The Board of Investments (BOI) recently gave the nod to the application of TRINX Bicycle Sport Technology Corp. (TBSTC) as a new Export Producer of Bicycles which qualifies the company for incentives under the Export Activities category of the 2020 Investment Priorities Plan (IPP).
The Php356.4 million project will manufacture road and mountain bikes, foldable electric bikes (e-bikes), and other bike variants in its proposed plant in Sta. Maria, Bulacan. TBSTC is expected to export at least 75 percent of its production to the United States and Europe with the rest targeted towards the booming domestic market.
“This is timely and relevant, as it will not only supply the local demand for bicycles and electric bikes but also strengthen our position as a net exporter of bicycles with strong demand from overseas markets, including those in which we enjoy zero-duties under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) scheme,” Trade Undersecretary and BOI Managing Head Ceferino Rodolfo said, pointing that the government is actively encouraging the public to adopt alternative modes of transportation, like cycling, especially in cities or urban areas.
The Philippines is a net exporter of bicycles (in terms of value) as of 2019 with a surplus of US$10.2 million, data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) showed. The country exported US$39.1 million worth of bicycles while importing US$28.9 million in the same year with the United Kingdom and Ireland as top export markets.
TBSTC is 60 percent Filipino-owned and 40 percent Chinese, representing the Guangzhou, China-based Trinity Group which owns the Chinese TRINX brand, a top-ranking brand in China’s national brand market, having more than 1,000 terminal sales outlets covering more than 30 provinces, cities, and autonomous regions.
The TBSTC facility in Bulacan is slated to begin operating commercially in September 2021 with a production capacity of up to 200,000 units annually. The project will initially employ 65 personnel and 100 by the fifth year.
The project is expected to keep the TRINX quality standard by applying the same manufacturing technology in China (thru technology transfer) to sustain the image of the TRINX brand. At the moment, TBSTC has a sister company, Onetrinity Corporation (with the same ownership structure as TBSTC), which imports TRINX bicycles and is the authorized distributor in the country. Formed in 2013, it is estimated that Onetrinity has sold 35,000 units annually, and is regarded as among the domestic market leaders in the country.
Formed in 1990, Trinity Group is a comprehensive enterprise group engaged in the development, production, and distribution of complete bicycles and bicycle components. It introduced the TRINX brand in 2006. The main products under the TRINX brand are high-grade and mid-grade mountain bikes. It also has a different range of road bikes such as road, city, children bikes as well as e-bikes.
Trinity Group has a current pool of around 2000 professionals specializing in bicycle development, production, and marketing while working in 13 state-of-the-art bicycle assembly lines and 14 painting production lines around the globe with strategic bases in Russia, India, America, and Thailand. To date, the group churns an annual capacity of 2 million complete bicycles, 1.5 million frames, and 1 million forks.(PR)
