Bike shops discouraging new cyclists ?

[Electric_Andy]

I was in my LBS (Simon's Cycles in Cowbridge) this afternoon after work, to get a new chain and bell for my bike.

It is not the sort of shop you can go into browse, but the owner is always helpful and will often say "you can probably get it cheaper online than I could get it" if you are after something he doesn't currently have in strock.

It is a small shop, absolutely crammed. Not sure how many of the bikes are for sael, and how manty are customer bikes in to be worked on (He has done a few things on mine, always with labour charges that seem too low).
This is the view from just inside the door:
View attachment 724899
At this point, Simon is finding me a chain from round behind the stand middle left with the basket on it (which is where his stock of bells are). It looks like chaos, but he knows where everything is.

We used to have one like that in South Brent, Devon. Apart from all the bikes were a bit more battered and rusty. There was another huge pile of bikes outside which were all rusty. The chap would sell you a reasonably priced chain or tyre, but he'd then talk to you about the history of post office bikes for half an hour whilst you were trying to edge your way backwards out of the shop. He'd pretty much build any style of bike for £100 out of the frames and parts he had, but he didn't do disc brakes or suspension!

 

[Dogtrousers]

When I was a clueless adolescent the people in bike shops were all grumpy old men, impatient with the fact that I didn't understand what it was that I wanted.

Now it's the other way round.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

My local place is like the one mentioned above
For a lot of basic stuff he just tells you to look online as it is cheaper than he can get it

But he does know the value of a customer - if I go in for an inner tube, or with a straight out puncture - then he always offers to just fix it himself and charges only for the tube - and at a price that is lower than Halfords!
Not sure if it is because he knows me or not but it is a good way to keep me popping back in

There is often someone else in the shop asking about basic stuff - and he never patronises them.

Juts basic marketing really - i.e. be nice to people

 

[Time Waster]

I'm just glad it is never the customers who are at fault.

No doubt customers can be a holes too but the difference is shop staff are paid not to be, to provide a service not a snide comment or attitude. If that's not possible then they probably own the company or made themselves indispensable to the company. Not ideal but it's what it is.

 

[Fastpedaller]

My local place is like the one mentioned above
For a lot of basic stuff he just tells you to look online as it is cheaper than he can get it

But he does know the value of a customer - if I go in for an inner tube, or with a straight out puncture - then he always offers to just fix it himself and charges only for the tube - and at a price that is lower than Halfords!
Not sure if it is because he knows me or not but it is a good way to keep me popping back in

There is often someone else in the shop asking about basic stuff - and he never patronises them.

Juts basic marketing really - i.e. be nice to people

I do wonder how high street cycle shops (indeed any shops) can keep going. In my work there is no real trade discount - the suppliers just charge RRP (a dreamed-up price) and if they give a discount the goods are still substantially more expensive than online.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

I do wonder how high street cycle shops (indeed any shops) can keep going. In my work there is no real trade discount - the suppliers just charge RRP (a dreamed-up price) and if they give a discount the goods are still substantially more expensive than online.

I agree - no idea how they do it

Glad they do though - and thanks to those on here who run them!

 

[rydabent]

Couple of things lately when going into bike shops...

1
Went into a bike shop that was part of a normal town shopping centre. Looked at the stock and an assistant came up and chatted to me, so I asked a few questions on thier drop bar range. He then proceeded to tell me I would need to spend at least £5000 (not a typo!) in order to get an 'entry level bike that was worth having'. I should add, he was already aware I was not looking to compete or race. I was also told a 'decent' bike would be at least £12,000 or more.

2
I visited a large shopping mall where Ribble had a shop, a more intimidating 'only rich people' sort of display I have never seen, despite having seen plenty of expensive high end bikes for sale over the years. Its really sad that a bike shop most likely to be the main one seen by children due to its locations, comes across so badly, both intimidating and unreachable to normal people just from the initial impression of its displays. Totally cold and unwelcoming visually.
Its handy to be aware of this though as I have mail ordered from them in the past but will not do so again as I don't wish to encorage the elevation of cycling to only the very well off.

3
In 2 of the many cycle shops I have recently looked around, the male assistants ignored me for some while but headed briskly towards any bloke who happened to enter the shop after me. Do some guys really still think women can't be worthwhile cyclists? Are we back in the 1870's ?

