Halfords

[classic33]

Well did you go upto one of them and say " can you help please?" etc.
I've been to Halfords loads of times and I've never experienced any problems apart from them not having enough staff on and there being a lot of people in the queue etc.

I tried the one with the tablet as they seemed better equipped to answer any questions.
However doing nothing seemed to be high on their priority list. Any attempt at asking lead to them going the other way.

Ironic as there's a sign near the doors, near the inflatable canoe and three man tent saying "Ask staff for details".

 

[bonzobanana]

The Halfords £250 bike is a Coyote Swift which is not a Halfords brand. There is a folding bike (Dallingridge Freedom - not a Decathlon brand) currently being sold by Decathlon for £175 that has the same rear mech as the Coyote Swift - this also demonstrates that Halfords does not de facto provide better value and quality .

The argument isn't about Halfords or Decathlon as a bike manufacturer - it's about what they sell and the level of service you get. You are positing that Halfords is by far the best ("Personally I often find Halfords by far offers the best value with local support and I think its a no brainer choice for a lot of people") and then compare two very specific (and arguably niche) bikes from two ranges of many bikes to support that - I'm just showing that I don't think your comparison is a clear indicator to support what you say. I certainly wouldn't say that Halfords is by far the best for value with support and that it is a no brainer choice.

At the bottom end of the market, one could argue that no bike is good value for money and that the components are bound to be inferior in order to hit the target price. Picking out specific and arbitrary examples from each shop and then making arbitrary judgements on the comparative quality (of what are arguably bottom-end products) by saying which you think looks more plasticky in a photo is not a reliable or definitive metric. The case for Halfords being the best and a no-brainer choice has not been proven 😉

Surely the comparison should only be between Halfords vs Decathlon's own brands why on earth did you use the Coyote Swift that makes absolutely no sense at all and completely voids your argument. I would never have considered using a third party Decathlon bike in the comparison because that would be completely unfair. It is Decathlon and Halfords own brands that offer great value because they are buying directly from the factory and retailing themselves. I remember when Halfords used to sell Dahon bikes and they were absolute garbage folding bikes with freewheels etc even at close to £500 because Dahon is not competitive in that price range compared to shop brands.

 

[Oldhippy]

If you want 'just cheese' a big supermarket is fine, if you really like cheese you go to a good delicatessen. You get what you pay for.

 

[Cycleops]

Particularly appropriate analogy to Halfords Apollo brand which is for the most part made out of cheese.

 

[Andy_R]

If you want 'just cheese' a big supermarket is fine, if you really like cheese you go to a good delicatessen. You get what you pay for.

and if you really, really, really like cheese you go somewhere like this:

 

[freiston]

Surely the comparison should only be between Halfords vs Decathlon's own brands why on earth did you use the Coyote Swift that makes absolutely no sense at all and completely voids your argument. I would never have considered using a third party Decathlon bike in the comparison because that would be completely unfair. It is Decathlon and Halfords own brands that offer great value because they are buying directly from the factory and retailing themselves. I remember when Halfords used to sell Dahon bikes and they were absolute garbage folding bikes with freewheels etc even at close to £500 because Dahon is not competitive in that price range compared to shop brands.

You said (of the shop) "by far offers the best value with local support" - you cannot validate that by excluding bikes that either shop sell just because the brand name isn't exclusive to and owned by the shop - by that limitation, you would not be able to compare Halfords with just about every LBS in the country - and it is specifically comparing them to LBSs that this thread is about (as well as comparing them to other chains). That being said, I still think your comparison methodology (looks plasticky in the photo) is flawed. Please don't try to make further arbitrary comparisons because it is just a waste of time and effort - almost certainly any arbitrary direct comparison could be argued to be "unfair" (as well as the metrics be argued to be flawed). I will use my own judgement. Personally I have no plan to buy a bike from either Halfords or Decathlon.

 

[Rusty Nails]

Particularly appropriate analogy to Halfords Apollo brand which is for the most part made out of cheese.

Is this an opinion based on the bikes you have ridden and worked on, or just hearsay?

 

[Rusty Nails]

I could never manage it but I know it can be done - it just costs more money

And increases price for the customer.

 

[Rusty Nails]

OK, to avoid going round in circles any longer, I will admit to simply not liking Halfords, so as a person of principles I won't buy so much as a dust cap from them if I can get it elsewhere.

