Here's a good ol' rant that asks why do bike shops give crap advice?

I hate the car industry, but at least car manufacturers don't try to sell formula one cars to housewives and commuters. They don't even try to sell rally cars to these people. They sell cars that are more comfortable on the road, safer in the event of a collision, and useable in everyday situations like carrying passengers, carrying luggage, listening to the radio, etc. Oh and they have a roof and windows, etc…

But the bike industry has convinced ordinary leisure cyclists that we should be riding Tour de France clones. Bikes that can't carry luggage or any kind, can't take mudguards, so they are awful in wet weather. Where our position on the bike gives us pains in our butts, back, shoulders and wrists.

There are some good reasons why a utility cyclist might want to avoid a carbon fibre speed machine (like reliability and durability). But just for a laugh go into your LBS and ask for a bike that doesn't have any carbon fibre in it and see what kind of reaction you get. If they try to talk you out of it without understanding your riding needs—walk.

A bike shop that's only prepared to service high-end sports cyclists is a bike shop that's missing a large market segment that could provide years of reliable repeat business: the so-called "recreational" and utility cyclists. Good salespeople in good shops will be informed and give good advice about a range of cycling, not just the fancy bling that appeals to them.

I think crankely might need to find a new bike shop…

3 August

Coincidentally, there is a related article in Ride On this month: three bike salesmen were sent out as shoppers to the Compleat Angler, Cranbourne Music Centre, and the baby department at David Jones—places that sell products they know nothing about.

This was based on an earlier stunt that Shimano pulled on some of its reps:

To give bike aficionados a taste of their own medicine, the Coasting team gave OEM representatives and a select group of dealers an assignment: Go to a cosmetics counter and buy $50 worth of products. The memory of facing down a battery of face creams and hair gels still makes Trek's Price cringe.

The insights in the Ride On article are interesting, although I suspect that salespeople who are up for this kind of challenge are not sort that crankely was ranting about. One of the main observations echoes what I said above:

Rob Weekes [Brunswick Street Cycles] agrees that asking the right questions goes a long way to making people feel comfortable and understood…Jim [Jim Cliff, Fitzroy Cycles] agrees. "The first thing I always do is ask a whole bunch of questions, like what they want and what they're going to use the bike for – they're probably questions they haven't even thought of themselves…"

And despite my carping, some bike shops are awake to the huge market opportunity that is "potential cyclists":

"People new to riding are a critical market for us," says Rocky Barrese, manager-in-charge of Penny Farthing Cycles…"It's difficult to quantify a market like that, but we do know there are many people out there who want to get into bike riding but have been intimidated by service that focuses on the product, rather than their needs…"

[emphasis added]

Incidentally, Ride On is running a mini survey: Are bike shops good at customer service? I think that's a more complex question than it appears, but it's still a question worth asking.

I would also reflect a comment that Harry Barber makes elsewhere in the same issue of Ride On: having found a bike shop that gives you good advice, support it. Buy from good bike shops as much as you possibly can—we can do without hopeless shops that offer only low prices and crap advice.

Comments

jimmay

Maybe it's because selling just one carbon-fibre road bike goes a long way to paying the week's rent ...

Treadly and Me

Yeah probably. But that's a bit short-sighted: sure you can sell a few carbon-fibre road bikes but if you drive away more potential customers than you retain, the business is under performing. The (presumably smaller) margins on a cheaper bike are better than the total lack of margins on a non-sale.

The other thing to consider is that someone who wants a cheap entry-level mountain bike today will probably want to upgrade their ride in the not-too-distant future. And eventually that no-longer-entry-level rider may well be back for a carbon-fibre speed machine. Not to mention clothing and accessories along the way.

If the bike shop captures that entry-level customer on day one, there will be margins to collect on all of that repeat business. But if the new rider is driven away, so are all those future sales.

Crowlie

If car sales people are so good how come there are hummers on the road, huh?

