Living Car Free - Is Best Buy bike friendly?

You tell me.

I went there today. On the one hand, I couldn't find a bike rack. On the other, I walked in with my bike in tow and no one said a word- positive or negative- about it. They treated it much like someone might treat a baby stroller- a normal wheeled thingy that some people have.

Some shops are surprisingly lax about that but I gave it an attempt one time at a Safeway; didn't fly there. Even after I told some overly zealous clerk, "It's not a big deal, don't worry about it," he still insisted that I remove my bicycle from the bread aisle.

probably like most any franchise; depends on the particular owner.

the one out here doesn't have a bike rack either - although they do have a metal pipe running about .5 feet above the ground.. perfect to lock your wheel to! i had to flip the bike upside down just to get it locked.

next time i'll just carry it in!

I doubt most people at best buy/circuit city would care. The ones I've been to have been manned mostly by a younger and very relaxed crowd that would rather be home playing video games and eating pizza.

I think you figured it out, GB. I made eye contact with the guy at the front door; he didn't say anything right away so I kept going like I did that all the time. The bluff seemed to work every step of the way. I even had someone come up and ask me if I needed anything, which never happens at BB when I need someone!

The only type of bike that has the best chance of entering retail stores are folders. Otherwise, you're much better NOT using the bike rack especially if all you see are rusting BMXs or Huffy's

That sounds pretty darn bike-friendly to me!! Overall, I have had positive experiences with stores letting me bring my bike in when there's not a rack in sight. I've only encountered a couple of places where they made a huge deal of it. But I'm always on the lookout for stores that do either go out of their way to accommodate cyclists or at least don't make a big deal about it. There's this little market in DC right where I work. I would stop there each morning to grab some breakfast before going over to my office. Before going in, I would lock up my bike outside, which entailed getting my lock out of my back, securing my bike to the parking sign, etc. One morning, the woman who owns the store saw me doing this and told me just to bring the bike inside and leave it at the counter while I got what I needed. I was SO thankful because it made my morning FAR easier. I have been doing this for two years now and I am still grateful. It's the primary reason why I refer customers there.

If there's any big retailer where a bike might work, Best Buy could be it. There's a lot of space in there, and there aren't many carts being pushed around that you'd have to worry about. Plus, at least at all the ones I've been to, there's a security person at the door who would say yes or no -- and if they let you through, then the rest of the staff shouldn't complain.

Maybe I should try it sometime. Can't really think of what I'd need to get, though..