I posted about my recent order. I got an email notification that it was shipped, that is the first time they have done that. It's been about one week and UPS shows I should have the package tomorrow. This is the best service I have ever received from them, I'm really happy about it.

I've heard PricePoint is part of them too.

Not sure whether someone answered the first part, and since I like their customer service so much... http://www.benscycle.net/

+1 on Lickton's. I haven't ordered from them, but I live nearby and have always been pleasantly surprised with their counter help.

Not reading the 2nd and 3rd pages, I'd like to say that each time I've ordered from Niagara, the shipping has been timely and their service OK. Each time I've ordered, there was a CO2 item within my order and therefore my shipping was always redirected from USPS Priority to UPS Ground with a prompt refund of the difference. Furthermore, they gave me a UPS Ground tracking number each time as well.

My orders come within a week from the East Coast. Maybe I'm just lucky?

I just placed an order from Nashbar on Saturday, the 20th. The delivery tracker says that it won't be here until Monday, the 29th. I'm not impressed.

That sounds pretty typical of my experiences with Nashbar. I haven't bought from them in a long time. None of the products they stock strike me as being very cool anymore, either.

FYI after getting a response on Monday 3/22 that the order would ship 3/23 I finally got an e-mail that the shipment had been electronically billed (meaning hopefully shipped) today 3/25. That's 9 days after the order. Long? Yes. Too long? No, not now that I know what to expect.

Today marks 2 weeks since I paid for my last order from them, and it hasn't shipped yet. I contacted the help desk however and they said its on the table ready to be shipped out.

The bonus part is they bumped it up to 3 day UPS shipping for free. :D

Niagara Cycle doesn't have most of the parts that you order in house. They order your parts from the parts distributor after you place your order. When they say "it is at one of our warehouses," they mean, it is at the distributor. Sometimes, the part comes from the West Coast, to Niagara Falls, then to you. Sometimes, it comes from Ohio to Niagara Falls, to you. Very rarely does it come from Niagara Falls, directly to you. It is cheaper for them to carry a very limited inventory, in house - roughly 2% or what is listed online.

The shop itself is mostly a front. QBP requires an actual store, in order to supply parts. Easily 99% of the business that they do is online, but they need a store front (for what seem like ethical purposes) in order to get you the QBP parts. QBP requires an actual bike shop.

The Niagara Cycle setup revolves around getting the parts in and out as fast as possible. It is basically a re-packing line. They print out the orders for the day, and make big orders to the distributors monday through friday, based on what's been ordered. If it is cheaper to get the part from Washington, then it is from Ohio, or Minnesota, than the customer will have to wait the additional time. If it weren't for the UPC codes on the parts, Niagara Cycle wouldn't know what to send out to you. That is why you aren't told specifically when the order will ship. It's because Niagara Cycle doesn't have absolute control over or knowledge of the inventory.

The business model isn't based around being the best, or the most helpful, or honest. It is about turning over the most product by offering the lowest prices. The owners are not bike people. They do not ride any more then the average Walmart bike owner. The employees are mostly not bike people, and are paid poorly, even by local bike shop standards. Employee turnover is high. Personally, I quit shorty after a cartoon was posted by the owner, above the time clock, stating "maybe the best solution to morale problems is to fire all the unhappy employees." Lying to the customer in order to divert blame, e.g. blaming the shipping company, or Amazon, is daily practice, in order to save face, and get positive feedback on Amazon.

The success lies in the software that allows the company to list every single item that is available from SBS, J&B, or QBP, without having to input it manually, or stock it in the store. Nearly every customer buys from Niagara Cycle because it is the cheapest. This is because their overhead costs (payroll and rent [less warehouse space]) are lower.

If you buy elsewhere, consider it a tithe and offering towards a better biking society. If you buy from Niagara Cycle, that is an affirmation, in my informed opinion, of the lowest common denominator.

