'i'm very interested in one of your bikes...'

[phil_hg_uk]

I am afraid that if you came to me and asked me to order in a £2000 item so you could maybe buy it I wouldn't be interested either, if I did do that for everyone who asked I would go bust in about 6 months.

I think a lot of shops are sick of people wanting to look at stuff just so they can go and buy it cheaper on the internet, not that I am saying you are going to do this but I can see their point.

 

[kedab]

A £2000 bike will cost them - depending on what terms they're on - around £1300. And you want them to order it in on a maybe? You're havin a laugh.

We ask for a non-refundable 50% deposit before we order anything.

The result? BMC 2014 SLR02 paid for & ordered with Evans as I don't put up with being treated like another number by a store I've already spent +3k with. Their loss.

 

[kedab]

How would you have tried the bespoke bike you talk about?

I thought long and hard about it. By the time I was done with the spec it was just shy of 3k. Too much bike for my capabilities & too much bike when I've got a baby 6 weeks away so I had a rethink

 

[Mr Haematocrit]

That's why I buy specialized.
Any bike I'm interested in I can have for a weekend for £25 which is discounted should I buy the bike.
The staff in the concept stores are trained on the products and support of them.

Specialized may be a little pricey for the spec, but you get in exchange outstanding customer service.
When they did a fork recall, they gave customers vouchers for the trouble. They recently sent me a water bottle and a note thanking me for being a customer..... these little gestures cost little and mean the world, they fight for my custom and never take it for granted.

I would never dream of coughing up 2k on a bike without first viewing and riding it and any retailer which is not willing to get me a bike in to test will lose my custom without a doubt. I have never placed a deposit on something I do not know if I want to purchase.

 

[procel]

The LBS position is understandable, but the OP said this was a Giant store (presumably the Cambridge branch). Even if they're a franchise system, there's central services - the interior design of them is (fantastic high quality and) obviously done by the same team and the websites for them all are the same. I don't think the OP is unreasonable to expect them to have a stock shifting system. Though I also think the refundable deposit idea to eliminate timewasters is a good idea.

 

[swansonj]

Have a bike made up to your exact spec, try it for a hundred days, money back if you don't like it? Thorn Cycles anyone?

 

[mickle]

The result? BMC 2014 SLR02 paid for & ordered with Evans as I don't put up with being treated like another number by a store I've already spent +3k with. Their loss.

Their loss? Treated like a number? You're coming across as the sort of 'customer' most shops could do without.

 

[Moda]

As has been said above, it costs them money to get the bike in for you to try

The cost of doing business??

 

[London Female]

Have a bike made up to your exact spec, try it for a hundred days, money back if you don't like it? Thorn Cycles anyone?

That's who I went to. I had a 14 day money back guarantee if I didn't like it. I didn't like it, took it back, they made changes to it and then gave me an additional 100 days money back guarantee. So far it's going well and won't be needing to return it.

 

[mickle]

The cost of doing business??

Many years ago I ordered a £1000 Pace mountain bike frame in for a regular customer who promised to buy it. He never came back. It sat on the wall for two years until we sold it for less that it cost us. Taking a 10% deposit is standard practice - I'm surprised that anyone could object to it.

 

[mmmmartin]

I have two Thorns, the Audax and the Sherpa, and they are both very good at doing what they are supposed to do. Reasonable price, I thought.

 

[Cuchilo]

The result? BMC 2014 SLR02 paid for & ordered with Evans as I don't put up with being treated like another number by a store I've already spent +3k with. Their loss.

C'mon , you changed your mind and it was nothing to do with the store treating you like a number was it ?
Hope you enjoy the new bike

 

[Boris Bajic]

We all have those moments when a retailer or supplier isn't marching to our drums.

It always niggles and it always seems that others aren't as fussed by it as we are.

These threads nearly always end with a "Ha! That'll teach 'em!" post about how much the OP spent with another retailer and how much it's the original shop's loss and just "Ha!"

But the truth is often far from a dozy, uninterested shop staff and a lazy company attitude. It's the real world and some suppliers just can't do a certain thing on a certain day.

It's good that the OP found a suitable alternative, but the first shop won't be weeping. They did what they could and they lost that sale. They'll win other ones.

 

[zizou]

That's why I buy specialized.
Any bike I'm interested in I can have for a weekend for £25 which is discounted should I buy the bike.
The staff in the concept stores are trained on the products and support of them.

Specialized may be a little pricey for the spec, but you get in exchange outstanding customer service.
When they did a fork recall, they gave customers vouchers for the trouble. They recently sent me a water bottle and a note thanking me for being a customer..... these little gestures cost little and mean the world, they fight for my custom and never take it for granted.

I would never dream of coughing up 2k on a bike without first viewing and riding it and any retailer which is not willing to get me a bike in to test will lose my custom without a doubt. I have never placed a deposit on something I do not know if I want to purchase.

I'm a Specialized fan too but they do not offer everything to try out - the same frame yeah to check the geometry but their entire catalogue is not available to demo and it would be unrealistic to expect everything to be available. They are probably the best of all the brands in terms of availability but Giant are pretty good too when it comes to being able to do a proper test ride rather than sitting on it in the store.

Incidentally did you test ride the Cavendish Venge before choosing to order? Or did you order it based on knowing the geometry from experience on other models in the Venge line?

 

[Moda]

Obviously there has to be an understanding on both sides. I don't think that any serious buyer would mind putting down a refundable deposit but as I recently experienced most want not only a substantial deposit but also expect it to be NON-REFUNDABLE.

I don't expect a dealer to be substantially out of pocket but neither should a buyer be forced into a buy it or sod off choice.