Ramblings:
http://sprinterdellacasa.blogspot.co...-bike-biz.html

Summary: volunteer for free at a shop for 1-3 months. If this is what you want to do, raise a lot of money. Think 3 months rent deposit (1st, last, and current), lots of credit for bike lines ($10-50k credit lines), enough money to pay for stuff through a totally dead biz time (for me it was 1 month in the late fall and 2 months in winter, so 3 months worth of salary, utilities, rent). And that's minimum. You really ought to have 6-12 months worth.

Another important concept: if you have to own the building you're in, you're in the real estate business, not the bike biz. You could do almost anything in that space if you can pay your mortgage monthly. If you own the building because you want to own the building (not because you have to own it) then you're okay. Choose your profession. This came from a long time bike industry person (who is out of the biz now - and he owned his own building).

Stories:
http://sprinterdellacasa.blogspot.co...-learning.html
http://sprinterdellacasa.blogspot.co...story-you.html
http://sprinterdellacasa.blogspot.co...bike-ride.html
http://sprinterdellacasa.blogspot.co...ocal-shop.html

cdr