RETTWINS

Two bike related things upset me this weekend.
1. I've been looking into getting a clipless setup. The bike shop I normally go to doesn't have much in stock (it doesn't currently have a floor room). So I went to the shop a town over that has a more proper floor setup. Asked the guy working the floor about shoes and he pointed out a small rack and boxes laying on the floor. All shoes in the boxes were 40% off. So I start asking some questions and he doesn't know anything so he points me to the owner. I ask the owner and he is just kind of blowing me off. So I decide to go try on the discount shoes because they are already out. After trying on a few pairs I see that they have Dominators on the rack and figure while I am here I might as well check these out. I wanted to see exactly what the difference between an $80 shoe and a $230 shoes was. So I ask the owner dude to try them on and he says "Why?" I said "Because I want to see how they feel." He says "They feel good" all sharply and turns away. I say "Uhh, yeah but I kind of wanted to see for myself." He says, "Well are you going to buy them." I say, "I don't know I haven't tried them on yet." He says, "Well come back when you are ready to buy them." What an ass. Can you believe this guy? Never going back there again.

2. Ran downstairs to my basement this morning to find my bike laying on the floor and all kinds of scratched up. I lock the thing to a poll in my basement. I always lock it the same way so it won't fall. It never falls. I know my damned meathead downstairs neighbors had people over in the basement this weekend. They have moved the bike around the poll before scratching it up. This time the moved it around and then the bike fell over. If i went and said anything to them the would deny it and make it a point to f with the bike more next time.
AAAGGGHHH!!!
(sorry for the really long post)

hyperRevue

Both of those are infuriating bull****.

jamey

firebomb the shop and then throw the ***** that lives in your building into the burning wreckage.

rvabiker

What shop is it and where? Don't spare them.

Fugazi Dave

Yeah, punch the shop owner in the nose.....for all of us.

Ill Mitch

What kind of shop doesn't let you try on shoes?

That's bull****, you shouldn't own a bike shop if you have no social skills and you're a jack***.

RETTWINS

The store is Highland Park Cyclery in Highland Park, NJ (i'm in New Brunswick). A good friend of mine was doing floor work and a little wrenching there for a while and ended up giving his 2 weeks notice one day because he couldn't take the owner anymore. The owner said to him "Why don't you leave right now?" So he did. This guy is one of the sweetest, nicest, hardest working dudes I know. Only regret he has is that he can't go into the store anymore, which has the best selection in the area. Same reason I was in there. But, whatever, I'll special order from Bob's place on Easton Ave or Kim's on French St.

mattman

Yea Highland Park Cyclery is weird some times. Join the Highland Park Hermes and you get a discount there since its the sponsoring shop and better service.

Terror_in_pink

is there enough room to keep your bike inside your place?

alexhays

you should kill the owner of the shop for having a bad personality and kill whoever else you need to and steal the shoes (**** corporations [cept iro, ])

OneTinSloth

yes, you are a revolutionary.

sloppy robot

go hit ridgewood cycle.. and while youre at it.. see if my pit bike is still in the basement..owning a shop can be a cruel living.. theres a "loser at the game of life" bike shop owner in every state.. dont get mad.. just dont go back...los angeles has the king of "i own a dumpy bike shop and i hate my life" shops in the country.. the guy is such a dark cloud its funny.

chuck_norris

1. Have you ever been to this shop before? If so, did you buy anything? If you bought something what was it?

I'm not saying that the shop owner was in the right, I just want to make sure I hear the full story before I agree that this shop owner is a peter.

I have been working in a shop for a little more than a week and you'd be surprised how many toolbags come in asking to feel something that I know they will never buy. I am in the middle of truing a wheel and I get asked to pull out every shiney part in display cases. If you came in the store asking about the shoe sale, hassle the owner, then want him to drop what he's doing to get some shoes to put your feet in cause you think they're pretty, then quit *****ing.

I don't think it is said enough. Have some shop etiquitte. Bike shops are not the equivalent to malls for middleschoolers.

On the other hand, if you really were in there looking at shoes and ask about some shoes you were possibly interested in, don't be too quick to judge. 5 chumps may have been in the last hour to try on **** without buying anything. Then again maybe the shop is worth boycotting


2. I agree with TIP. Bikes are worth showcasing even if space is limited.

rvabiker

Apparently you don't get the purpose of the service industry. I don't care what you are in the middle of doing, how many people have come in and not bought anything today, or how much money I've spent their before. Your job is to serve me in the best way possible. My LBS lost between $1500 and $2000(on two bikes) of my business becuase I got fed up of having a certain sales person act like I was inconviencing them when I wanted to looma t high dollar parts. No I hadn't bought anything expensive from there before but I was planning on it. Instead I got everything but bar wrap and tubes online and he got no commision.