4
In another shop while buying a messenger bag reduced in a sale, the male assistant at the till while I was already paying, card in machine, insisted on giving me a 'guided tour' of the bag as if I could not work out what a laptop compartment could possibly be for or have the capacity to work out how to use velcro. No, thats not a joke.

I have been surprised to encounter some of these negative experiences and its made me feel very sad. I do wonder how many children and inexperienced adults will end up thinking of cycling as being unobtainable to them or just too intimidating to be worth pursuing.

I did find some good bike staff in some Cheltenham bike shops when I happened to be there. I also took a look in Decathlon as I don't have that sports shop anywhere near me - I have to say the bike mechanic I came across was excellent in his approach and I could not recommend him more for helpfulness, friendliness and for seeing bikes as for all, not just for extreamely well off men.

Whinge over, you can escape now if you even read this far!

Dumb a woman should be treated that way. Also dumb that a salesman should say you have to pay that much for a serviceable bike.

Even if you want an up scale bike, one with a mid range price would be as good of a bike as 99% of us would need.

 

[Ian H]

It's not just the newbies who get patronised (or just plain insulted). I wandered into an acquaintance's shop a few years ago. Apparently he was off ill and had entrusted the shop to a mutual friend, a man who knew everything about bikes but was a grumpy old bastard. As I entered he was berating a customer: You just ride a 25 mile event over a week and you call yourself a ****ing cyclist! Then he sees me trying to remain inconspicuous at the back of the shop, and points. Now there's a proper ****ing cyclist. He does 100s of miles in a weekend... And I'm thinking, it will be a miracle if R still has business when he returns.

 

[Big T]

I went into my LBS a couple of years ago, looking to buy a new bike. I’ve known the owner for 30 years and his dad before that. He didn’t have much in stock but showed me a carbon Cinellli with disc brakes and a Tiagra groupset £2400. I had a sit on it and felt the weight, it seemed a bit on the heavy side to me. I thought carbon bikes were supposed to be light. I said I’d think about it. I went home and Googled the bike. The RRP was £1999. Needless to say I didnt buy it. Unsurprisingly, the LBS has now gone bust and shut down.

I ended up buying my mate’s Specialized Allez Elite for £300, he had just upgraded to an S Works. I’m still riding around on the Allez 2 years and 8,000 miles later. And I’m sure it’s lighter than the Cinelli.

 

[rydabent]

Couple of things lately when going into bike shops...

1
Went into a bike shop that was part of a normal town shopping centre. Looked at the stock and an assistant came up and chatted to me, so I asked a few questions on thier drop bar range. He then proceeded to tell me I would need to spend at least £5000 (not a typo!) in order to get an 'entry level bike that was worth having'. I should add, he was already aware I was not looking to compete or race. I was also told a 'decent' bike would be at least £12,000 or more.

2
I visited a large shopping mall where Ribble had a shop, a more intimidating 'only rich people' sort of display I have never seen, despite having seen plenty of expensive high end bikes for sale over the years. Its really sad that a bike shop most likely to be the main one seen by children due to its locations, comes across so badly, both intimidating and unreachable to normal people just from the initial impression of its displays. Totally cold and unwelcoming visually.
Its handy to be aware of this though as I have mail ordered from them in the past but will not do so again as I don't wish to encorage the elevation of cycling to only the very well off.

3
In 2 of the many cycle shops I have recently looked around, the male assistants ignored me for some while but headed briskly towards any bloke who happened to enter the shop after me. Do some guys really still think women can't be worthwhile cyclists? Are we back in the 1870's ?

4
In another shop while buying a messenger bag reduced in a sale, the male assistant at the till while I was already paying, card in machine, insisted on giving me a 'guided tour' of the bag as if I could not work out what a laptop compartment could possibly be for or have the capacity to work out how to use velcro. No, thats not a joke.

I have been surprised to encounter some of these negative experiences and its made me feel very sad. I do wonder how many children and inexperienced adults will end up thinking of cycling as being unobtainable to them or just too intimidating to be worth pursuing.

I did find some good bike staff in some Cheltenham bike shops when I happened to be there. I also took a look in Decathlon as I don't have that sports shop anywhere near me - I have to say the bike mechanic I came across was excellent in his approach and I could not recommend him more for helpfulness, friendliness and for seeing bikes as for all, not just for extreamely well off men.

