Folding Bikes - I tried to support my LBS... but...

I'm lucky to live 2 blocks from my LBS. They have good mechanics and are fairly well stocked with bikes and parts, mostly for roadies. Every time I've brought my bike in, they've been helpful, Sometimes they have done little adjustments for me for free.

So, time to buy some accessories. Fenders and tires. I call up the LBS.

Q. Can I order Schwalbe Big Apple 16x2.0 tires from you?
A. Schwalbe doesn't make Big Apple tires in 16"
Q. Yes they do. The Dahon Curves you sell come with them as standard equipment.
A. Schwalbe doesn't make Big Apple tires in 16".

At this point I give up on the tires. I'll buy them from Thor at some point.

Q. Can I order some Dahon SKS 16" fenders?
A. Sure. Price is $30 + tax + shipping. (note: competitive!)
... week passes ...
A. Actually, we don't have them, our distributor doesn't have them, and no one can get any for a month, maybe more. Want to wait for them?

At this point I give up on the LBS and buy the exact fenders I need on eBay.

:notamused:

I'm lucky to live 2 blocks from my LBS. They have good mechanics and are fairly well stocked with bikes and parts, mostly for roadies. Every time I've brought my bike in, they've been helpful, Sometimes they have done little adjustments for me for free.

So, time to buy some accessories. Fenders and tires. I call up the LBS.

Q. Can I order Schwalbe Big Apple 16x2.0 tires from you?
A. Schwalbe doesn't make Big Apple tires in 16"
Q. Yes they do. The Dahon Curves you sell come with them as standard equipment.
A. Schwalbe doesn't make Big Apple tires in 16".

At this point I give up on the tires. I'll buy them from Thor at some point.

Q. Can I order some Dahon SKS 16" fenders?
A. Sure. Price is $30 + tax + shipping. (note: competitive!)
... week passes ...
A. Actually, we don't have them, our distributor doesn't have them, and no one can get any for a month, maybe more. Want to wait for them?

At this point I give up on the LBS and buy the exact fenders I need on eBay.

:notamused:

Hey at least you gave them a chance. It's not your fault that they couldn't call around to find for you what you needed. Thye snoozed ergo they loosed.

Reminds me of a the time I went to my little corner store for a bag of flour and found the shelf empty.

I asked the owner if they had any more. He said he was all out, and I said not to worry about it, I'd get it down the street.

He asked me to wait a minute. I watched him in disbelief as he ran down the block to another corner store. He came back with a 5 lbs sack, pulled off the sticker, and sold it to me for $.25 less.

Now, some may think he had relatives at the other store or owned both, but he didn't. In fact, he intensely disliked them. But not only did I get my flour (not a big deal!), I told that dang story to everyone I knew on my block. And as you can see, I am still telling it a few years later.

I'd guess he knew he would get a lot of free advertising from me!

I hope you can find another LBS in your area though. It is so worth it to have a good one and to patronize them enough to help keep them in business.

well well...... I do have the tires in stock ... so far so good. I do NOT have any 16 inch fenders at this time .... Now its easy to blame this or that. Just let me give you an example ..

I had 10 sets since Jan 08 .... In August i still had 9 sets, I sold another one in September....

Now thats more or less One set per 3 month right ? I looked at my stock and said to myself I am good: I have 16 months to go ...

Guess what in November the whole country run out and I sold all 8 remaining sets. When I was down to 3 I called Dahon and ordered 10 more ...
Unfortunaetly all the dealers who only had 2 in stock called Dahon a week earlier and they were sold out in no time .....
See where I am going ....


Sometimes we just need to breath slow and accept the fact that not always not everybody has everything one wants in stock ... and its really not fair to leave a good contact because of one incident.
On the other hand it is not right to tell you that those tires are not available ..lol

Thor

Yeah, both the 16" Big Apples and fenders are a problem. In September / October I ordered those fenders from four different dealers, all of whom thought they had 'em in stock, before I finally found one who actually did. The first one told me they'd be in soon, so I waited and waited and waited, which was a mistake. After that I placed the orders with specific instructions to cancel the whole order if the fenders weren't in stock; then I had my fenders within a week.

It's cool you tried to use the LBS. I spent about $100 more than internet price at my LBS for the Dahon Speed P8. I hate that, but:
1. after riding for 20 minutes, it was clicking like it had a loose crank or something. Shop tweaked it for me for free, runs perfectly now.
2. They gave me a free rack
3. They gave me a free headlight when I didn't have one to ride home from the shop that night.

