Orbea closed out full-year 2023 with its first drop in revenues in eight years, acccording to Palco23. Although the Basque cycling brand does not disclose them in full, sales appear to have come in at around €382.4 million, down by 6.4 percent from the previous year’s €400 million or so.
Full-year 2023, the company writes, was “marked by an extremely unstable context in which excess supply and the search for liquidity compelled brands to make big discounts in general, which critically deteriorated margins and in many cases cast doubt on the sustainability of the business.”
A prudent and responsible sales plan, the company continues, cut revenues but enabled Orbea to keep the narrowing of its margin to a minimum. Sales had been rising since the lockdowns: by 32 percent in 2019, by 22 percent in 2020, by 41 percent in 2021 and by 42 percent in 2022. Despite its performance in FY23, and despite signs that the current year “will be marked by a similar context,” Orbea believes it has the means to proceed with its plans to expand its manufacturing and logistical base, develop new technologies and train its personnel. The staff has recently come to exceed 1,000, with about 800 working in Spain’s Basque Country.
Back in 2015, when it was generating annual sales of about €70 million, the company settled on a strategic overhaul, moving towards an omnichannel business. It produces road, mountain, triathlon and urban bikes and e-bikes, along with components and a few articles of apparel. It does business in North and Latin America, throughout Europe, Asia, Oceania and a few parts of Africa. It is also part of the Mondragón cooperative.