Whinge over, you can escape now if you even read this far!

Unfortunately some shops are run by and hire what I call the "racer boyz mafia". Unless you outfit yourself with a $750 kit and ride a bike that costs no less than $5000, you are NOT a real cyclist. I find that to be such a sad deal because cycling is such a great sport that almost everyone can take part in. And the "racer boyz" look even further down their noses if you ride a bent or a trike.

 

[Jameshow]

Unfortunately some shops are run and hire what I call the "racer boyz mafia". Unless you outfit yourself with a $750 kit and ride a bike that costs no less than $5000, you are NOT a real cyclist. I find that to be such a sad deal because cycling is such a great sport that almost everyone can take part in. And the "racer boyz" look even further down their noses if you ride a bent or a trike.

Mamil bike shops, taken over from golf and soon to be replaced with something else hopefully! When pidcock stops winning!!

 

[templehead]

Since I returned to cycling during Covid after a very long hiatus, I have been to precisely one bike shop. I'd got play in the rear wheel bearings of my Dawes electric, rang the local shop to see if they'd sort it and was told to bring it in. When I came back a couple of days later, I was presented with my wheel, in exactly the same state as when I'd brought it in.

"I'm not touching that" says he... "There'll be wires and all sorts of stuff in there". I took it home, and went on the Dawes website to look for the nearest dealer to me who would undertake repairs... yep, you guessed it - it was the shop I'd already been to!

I opened up the hub and found two little sealed bearings. Knocked them out and bought SKF equivalents for £8, and fitted them. I've never been near a bike shop since, and I can't think of any reason why I ever would.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

Since I returned to cycling during Covid after a very long hiatus, I have been to precisely one bike shop. I'd got play in the rear wheel bearings of my Dawes electric, rang the local shop to see if they'd sort it and was told to bring it in. When I came back a couple of days later, I was presented with my wheel, in exactly the same state as when I'd brought it in.

"I'm not touching that" says he... "There'll be wires and all sorts of stuff in there". I took it home, and went on the Dawes website to look for the nearest dealer to me who would undertake repairs... yep, you guessed it - it was the shop I'd already been to!

I opened up the hub and found two little sealed bearings. Knocked them out and bought SKF equivalents for £8, and fitted them. I've never been near a bike shop since, and I can't think of any reason why I ever would.

That is a terrible way to run a local shop!

First time I went into my LBS I had an old ebike
He had never worked on one before but had a go
he buggered up the main cable to the hub drive but worked out how to sort it all out and got it working again
and fixed all the problem that I had taken it in for
when I picked it up he commented that he had learned a lot from it and thanked me for taking it in
(still charged me though!!!)

a couple of years later he started selling Raleigh ebikes - I suspect he saw the ebike thing coming and saw my bike as an experiment to see how they worked
probably spent far longer on it than he could charge me for
but I have made up for it since!

he also now sells - and fixes - far more ebikes than "proper" bikes
he told me at one point that the profit on selling one ebike was far higher than a normal bike unless it is a really top end thing as it was all based on percentages

 

[Ming the Merciless]

fixes - far more ebikes than "proper" bikes

E-bikes need fixing more often on average

 

[bonzobanana]

Modern retail is about hitting sales targets and getting commission on your sales and the higher cost the bike the more you make. It is understandable that a shop assistant will upsell as much as possible trying to drive a £1000 budget up to £2000 even suggesting credit which they also earn money on. I've been to some cycle shops and there is nothing less than about £800 that is their starting price and that bike is basically hidden from main view I guess as a last resort. It's also a terrible bike at £800 very poor value compared to a bike in Halfords which will have much better componentry for that price.

I have to say I love looking around independent bike shops just to see the bikes available but I would never buy there. Even when I look in their discount bins for clearance items its rare to find anything that isn't still overpriced to other retailers like online or Halfords etc.

I tend to buy secondhand anyway. In the past you used to get cycle shops that would take in bikes in part exchange and give them a service and put them back up for sale and these were the type of bikes I would buy from cycle shops. You don't see that as much nowadays sadly. The last bike I bought like that was a Saracen Pylon from the Tri-UK cycle centre in Yeovil for £30. It wasn't serviced it was sold as needing servicing and repair.