It has been one month since the enforcement of the revised Road Traffic Law on April 1, and it became mandatory to wear a bicycle helmet. There is a growing shortage of helmets in store stocks. Manufacturers are operating their factories at full capacity to increase production, but they can't keep up, and popular models have to wait two to three months. Stakeholders hope that "this will be an opportunity for the trend of wearing it to take root."
At the Wise Road Nagoya Wear Museum, a bicycle shop in Naka-ku, Nagoya, sales of bicycle helmets tripled in late April compared to the same period last year. On holidays, there is a crowd of people in the sales floor. The best-selling price range is 5,000 to 10,000 yen. Casual-looking models resembling hats are also becoming more popular. The overall inventory is about 30% less than in normal times, and there are about 20 people who make reservations but do not know when they will arrive.
Since helmets deteriorate even if they are unused, it is recommended to replace them in about three years, and the demand for replacement is increasing. The store manager, Masatoshi Shinoda, 43, expressed surprise, saying, "The response has never been unprecedented, and sales have far exceeded our expectations."
Asahi (Osaka City), which operates 520 bicycle shops in 45 prefectures nationwide, has almost no over-the-counter inventory, and "it is difficult to buy adult bicycles even if you go to the store" (the person in charge). At the end of January or...