mattman

I have been dealing with the shop the OP went to for about 6 years with pretty good results. I think some of the problems with the shop are cultural. The owner is not from north america and other people i have worked with from the same country do business in a similar manner. You could go into Kims bike shop in NB and get nearly the same response if you go on a bad day, Its happend to me. Even Bob used to get weird sometimes if you asked too many questions and he didnt know you. If you want good service at HP dont go in there thinking you are going to shop x buy small stuff, make small talk, let them get to know you. Then when you want to buy something $$ you'll get the service you were expecting when you first went in there. Sure its not the way people here say it should be but thats how it is there. If you want a shop that has a decent selection of good stuff try BikeN Gear on Hamilton a few miles out of NB in Somerset. The owner is an OK guy i used to bug him for small **** like ball bearings and axels back in the day.

soyboy

i'm going to third that keeping your bike in the apartment may be your best options, think about it this way you keep your tv in the apartment and that's not as useful or as valuable as your bike, also if you're not a car free person having the bike in the apartment might encourage you to ride more, which is always a good thing...as for the shop thing if you're that bothered don't go back, if you think they have a good shop but a bad attitude you need to decide what's more important to you

sloppy robot

i knew i didn't like you for a reason..let me guess.. you've never worked in a restaurant..

OneTinSloth

yes, how DARE someone walk into a shop trying to buy shoes (which fit differently across brand-lines, SIDIs are narrower than most and NEED to be tried on) and expect to be able to try them on. jesus christ, if every bike shop refused to sell higher-end product to a customer until they built a 6 year relationship with them, there'd be a lot fewer bike shops. it's a pair of $200 shoes! take the 10 minutes to help the customer find the right size and let them try 'em on. he didn't say "no, i'm not looking to buy them." he said "i don't know if i want to buy them because i haven't tried them on yet." totally reasonable for such a large footwear investment. i would've walked out of there as soon as the first "salesman" just pointed at the shoes and let you help yourself.

OneTinSloth

i've worked in a shop 2 years, and i will say, there have been times when i have provided less than stellar service to customers, but most of the time, if i'm in the middle of wrapping bars, or truing a wheel, i'll tell them "i'm in the middle of something, and i'll be right with you." because a scheduled repair takes precidence over someone who has just walked in the door. i have people coming in to pick up their bikes at certain times and it's not ready by the time they come in, i've have not provided satisfactory service. if the walk-in is reasonable (which most of the time they are), they'll sit and wait the 30-60 seconds it takes for me to get to a suitable stopping point.

i won't make them wait if i've just started a project, i'll drop that and help 'em out, because that's what i'm there for. a lot of times, it's the simple act of acknowledging that they exist.

chuck_norris: it sounds like you're new to the shop world. after a while, you'll be able to help a customer without leaving your bench. ask them questions while you're working to get a feel for what the customer is looking for and why they want to check out a specific part, and you can make recommendations and maybe even upsell them. have a conversation with them if time allows. they'll feel less like a bother, and you'll get more work done, and hopefully have served them better, and they'll come back. you gotta serve them. it's your job (and mine too). i'm not saying there aren't total tools out there who will waste your time, but asking questions before simply fulfilling a request will help weed out the ones who need to do more research/save more money before they're ready to buy. but sometimes, you just gotta open the cases and show them the bling.

the courtesy has to flow both ways.

sloppy robot

that sums it up.. so why are your rants so dual-personality?

OneTinSloth

i don't think they're so much dual personality...the first is trying to explain to a person who's been in the customer's shoes what's going through the employee's head, and the second is trying to enlighten a new employee so they can get their current project done AND help the customer....

if you're talking about my previous, more indignant post, it's because it sounds like the owner didn't want anything to do with helping the OP. he didn't say that he was in the middle of something, in effect, he refused to help the guy out, plain and simple, which is just bad business. how did he know the OP didn't have the cash in hand to drop right there and then on the shoes if they fit right. all he wanted to do was try on the shoes. he could've said "i'll be with you in a moment," if he was busy. i never refuse help to someone at work (unless there is a pre-existing relationship with them and i know they really are going to waste my time, which is usually after everyone in the shop has tolerated their hobo shenanigans for the better part of two months). i may delay that service, or if i'm really swamped, i'll even go find someone more knowledgable to help them out.

i've been on both sides of that equation and i know how frustrating it is for both people involved.

on the one hand, i've got this repair to take care of, on the other, i've got this person standing right in front of me waiting to be helped, i can't be in two places at once.

bottom line is, the OP made a simple, completely reasonable request, and was refused service.

OneTinSloth

i also try to be as objective as possible, which means i sometimes take a lot longer to explain things (especially conflicts) to others. i generally try to understand where everyone is coming from...it's a devil's advocate thing i do to try to have a little more empathy.

i think the world woul dbe a much better place if everyone had just a little more empathy.

tlupfer

maybe it's because i live in minnesota, but pretty much everything in this thread sounds like bull**** of some variety.

bigbikerbrian

definitely cos of minnesota.

sloppy robot

uh.. everything on this forum is bull**** of some variety.. thats the beauty