Originally Posted by Maelochs

Whatever .... perhaps he was getting the standard, "Try it on at the shop, buy it for less online" customer, or perhaps he was referring to bike sales, not accessories ... instead of coming in and working with the shop owner to find the perfect bike, customers were coming in having chosen the bike and asking him to order it.

From what he says, and knowing the buying habits of some cyclists ... I'd say the latter fits best.

Either way, he wasn't having fun any more. And while there are always a few people using that "I spend a fair amount at my LBS" obviously it was not a sufficient amount .... and the was not a sufficient amount of you. (And what did a couple tuneups and a couple tire-swaps per year cost---max $400? How many $400 per year customers would he need to stay afloat and healthy? Obviously more than he was getting. How many people have bike shops "build" a bike? pretty much zero---people either buy a bike or build a bike. And maintenance really isn't very much---and a lot of shops offer free tune-ups as a sales incentive, so the one set of tires and new chain most riders need per two years .... ain't much.)

To address an earlier point about sales help not being skilled labor .... really? Maybe that was exactly the trend he is referring to.

I know a couple decades ago a bike salesman had to be "skilled," not in sales technique alone, but in everything about bikes. Joe the burger flipper couldn't pick up a bikes salesman job between fast-food gigs, because ten minutes of watching a training video wouldn't prepare someone to be able to rationally discuss everything from cruisers and kids' bikes for a family to road bikes for new riders to road bikes for serious roadies to MTBs or hardcore MTB riders .... all the various parts from the various manufacturers ... trying to match inventory with customer .... and being able to explain to a customer Why that particular bike was the one to get.

The only thing untrained salespeople are good for is punching up orders from customers who looked up bikes online and want one ordered ... which means the shop isn't moving inventory, and doesn't need (and cannot afford) skilled, knowledgeable, passionate salespeople.

Maybe.

The idea I got from the article is that he doesn't like the way the bike business is changing. Probably it is a combination of more people buying accessories online, buying parts online and asking the shop to install them, and coming to the shop expecting the shop to order a bike not in inventory, which all together add up to the guy not being able to afford his staff ... and firing the guys who know the most and have been there the longest hurts the most.

The details of the shop are in the article. You could actually send him an email and ask him about stuff.