I made the right choice for me, $100 or not. Great service!

Oh, and by the way... the internet bike shop that eventually sold me my fenders was someone's LBS, just not mine.

I'd guess he knew he would get a lot of free advertising from me!

There's a reason I link to my favorite LBS in my sig. What it comes down to is this: I was looking to spend probably $500-1000 at the shop for my commuting bike. The owner mentioned to me that a common acquaintance had "some bikes she's trying to sell." Because this LBS doesn't deal in used bikes (at least not yet, although they may start soon), she didn't really want to go out to our acquaintence's house and tell her she didn't want the bikes... so she told me about them.

I ended up buying both bikes (a 2001 Nishiki and a 1966 Raleigh), saving several hundred dollars that I would have spent at the LBS. They said they just wanted to make sure I got a bike I'd be happy with.

So I feel I owe them a free plug whenever I get a chance. I've already referred a few customers to them.

I'm lucky to live 2 blocks from my LBS. They have good mechanics and are fairly well stocked with bikes and parts, mostly for roadies. Every time I've brought my bike in, they've been helpful, Sometimes they have done little adjustments for me for free.

So, time to buy some accessories. Fenders and tires. I call up the LBS.

Q. Can I order Schwalbe Big Apple 16x2.0 tires from you?
A. Schwalbe doesn't make Big Apple tires in 16"
Q. Yes they do. The Dahon Curves you sell come with them as standard equipment.
A. Schwalbe doesn't make Big Apple tires in 16".

At this point I give up on the tires. I'll buy them from Thor at some point.

Q. Can I order some Dahon SKS 16" fenders?
A. Sure. Price is $30 + tax + shipping. (note: competitive!)
... week passes ...
A. Actually, we don't have them, our distributor doesn't have them, and no one can get any for a month, maybe more. Want to wait for them?

At this point I give up on the LBS and buy the exact fenders I need on eBay.

:notamused:

That is why I patronize a number of shops. Not only do I avoid the above, the less chance I am inconvienced when the shop closes down-which seems like a real possibility here.

Oh, and by the way... the internet bike shop that eventually sold me my fenders was someone's LBS, just not mine.
Good point...

(only in my case, the online shop is in the US, not in Oz, as the Oz importers are raping us to shreds...)

It seems you went to a lot of trouble phoning around etc rather than going 2 blocks and talking to the guys in the shop face to face.

Most small bike shops don't have a clue about the niceties of retailing, so no-one wants to answer the phone. They just want to get on with working on the bikes, and you're not going to get the guy who knows the most - he's too high up the food chain and busy doing paying work.

Try watching this in a bike shop sometime - maybe it's different elsewhere - but also note how many waste of time calls they get, which is why they don't like the phone. They also know that even if they spend ages on the phone with a caller, there is little chance that person will call in because they are simply fishing for enough information so they can buy on the net.

If you want to know something, go in person. Support your lbs, and they'll support you.

(Please note I am talking about small bike shops, not the emporiums where they have specially trained apes to take money from you regardless of your needs)

It seems you went to a lot of trouble phoning around etc rather than going 2 blocks and talking to the guys in the shop face to face.

I knew from a previous in person visit that they didn't have the tires or fenders in stock. I don't work anywhere near the LBS - so I phoned to order.



Most small bike shops don't have a clue about the niceties of retailing, so no-one wants to answer the phone. They just want to get on with working on the bikes, and you're not going to get the guy who knows the most - he's too high up the food chain and busy doing paying work.
This is not a small shop. I'd say more but I don't want to name names.


Try watching this in a bike shop sometime - maybe it's different elsewhere - but also note how many waste of time calls they get, which is why they don't like the phone. They also know that even if they spend ages on the phone with a caller, there is little chance that person will call in because they are simply fishing for enough information so they can buy on the net.
I was very clear on the phone that I wanted to place an order. If the LBS considers that a "waste of time" then I'm not sure what to say.

Actually my only complaint about the LBS is the tire misinformation. The fact that they couldn't get the fenders is not their fault - no one can get them from distributors now. But last night I got mine by mail order and mounted them right away :)

...I don't work anywhere near the LBS - so I phoned to order.
...This is not a small shop....
...Actually my only complaint about the LBS is the tire misinformation...But last night I got mine by mail order and mounted them right away :)

Well in that case you're justified, a larger shop should have someone knowledgeable on the phone.