Treadly and Me

Excellent point. The proliferation of SUVs suggests that the car industry doesn't always simply meet its customers' needs, rather its marketing machine creates a need then the industry meets it. In fact, I'd say that the car industry almost always meets a need that has been enhanced or totally created by its marketing machine.

However, I don't think that crankely was necessarily singing the praises of car yards, but lamenting the standard of service in bike shops (actually, a specific bike shop). So I think the point is still valid, even if the comparison with the car industry doesn't stand up to scrutiny.

eccles

I'd love to see a list of bike shops around melbourne and people's opinions on them - I've been to a few and got a fairly broad spectrum of advice and competency. For instance, I find it really frustrating to take the bike somewhere and say "this is wrong, fix or replace it" and then find after a week's inconvenience that they just did a minor service...

Treadly and Me

There's definitely a "grapevine" at work among people who ride in groups--it's not hard to tune into where good service is available, people are happy to share bad service experiences and recommend the places that do good work.

But if you're a lone commuter who doesn't get much chance to speak to other riders, it could be a bit hard to find that advice.

Chris L

Most of the hummers/SUV's on the road are merely a penis extension for those who feel challenged in that area, much like all the mcmansions being built in the Gold Coast hinterland. Although with modern perceptions of "safety" revolving around the concept of "pre-emptive strikes", I think there are quite a few people who think they're buying SUVs for practical reasons.

From my observations since returning to Australia, it would seem that commuting and/or utility cycling just isn't "sexy" enough to entice most people. I know here on the 'coast you just don't see people commuting or (in most cases) even riding anywhere beyond the urban coastal strip. Most of them would rather just cruise up and down the coast posing on their ultra-expensive bikes, much like the SUV drivers really.

If you go to London or Edinburgh on the other hand, you'll see a lot more people commuting and a lot more practical bikes on the road. I've provided a partial explanation for that in a recent post on my own blog, but on both sides of the world, I think the bike shops are just serving the market that comes through their door. That said, I understand St Kilda Cycles in Melbourne stocks a range of equipment that is better suited to utility cyclists, as does Epic Cycles in Brisbane.

Treadly and Me

I agree, both on the misperception that SUV's are safer and that people seem to approach cycling differently in the UK and Europe. That said, I think cycle commuting does seem to be getting some traction here in Melbourne.

Fritz

Regarding "They sell cars that are more comfortable on the road, safer in the event of a collision, and useable in everyday situations..." -- have you guys actually seen a car advertisement lately? Yeah, they mention safety but the main selling points are performance, power and sex appeal. And don't forget the disclaimers: "Close course with professional drivers."

Treadly and Me

True, cars are almost exclusively marketed on the "zoom zoom" factor.

But marketing aside, crankely's point is that whereas most cars sold are suitable* for the range of activities the buyer will want to do (e.g. accommodate passengers, carry a load of groceries), some bike shops stock and sell only the equivalent of racing cars. And such bikes are not suitable for everything that a utility cyclist might want to do.

Ever tried to fit panniers or mud guards to a light-weight carbon-fibre racing frame?

* "Suitable" in the sense that they able to do such things. A lumbering SUV is over the top for getting the kids to school and two bags of canned goods home, but it's perfectly capable of doing so.

No endorsement of automotive industry, including its marketing and sales practices, is expressed or implied.

Joe Aristidis

I just shake my head when I walk past an Australian bike shop. Where are the dutch bicycles? You know, the ones with the luggage rack, luggage straps, electrical system with dynamo and rear and front lights, mud guards, wheel guards, coat protectors, chain casing/protector, rear reflector, air pump? All of this standard with a dutch bike. Dutch laws even require some of this otherwise the bike is not road worthy.

Instead, bike riders here get two wheels and a frame and that's it...Retailers here say that there's no demand for those bikes. In Holland they sell around 1.5 million of these bikes every year! Somebody's is in denial here...