skiracing

Kind of sucks that I turn to BF for this but felt it should be known...

I have a set of Easton wheels for which I needed to order some parts. I first called Easton directly in US and they said they could ship me the parts without any issues but recommended I try the CDN distributor first since it might save me some shipping costs. The CDN distributor is Outdoor Gear Canada, they don't deal with the public directly so I had to go through a local dealer.

Bike Depot was the most convenient location for me so I gave them a call to find out what the cost would be on the parts. I left them the part #s and descriptions and said I'd call back so that I wasn't interrupting them at that instant moment. I called back in a few hours and was told the bike parts are not in the catalogue and that they would call the distributor the next day as they were now closed. In terms of time lines, I initially called around noon and said I'd call back in 2 hours to which they said great, I ended up calling around 4-5 PM... don't want to judge, but they probably could of called the distributor the same day if they knew I would call back. Regardless, I told them I'd give them a call the next day and had no hard feelings (after all, it's a busy time of the year right now for bike stores and I forget things, so they might have forgotten as well).

I called them back today and they told me the distributor doesn't carry these parts, that they only carry complete wheels. At this point I obviously understood I wasn't going to get the parts from them but I still asked whether the distributor suggested anything I could do, the store responded "maybe get them from US".

Initially I was not to impressed that a distributor and wheel manufacturer would leave its customers without anywhere to turn to if they need spare parts (things do break down). Then I decided to give OGC a call to verify and get their suggestion for what to do... I called them, provided them with the same part #s I gave to Bike Depot and was told they have these parts, all of this took me no more than 1 minute.

Yep, I'll be going to a different store.

I'll finish off by pasting a quote from Bike Depot's website and let you be the judge if they walk the talk:
"The one aspect we did have control over was the quality of our service. The mandate of the store became simple--every customer is to be treated like a family member."

ghettocruiser

So they wouldn't order a bunch of obscure replacement parts for wheels you seem to have bought somewhere else?

And you're slagging them for that? Do we even know if they run through OGC? I agree it would have been nice if they'd just said "there is no way we can make money off of this when we have customers in the store that need help buying actual bikes here right now" but that would have made most people even madder.

So why not have the shop where you bought the wheels order the parts?

ijgrant

This is a problem in Canada, We have different suppliers than most companies. For instance, I couldn't get a left crankarm for my crankset without having it specially shipped from the US.

It seams most distributors north of the border don't stock nearly as many parts as those south do.

blakcloud

Easton wheels and you say "obscure parts", somehow I don't think so. Were not talking a small bolt from a 1963 Campy derailleur. Maybe they don't have them in stock, but they DID say they would check with the distributor. Which means a. they wanted his business and b. they deal with OGC. So in my mind one of two things happened: 1. They got wrong information from whomever they talked to if they did phone OGC, or be they weren't bothered to even phone. Either way the truth would be best way out of that.

Plus as the OP already posted, which you must have missed, so here it is again.

"I'll finish off by pasting a quote from Bike Depot's website and let you be the judge if they walk the talk:
"The one aspect we did have control over was the quality of our service. The mandate of the store became simple--every customer is to be treated like a family member." "

So he wasn't treated like a family member at least not in my eyes. I am coming to the conclusion that you buy bikes from your LBS but you mail order parts from the U.S. unless your LBS has it in stock.

Cyclist0383

To be fair he was treated like a red headed step-child......

ghettocruiser

Nope. I read the entire post. He's slagging a shop on the forum, for a reason that I think is way below the threshold for an internet put-down. If they ripped him off or messed up his bike, that's one thing, but this guy didn't give them a penny, as I read it.

My LBS has no issues ordering obscure parts for me, because the parts are for major items that I BOUGHT off them.

I agree that BD should have been more straightforward, but it's the first of May, not exactly the time of the year shops have a lot of spare resources. I think if he ditches a shop this easily, before long he'll have a grudge against every shop in town.

And Easton wheels fit my definition of obscure parts. How many shops did I had to hit to find a friggen bladed spoke a few months back.

Cyclist0383

If a shop in any business says they'll do something, then doesn't do it, it's a place to avoid. It's their business to help out customers, even for small things; when they stop doing that in the customers eyes there is no reason for them to exist.

I remember trying to order an Avid part from the local distributor. I was told that it would take a year and a half to get! I called up Avid Europe to see where I could actually get the part I needed and they sent me two new brake sets as an apology for the terrible service of their distributor. Needless to say at this point I'm quite impressed with Avid, and don't go to the LBS of the distributor.

ghettocruiser

Perhaps. But if we think the role of the LBS is to order no-margin parts for big-ticket items we bought somewhere else (on line), I think we need to lower our expectations of the retail experience.

Either way, starting a thread to slag a small business about something as inane as this is bad form.

Cyclist0383

As an official dealer of the product it's their responsibility to sell those products, even small parts. Service is the best reason to go to an LBS, when they don't provide it why bother to ever go back?

J T CUNNINGHAM

Old expression:

Once bit, twice shy.


Regards,
J T

ghettocruiser

Where did we establish they were an official dealer of anything? If I am thinking of the right shop, pretty much everything they had on the floor was from Specialized the one time I was in there.

