General Cycling Discussion - Good LBS Karma

And I do not mean those extra pounds are content.
The lbs that sold me the blue and white 88 Schwinn Tempo let me have a 600EX front hub for $5.
They were talking about bad customers when I got there and I can't belive what these nice guys have to put up with, not often but one a week would be too much for me. Anybody have a story like this???

And I thought we Iowans were all supposed to be annoyingly friendly...

I work part-time at my LBS and I've got too many stories to tell. It's amazing how some people think they've got to be rude to get a good deal. When we get a customer like that, the boss man says, "We don't want customers like that anyways, so don't give them ANY type of deal".

On the other hand, if you're nice and polite and genuine, we'll bend over backwards for you! Heck, you want to make inroads with you LBS mechanic? Bring him a soda or a gatorade when you come pick up your bike. He'll remeber you and take care of you! Sounds simple, but sometimes the simplest way is the best way! Then, just stop by a couple of days later and bring him another drink and just talk for a minute or two and thank him if he did a good job on your bike!

L8R:beer:

Rural Roadie:

I've got a story that could have happened in an LBS, but it didn't...

When I was in college in Cleveland, I worked in a local ski shop. Just before Christmas, a lady came in all dolled up to buy a friend some skis, boots, etc.

She was a real ubersnob, but I did my best to help her out. When she told me she wanted the bindings mounted on the skis, I told her we really shouldn't do that, since she couldn't say which size boots her friend needed. She insisted that I have the bindings mounted, since it would "look better under the tree" on Christmas morning.

Maybe I should have just caved in, but I knew the store owner would have cut my head off. After another salesman was unable to convince her not to mount the bindings, she went downstairs to the ski shop. The head guy down there was a real party animal. He took no crap from anyone, including customers.

Well, she huffed and puffed to him and he stood there and listened. Occasionally he'd look away toward me, and when she wasn't looking, he'd make a face. I was having a hard time keeping a straight face as it was, when he finally opened his mouth and said, "Hey, lady, why don't you drive back to Beachwood and take a few Valium?" (Beachwood was a nearby suburb known for its wealthy residents.)

She couldn't get back in her Mercedes fast enough, and nearly knocked the store owner down as she steamed out of the shop.

Sometimes, the customer isn't right.