FlashBazbo

Actually, Psimet, I think that was just Competitive Cyclist blowing off steam (for being cut out of the loop). Cervelo didn't say anything about selling direct to the public.

Carbon Unit

My local bike shop only sells high-end bikes. They were one of the largest sellers of Cervelo anywhere in my area. Cervelo ended their relationship with this shop because they weren't selling enough Cervelos.

Maybe Cervelo wants to cut out the local bike shops too.

StanSeven

That's interesting but you're in a much better position to know than I am. My guess was Cervelo was trying to carve a more unique position in the marketplace as a high end company that caters to people wanting to spend money. They dropped the Al S1 and now have the R5 with a $9800 price for just the frame. So their complete bikes now range from $2500 to $15,000+. My read is customers buy from LBS that specialize in their brand and have factory trained employees to fit and service. But if customers don't want that, they can order from Cervelo direct and get the manufacturers expertise without the middle person.

Carbon Unit

I guess this means that I will no longer be able to test ride a bike before I buy it. I hope Cervelo has a great return policy.

StanSeven

No, their website says customers will have two options - buying from LBS or ordering direct with delivery to a LBS.

patentcad

Makes some sense, on the other hand, if you look at Cervelo's dealer locator map, and you live in upstate NY, say Binghamton, you'd have to drive all the way to Syracuse to find a dealer. There are large stretches of the US where people are going to be 3+ hour drives from the nearest dealer. But I would guess that's like 5% or less of the market, and 95% of us are within an hour of a Cervelo retailer.

Psimet2001 

This would mean "any" LBS - not a Cervelo dealer.

This is Cervelo saying, "we are taking more of an active role in our customer's experience to ensure consistancy of customer service and allow us to provide product in smaller markets where having a full service distributor doesn't make as much sense."......translation - "we think we can make more money this way and help reduce the headaches that the current model is giving us"

patentcad

I'm sure they mean (and if you read their statement, it strongly implies) that you'd have to pick up your online order at one of their authorized dealers. Maybe that's what you're saying.

OK, now I'm all confused again.

StanSeven

You're right - The second choice is ordering online with delivery through a Cervelo dealer.

Psimet2001 

You're just confused because I am refusing to read any statements. Therefore I am communicating directly through my ButtonHole.

In general the industry is really putting the toe in the water of abandoning the traditional LBS and dealer model. CC's statement implies that they believe Cervelo doesn't know what kind of mess it is really getting into - meaning to me (in veiled industry speak) CC is saying that Cervelo is intending to deal directly with the public on a large scale.

The only reason the sell direct and ship to an authorized dealer would be to allow the dealer to make a small margin without having to do the sale or float the inventory. In which case there is little to no change to the current model except for the loss of large online distributors.

kayakdiver

Sad thing is.... Like already mentioned some of us have LBS's that we would never spend a dollar in. A crappy LBS is just that. One of the reasons that I didn't purchase my last bike from that shop. They also never have anything in stock and forget a test rise unless I pay up front. This isn't any different than CC except that CC has a much better return policy. With my LBS I would just be SOL.

So no Cervelo for me! I consider this a good thing

patentcad

That's hard to imagine, because if Cervelo does that, they'll find dealers dropping them all over the place. I don't think that's their plan here, but I'll find out from Piermont how that works and how it impacts their margins and I'll get back to you guys. It seems the opposite, like they're doing this to support the LBS model, not to undermine it.

patentcad

My LBS's are lousy, but I live in the NY Metro Area, so I have another one 40 minutes away. Several within 45 minutes actually. That is not the case in large stretches of America. If your LBS blows, another one that doesn't may not be within any reasonable driving distance.

Quel

My impression is that it would be a lot like the Trek Project One system, where you order it with your Trek-authorized LBS and it gets shipped there.

carleton

I know. Shopping on that site and reading that crap is like having some pretty girl rubbing the front of your pants as you pull your wallet out, as she points out the gear that will make you faster...which just so happens to be the most expensive.

leooooo

Real talk, most of you guys wilding. Ain't no one going to CC to pay full price on anything.
That is probably why almost all their components/frames/clothing/wheels are in stock.

It just doesn't move at full retail price.

However, their frame close outs are probably the best deals you can find online or at your LBS.

Purchased two frames from CC already. No complaints, dirt cheap, packaged well, ships fast.

Cactuskid

Pcad not selling

+1

Seattle Forrest

They have a good crash replacement policy. If The Forum believes this is a sign that Cervelo is going out of business, we better all go out and crash to get our replacement frames, while we still can!

FlashBazbo

There is precedent for this in other industries. I bought my Nissan 370Z this way last year. I bought from Nissan corporate, picked up my car at my nearest Nissan dealer, and the dealer received a $500 payment from Nissan for handling the delivery/local prep. I'm not sure where that leaves commission sales guys, but I felt like I got a pretty good deal (and didn't have to deal with commission sales guys).

NormanF

By forcing LBS to sell only in-store, the bike manufacturers are making them lose sales. If I want to buy a bike online and have it shipped to my LBS, BOTH the LBS that wants to sell it and the LBS that wants to assemble it don't profit from the end sale. And the bike manufacturers are losing money.

Its a stupid policy that needs to be scrapped. Show some respect for the consumer and let him have to bike shipped where he wants. The LBS is not being protected by the manufacturer. They are seeing customers walk away.

carleton

Maybe this is a change in Cervelo's core strategy. They are currently perceived as being a manufacturer of elite bikes. While that's awesome, Trek, Specialized, and Felt are cleaning up in the high entry-level to elite categories. Many people drool over Cervelos...and buy Treks.

roadwarrior

You mean like most of the rest of the threads?

roadwarrior

Really? You work in a bike shop, do you?

...facepalm...

himespau 

If they're letting you buy online but have it shipped to an authorized LBS, unless the price is lower, I can't see how it's any different than going to that authorized lbs and having them order it for you, which you can do right now. Unless, it means Cervelo gets to keep most of the markup rather than the lbs. So the only way it helps consumers is if the authorized lbs has a bunch of d-bags that you don't want to talk to as you make your order or give your commission to. So basically, it's good for spite and that's about it.

roadwarrior

Imagine that.