My LBS can order all sorts of different product lines through his distributor, but he likes to stick to a few brands so they can be experts at what they sell and not have to spread the inventory across too many brands. If the shop in the OP's grievance had advertised an assortment of Easton wheels in stock, maybe this argument gains traction.

Cyclist0383

The OP says they are a dealer.

In any event, if people are forsaking the LBS for the internet actions like the ones in the OP will just reinforce peoples belief that there is no need for an LBS, which does no one any good in the long run. The LBS is largely about service, which they didn't provide.

blakcloud

GhettoCruiser,

I think I have to disagree with about everything you write, but hey that is the world we live in. The other point is I am not seeing anyone else agree with your point of view. The OP got poor service and wrote about it.

You are also forgetting about forging relationships for future business and this is where BD failed again. Do you think the OP is going to have BD on his list when he buys his next bike? I worked at a bike store for years and one of the first things the owner instilled in me was that every customer was to get great service even if he was buying a one dollar bolt or a two thousand dollar bike. That customer could come back and buy a bike some day. Forging relationships it makes good business sense.

But at this point I think we will have to agree to disagree.

And to the OP, I still agree, you got treated poorly and I would certainly take BD off my list of places to shop even for small things like tubes.

I received very bad service twice from their sister store and I will never buy from that store again. There are plenty of shops in this city that want my business or as I said earlier there is always mail order.

ghettocruiser

Feel free to disagree. But I'm not forgetting about anything.

I had a shop in Toronto that told me they couldn't get replacement parts for a high-end wheelset I BOUGHT OFF OF THEM less than a year earlier. It was supposed to be under warranty and they said no way.

The shop that did this is one of the most respected outfits in the city, and has the loyal following of riders I know and respect.

I went to another shop and they took care of it.

Sometimes shops really blow it. I'll talk to the manager about it, I'll talk to empoyees about it, if they won't fix things I leave and I don't come back.

I don't take it out on them on the internet.

ejbarnes

Must be the same bike shop I took my wheels back to. Shimano web page says 3 day turn around. It's just over a month and I can't get any answers. I am so pissed by the treatment I will tell my story to any that will listen. $4000 for a bike and I can't ride it.

skiracing

Looks like the thread got some life, I came back a few times and there were no responses initially but I come back today and see there is discussion...

For some clarification, I inquired about 3 parts:
1. End cap - $3
2. Axle - $38
3. Drift tool kit - $40

OGC gave me a list of dealers they deal with, that is why BD was chosen.

A few days later I called another dealer, a ski shop that does a bit of bike business in the off season. I got a call back from them within 5 minutes, they called OGC and found out about the items and their prices. Both stores got specific item codes, so there was no way they couldn't be identified.

I totally realize the stores don't carry many parts/items because that would be costly, but that's why they each have a catalogue and access to a distributor from who you can get this stuff. Search for Outdoor Gear Canada and have a look at the brands they distribute, they cover pretty much every bike store in the city as the brand assortment is huge.

Anyways, ghettocruiser, you are totally entitled to your opinion but the way I see it is you are stuck in your view and will argue to death even if you are dead wrong. Whatever you might say, there is no explanation or justification for how this shop dealt with a customer. The guy I talked to is one of the family members that owns the store so the argument that this might have been some employee and his actions shouldn't be used to judge the store won't fly either.

ghettocruiser

Since you were already talking to one of the store owners, did you explain your dissatisfaction to them at the time? Did you give them an opportunity to correct the oversight?

Or did you just hang up, get mad, and post on the internet in a deliberate attempt to discourage other potential customers from going there?

ghettocruiser

Okay, this was an abrasive post, but I leave it there for a reason:

I've gotten ticked off at shops in the past as well and bad-mouthed them. At the time, I justified it by saying that I was only reporting the facts (like you probably were) and I'd let people decide for themselves.

But I didn't give them a chance to fix the problem, and all I was telling were the *facts* that led to me getting mad. If the shop treated all their customers this bad, why would it still be there? A few of the shops went out of business (for reasons unrelated to my angry ranting, I presume) but most did not. That's a good thing. There are nowhere near enough LBSs in Toronto. People buy bikes the suck from large chain stores that also suck. Bike Depot may not have been willing or able to order your parts that day, but do you think Sportscheck can?

A few years back I took my mountain bike in for servicing, and a ham-handed mechanic at the shop stripped the threads off my fork's disk brake mount and gave the bike back without mentioning it. I was livid. But I cooled down, took it back, and he fixed it. Maybe he didn't realize that it was stripped. Maybe he was just having an off-day. He went on to become a guy who saved me hundreds or thousands of dollars on components, he turned out to be one of the best suspension rebuilders in the city. All of my bikes would suck a lot more now if he wasn't my mechanic.

So this shop didn't order a part for you. You had a negative experience. But it cost you nothing.

I think you should cut them some slack.

That is all.

ejbarnes

This warranty problem was the fault of the bike shop. By their own admission.

As a result of this posting Shimano sent a email offering to help out with my problems.

Kudos to Shimano. They have more than earned my customer loyalty.
As I said in the first reply this was the fault of the bike shop and I will no longer be spending my money there.

I had a great ride today, Button won Monaco, Managed to see some of Paul Tracey racing Indy 500, my weekly TT time is still dropping...

Feels good to be alive today. Thanks Ben