Genuine question...which principle(s) of yours does Halfords offend?

 

[Rusty Nails]

That just doesn't bear out to scrutiny (and presumes that Shimano is superior). Look at the £250 Halfords offering - looks more plastic to me than the Decathlon offering (photo isn't as good).
View attachment 632972

I agree the Decathlon offering does look cosmetically better, but both mechanisms consist of a steel structure cased in plastic

From the Technical specs of the Decathlon one: "Structure 100% Steel Outer fabric 100% Polyamide 6.6"

I believe the current model of that Tourney mech has been improved cosmetically and is the same price as the Decatlon offering. I don't know who Decathlon source their own brand mech from, and they might be equally good, but are certainly not better (even have slightly worse reviews than Tourney on the Decathlon website). The most important factor is how they work.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

And increases price for the customer.

Not necessarily
The concept can be - deal with all calls in one conversation and leave the customer feeling satisfied and happy

result - you keep the customer and they order from you next time and hence you continue to make profit from them

But if you look short term it increases immediate costs so you can make more profit this month/quarter/year
Hence cut call centre staff and cut down on training and expectations and you save money NOW

Often exactly the difference between a LBS and a big bike store
LBS offer advise and help and a friendly approach so when you are think about buying a new bike next time you go to them - and they get the profit each time you go to them

In theory
The company I used to work for would go all out for customer service for a few years - then notice costs had gone up and undo it all for a few years to cut costs - then notice customer satisfaction and customer retention had plummeted - then go back to customer service for a few years

modern business thinking seems to tend more towards cutting costs

 

[Cycleops]

Is this an opinion based on the bikes you have ridden and worked on, or just hearsay?

I've had a few of them including BMX s. The last one I worked on was a hybrid owned by a boy over the road. It had had a bit of abuse but I replaced the BB, rebuilt one wheel and replaced the axle on another. Frame was okay.

 

[Rusty Nails]

I've had a few of them including BMX s. The last one I worked on was a hybrid owned by a boy over the road. It had had a bit of abuse but I replaced the BB, rebuilt one wheel and replaced the axle on another. Frame was okay.

Fair enough, you can only talk about what you have seen.

I reckon I have worked on at least 50 Apollos and have never come across one made of cheese. Frames are solid (sometimes a bit heavy!) and components OK for the price range (generally better than supermarket and online sellers own brands)....you don't get many Ultegra equipped Apollos.

 

[Kingfisher101]

At the end of the day if you can either go to Halfords or if you don't like them, just chose another shop. Not many beginners or people buying for kids though want to spend big money on a bike for knocking around on/general leisure use etc. Its popular because its very reasonable and most items are o.k.

 

[Brandane]

Genuine question...which principle(s) of yours does Halfords offend?

The principle that I prefer to spend my hard earned £££ in a place which doesn't treat customers like an inconvenience. And I don't mean by individual staff members, I mean as an organisation. It appears to be company policy.

Do you really want full details of prices on shelves that suddenly increase at the point of sale (i.e. at the till, when you are paying and aren't supposed to notice)? It has happened to me more than once.

Or do you want to hear about my experience of the power crazy shop assistant when they first opened after lockdown, who gave me a school mistress type dressing down because I dared to touch an inner tube that I had gone to buy? I was told in no uncertain terms that I was not allowed to touch anything that I didn't intend to buy, because all items that I did touch would have to be removed from display and quarantined for 7 days. I suggested to her that they might like to arrange the inner tubes on the shelf in such a way that the sizes were visible in that case. She didn't like that idea. I then left the shop, empty handed.

Then there was the time I ordered something on their website, using click and collect. I drove 15 miles to collect it, only to find it was not in stock. "Sorry mate, our stock level on the computer doesn't take into account stuff that might have been stolen!"

Plus all the times in the past I have taken stuff to the till to pay, only to have to go and find a staff member to come to the till so that I can pay. No wonder stuff gets stolen!

Taking my personal experiences into account, I can fully believe the amount of negative press they get, on this site and in other corners of the media. None of the stories about back to front forks and other incompetence come as any surprise.

Yes, I have used them in the past for the sake of convenience, but given a reasonable alternative I will avoid them and shop elsewhere. Every time!