Because of the volume that they do, anything in the continental United States is within 3 days. You weren't upgraded, you were fooled into thinking that they were treating you special. Your order would have arrived the same time if you weren't "upgraded."

MDM, thank you for your long explanation. It all makes sense now that I know what kind of operation it is. I really don't mind, and I'm glad to know. They're doing what I wish I could do, i.e. buy from wholesalers. Their margin seems low, so I consider them "my" wholesaler. I've begun to stock things like saddles and tires to sell to people.

Wow. So Niagara is the Walmart of bike shops. I guess that's not actually a surprise.

Harris Cyclery doesn't stock many of the parts they offer on their site. They order from QBP when they receive your order. They don't try to hide it, though. It says so on their site.

what a bunch of madness.

If I cannot find it locally, I only order from bens cycles, licktons, and treefortbikes. every order arrives within a week. excellent customer service - email responses within 24 hours.

My orders from Harris come at lightning speed! And I've placed orders of various sizes, and the shipping fee has always been $8.50. I like that.

Most of the bike shops selling online are just regular bike shops with some extra staff, and if they're lucky, some extra room.

At Harris we carry an inventory of everything you can get to from the table at the top of this page. Anything we have (that we haven't run out of at least...) gets shipped out the same day as your order, or the next business day. The internet department is here in the store itself, and the parts are the same ones we use in the service department, at the same price as if you walk in the store. You should see our shelf of 7 speed cassettes.

The QBP special order catalog is what Grand Bois is referring to, those parts get here and get shipped out every Thursday if things go right, and they usually do.

Any online retailer that's "a real live bike shop" selling things suspiciously cheap is probably very similar to what MDM is describing. Luckily that's not most of them, there's only a few.

If you flip quite a few bikes, the savings really add up. Buying a couple of tires or some cables for personal use, the savings are good, but probably not enough to matter. But start buying tires, brake pads, cables, housing, and other misc parts in bulk, and the savings are quite substantial. I tend to order 10 to 20 tires at a time, and 50 to 75 cables, and a couple of 50 foot rolls of housing, and so on. Given a choice between excellent service and rock bottom prices (for the same stuff), I have chosen the rock bottom prices.

And they sometimes have some really good deals in their clearance area.

I do understand that these low prices come at a cost (there is no free lunch). In Niagara's case, the cost is slow, really slow, service, and pretty crappy packaging.

Given a choice between Niagara improving their communications, service and shipping (and raising prices to cover these expenses), or continuing their current mediocre service with great prices, I will take the current model. Let each buyer decide.

I received my "big" order with Niagara this week. I had ordered Cheng Shin tires in 27x1-1/4" for only $7 each. I'm impressed. Not crappy looking at all, and moderately light weight. I can't wait to try them.

I need some things to arrive in two days, so I ordered them from Nashbar. There is a $20 discount on orders of over $100. Well, as it happens, I suddenly need another bunch of things, also in two days, so I put together another order and got the SAME discount. If I had made one big order, I would not have done so well. The coupon code is PLANET3.

I assume you're talking the C740 gumwalls? I got a pair in 700c just to see what they were like and if so, agreed, not bad at all. Won't gte to ride them for a bit but on the surface they don't look at all horrible.

I have never used Harris, and do like the idea of a fixed shipping fee....which is why I buy from BikeIsland.com when I find something I need and they carry it. They have a "free shipping" policy and on larger items that I've recently ordered (Surly Front and Rear Racks, cranks, etc) it saves a ton of money, and their prices have been comparable or less than other sites for the same items (Surly Racks were $108 compared to $120-130 at other sites).

CMC

All of my Niagara ordering has been done through Amazon. No real problems yet and Amazon does note that this vendor takes several days to process their orders.

In general their prices are about as low as it gets for most items and the range of items they carry is very good.

I agree with wrk101. Once we are informed about our choices and what they mean, it's fine. The variety is excellent. The descriptions are not always adequate, and neither are the pictures, but I get by anyway.