Originally Posted by BarracksSi

I don't own a bike shop. Yet I don't think I'm at all ignorant of how a bike shop is more part of the service industry than plain old commodity retail.

I've spent all my time working in the service industry (in one form or another) where my hours are dictated by people outside my direct workplace. Deliver pizzas 'till 1 AM? You got it, sir. Take phone calls for a software developer at 6 AM my time because they're on the west coast and don't open their call center for another two hours? Yes sir, right away, sir. Perform at a scholarship foundation fundraiser in Illinois on a Friday night? Give me a seat on a plane and a hotel room and I'm there. One of my juniors at work gets in a car wreck in the middle of the night? As soon as I find my shoes, I'm out the door.

I'm close enough with my LBS to know why they don't carry certain brands anymore. Hell, I even know the sexual orientation of almost everyone in the shop. I know that, on most days during the week, they're losing money on the retail side, maybe moving only a couple accessories an hour. I also know that they're selling multiple bikes every single friggin' weekend.

They can afford to be closed on Tuesdays. They can't afford to be closed Sundays.