The exercise giant plans to build a new facility in Ohio to get bikes to customers faster and for less money while empowering American workers.
At-home exercise equipment manufacturer Peloton announced on Monday that it will build a new factory in Ohio, where it plans to employ more than 2,100 people to make the company’s signature stationary bikes and treadmills.
The construction of the Peloton Output Park in Troy Township, Ohio, located near Toledo, is scheduled to begin later this summer. It will be the New York-based company’s first-ever factory in the United States, which is expected to be fully operational by 2023.
In a statement, Peloton president William Lynch said that he was “looking forward to inviting the Troy Township and midwest communities to join us, and work with us, in person.” Peloton expects to invest $400 million into the facility.
Ohio Gov. Mark DeWine (R) celebrated the announcement, stating that “Ohio is excited to partner with Peloton’s forward-looking leadership team in developing a new, state-of-the-art facility using connective technology and creating 2,174 new manufacturing jobs in Wood County!”
Ohio Sen. Sherrod Brown (D) echoed this, saying he is “thrilled to see this investment in American manufacturing come to Ohio – we have the most productive workers in the world.” And Ohio Sen. Rob Portman (R) tweeted that the announcement “is awesome news! Peloton will be creating more than 2,000 skilled manufacturing Jobs right here in NW Ohio [that] will spur economic growth and job creation throughout the region.”
Along with factory jobs, Peloton also expects to add jobs in Troy Township in entry-level, managerial and executive capacities. The company hopes to eventually expand the planned facility to host a showcase room and fitness studio, and Peloton also is aiming to offer tours of the manufacturing plant.
This is likely to be a major boon for the economy of Northwestern Ohio, providing economic security for workers and spilling over to investments in local businesses that sell goods and services to the Peloton workers.
This marks a major investment in American manufacturing for the exercise company, which had until now produced its products internationally in Asia. This also follows Peloton’s acquisition of Precor, a Washington-based exercise equipment manufacturing company earlier this year. The acquisition will provide Peloton with more capacity to manufacture Peloton products in the United States by integrating Precor facilities in North Carolina and Washington.
Together with the Peloton Output Park in Ohio, these investments in American manufacturing will allow Peloton to increase its supply chain capacity in the wake of surging demand for their products brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The announcement of the new facility will not only benefit the company and its prospective workers, however, as it will also have substantial benefits for American consumers seeking to purchase Peloton products.
Recently, Peloton has struggled to produce enough machines to keep up with rising demands, and customers have faced major delays in receiving products due to delays in international shipping. Despite a $100 million pledge by Peloton to ship products by air to get them to customers faster, Peloton’s own estimates note this will raise shipping costs ten-fold, which will likely see higher prices passed on to American consumers.
Fortunately, investments in domestic American production of exercise equipment will directly address these supply chain woes, as machines made in Ohio will be able to get to their destinations far faster than those made in Asia. For American consumers, this means less time to wait before they can hop onto their bikes for a workout, instead of having to sweat through shipping delays and fees.
American consumers will also benefit from Peloton’s increased production capacity, as it will allow Peloton to employ innovative techniques to cut costs as they produce at a larger scale.
Peloton CEO John Foley noted how “the new Peloton Output Park gives us a massive strategic lever to make sure we have capacity, quality, and economies of scale in our bike and tread product lines.” This could mean lower prices in the long-run, as Peloton’s new facility in Ohio allows the company to produce more bikes for less than they currently can with just its facilities in Asia.
Peloton’s decision to invest in American manufacturing demonstrates the clear benefits of shifting production to the United States. Peloton will support thousands of workers and grow the local economy, all while cutting costs of their products and improving shipping logistics. Hopefully other companies follow Peloton’s model and recognize the many benefits of making their products in America.