JEEZ, these LBS shops

[paulb55]

Hi All,

What is it with these local LBS, i mean you walk in and want a part and you come out feeling like 2" tall, i just done get it and it makes my blood boil.

I went to my local, but run down shop, to a spare part and i do have a average knowledge of bikes and parts and the owner was so rude and belittling to me that it just made me feel so small that all i wanted to do was get out of there and his attitude was the famous of " i know what i am talking about and you don't".

No wonder people still go to Halfords, ok the staff are crap but at least you can see everything hanging on the shelves

If i walk in with a part that i want then :-

I don't want a third degree on what the part is for

I don't want to be sold something that is for a £2000 road bike

I want to be treated like a customer who can ask questions and not get a huff or a sigh with a cute answer

and after all that he has the cheek to turn around and say " well if its that urgent then i can order it for you"
No thanks i think i will leave it and i walked out

I hate LBS but i am still looking for one that i am happy to walk into and be treted with respect, i will still look but down to my final 2 so lets see otherwise Halfords here i come

 

[wiggydiggy]

Just keep trying, LBSs are not dissimilar to any other type of shop in that you get good ones and you get bad one.....

 

[samid]

Some LBSs are better than others but if you need to get a specific part and are able to install it yourself, online ordering is the way to go IMHO - you get the exact part that you want (and not something that "should work just as well"), and you are likely to get it sooner. At least that's been my experience in probably 95% of cases. And you get NO "attitude".

 

[chillyuk]

The LBS I use treats everyone the same whether buying a 5mm nut or a 5K bike and his shop is usually busy. Another shop fairly local to me at Broxbourne really lets you know they are doing you a huge favour even acknowledging you unless you are one of their high spending regulars. His shop is often empty. That's my experience, others may have found differently.

 

[Angelfishsolo]

Hi All,

What is it with these local LBS, i mean you walk in and want a part and you come out feeling like 2" tall, i just done get it and it makes my blood boil.

I went to my local, but run down shop, to a spare part and i do have a average knowledge of bikes and parts and the owner was so rude and belittling to me that it just made me feel so small that all i wanted to do was get out of there and his attitude was the famous of " i know what i am talking about and you don't".

No wonder people still go to Halfords, ok the staff are crap but at least you can see everything hanging on the shelves

If i walk in with a part that i want then :-

I don't want a third degree on what the part is for

I don't want to be sold something that is for a £2000 road bike

I want to be treated like a customer who can ask questions and not get a huff or a sigh with a cute answer

and after all that he has the cheek to turn around and say " well if its that urgent then i can order it for you"
No thanks i think i will leave it and i walked out

I hate LBS but i am still looking for one that i am happy to walk into and be treted with respect, i will still look but down to my final 2 so lets see otherwise Halfords here i come

Name and shame. Mine (Dare Valley Cycles) is fantastic.

 

[Rhythm Thief]

If you're in Birmingham, hop on the tram to Wolverhampton and go to Fred Williams. I went there for years (until I moved away) and they were unfailingly excellent, regardless of how much or how little I was spending. I don't think I ever paid full price for anything either. But you're right, bike shops are generally second only to record shops in terms of the extraordinary number of self-gratification artists they seem to attract as staff.

 

[smokeysmoo]

Name and shame. Mine (Dare Valley Cycles) is fantastic.

Good point. Not much use to you in Brum, but my LBS, Geoff Smiths Cycles in Bolton is fantastic. The guys been in business forever, he usually has what ever you want in stock, christ, I got a pair of downtube barrel adjusters a couple of weeks ago off the shelf, Dura-Ace and £12!.
Hunt around, (I know you shouldn't have to), but you'll find one.


Someone should start a recommended LBS website where you can search by postcode, like this one for GARAGES. I'm sure there's one for tradesmen too.

 

[CopperCyclist]

Careful. I'd find a better local bike shop. I took my (new) Boardman back to Halfords, as the front brake disc wasn't true. This meant I couldn't get the brakes adjusted correctly. To allow enough room for the disc to wobble, the brakes had to be so light they gave virtually no braking, and even worse the pull back went so far the gear changer got trapped against the drop bars.

I took it back, pointed out the fault. The first guy said "theres only one chap here thats knows about bikes, hes not in til tomorrow". I couldn't get him to see the fault, and was even willing to fit the part myself if he just ordered/gave me a new disc.

The next day I went back and the guy that "knew about bikes" told me he had fixed it. All he'd actually done is tighten up the brakes - however thanks to the wobble, this now meant that for three quarters of the wheel rotation it was fine, and the last quarter the brakes came on! Not happy with this, I brought it straight back after testing it outside, and again pointed out the non true brake disc. Only then did he change it for me (after leaving the bike with them so he could order the part).

Oh yeah, on my first ride away from the store too the tyre went down 8 miles down the road, and I had to call my wife to come rescue me. They had put the cheapest inner tubes they had into a 1000 pound bike, and it had simply failed - it wasn't even a puncture. At least they did give me two Continental inners to replace them.

I won't buy my next bike from Halfords, which is a shame as I do like the Boardmans. Its the LBS for me, and I'll hope that I get someone with some customer service skills unlike yours!

 

[ianrauk]

Find another LBS. There are plenty about that do treat customers with respect. You just have to find them. And when you do find that shop that do treat you as you expect, then stay with them, they will look after you. Don't bite your nose off to spite your face yourself by giving Halfords your business.

 

[paulb55]

Thanks guys,

I know i wont be going to Halfords, but will keep trying and get a good bike shop, anyone recommend one in south Birmingham near Rednal that have had a good experience and good service with them

Thanks in anticipation

 

[barongreenback]

Speed Cycles in Bromsgrove: http://www.speeds-cycles.co.uk/

Happy to give advice on the phone and didn't treat me like an idiot when I brought a bike in that I'd purchased from another retailer where the spokes clearly hadn't been checked before selling it to me. Also didn't try to upsell me on anything either.

 

[barongreenback]

Even better, you get to ride straight over Rose Hill to get there

 

[Jonathing]

Sivyer Cycles in Havant have been great every time I've been in there. I keep going in there asking questions but I think I've actually only bought one thing (a frame pump) in there, John went through every pump in the shop trying to find one which would fit my (deceptively compact) frame.

 

[Angelfishsolo]

which would fit my (deceptively compact) frame.

Your frame or the bikes?

 

[paulb55]

Even better, you get to ride straight over Rose Hill to get there

LOL Baron

Been up Rose Hill twice
First time i had to stop half way up and then the second time i was determined to get up in one and i did it, but i think i left my lungs 3/4 of the way up LOL