Originally Posted by
Newspaperguy
Just bike where you want to go and lock your bike outside the place. Don't bring it inside unless you're invited to do so. You'll soon earn a lot of respect and if they see you're a regular customer, they may eventually set up bike racks.
If you insist it's your right to take your bike into a business, you'll get a reputation you won't want.
But what if there is absolutely nothing to lock the bike up to within a reasonable distance of the place? One clothing store in a big-box-hell-strip mall the best I found to lock up to was a sidewalk rack of clothing. They probably weren't amused at that
although noone said anything. I picked winter coats on a warm sunny day figuring nobody would be trying on the coats. Another place I wanted to go to in box stripmall hell I skipped entirely as I didn't see anywhere reasonable to leave the bike and I didn't feel like walking across miles of parking lot. Parking lot seas often have literally nothing to lock a bicycle to.