America.
Over 3100 people attended the show on Nov. 6 and 7, not quite a record, but a healthy turnout given the uncertainties provided by the COVID-19 pandemic. " 2021 was a very uncertain year, and I wasn't sure I'd be able to hold the show.," said Bina Bilenky, the show director. "Supply chain issues really added to the COVID-19 challenges," she said.
Despite the challenges, all attendees appreciated the opportunity to renew old friendships and forge new ones in the manner that only an in-person trade show can provide. "The feedback from exhibitors and attendees was overwhelmingly positive," said Bilenky.
As it does each year, the Philly Bike Expo both reflected and helped define bicycle industry trends, and a few key ones emerged from the weekend:
Bicycling is becoming a more diverse and inclusive activity
Philadelphia is a very ethnically and gender diverse city, and the crowds inside the Convention Center closely resembled those on the streets outside. The Philly Bike Expo, along with industry partners like SRAM, does its part to engender and build greater diversity and inclusiveness in the bicycling community. To this end, there were seminars such as “Women of the Bicycle Industry” and “Diversity and Equity in the Sport of Triathlon”. SRAM once again sponsored a scholarship for minority and women framebuilders. One of the recipients was Beth Morford of Frontier Cycles in Kansas, who explained the significance of the scholarship for her: "The scholarship is an opportunity to enter into a community that hasn't been diverse in the past."