TrailViewMount

Is it unreasonable to ask for a free helmet on a new bike purchase? I've read that margins on new bikes are so thin, most, if not all, will never negotiate there.

iheartbacon

Depends, how many bikes have you bought from the shop? Would you be content with a low end helmet?

Homebrew01

Yes, I would say unreasonable. Especially depending on the price of the bike. If you're spending $5000 for a bike, maybe they could throw in an $80 helmet. But if you're buying a $300 cruiser, and expect a $200 helmet for free ... I don't think so.

njkayaker

???

They make-up the "thin margins" by selling helmets (etc).

Monster Pete

I remember a TV programme a while back about the lost art of haggling in the UK. A guy with a hidden camera went to buy a bike, and found that they were reluctant to drop the price, but much more willing to throw in a few accessories with the purchase. I wouldn't think there's anything to lose by asking if they can do some sort of deal.

gforeman 

Free??? Maybe. At costo or discounted? More reasonable.

Ozonation

Never hurts to ask... don't be belligerent about it though - demanding a free helmet is too crass. But if you're spending a fair amount of money, comment that you're on a limited budget, ask if they would consider throwing something in - helmet, small bag, gloves, mirror, extended warranty, whatever... they might say yes, but the worst that they can say is no, and you end up paying for what you were more or less prepared to pay for anyways.

My LBS often gives a 20% discount, especially if you come in repeatedly. Bicycle shops know that it doesn't take too much for you to start dropping a lot of coin on bicycles and accessories!

tagaproject6

Depends on your negotiating skill.

jon c. 

I think the profit margin may depend on the brand. Some brands seem to always sell at or very near list while others tend to offer significant discounts from list on a regular basis.

rumrunn6

why would you even ask?

Looigi

Definitely go for it. Most helmets and similar cost the shop 1/2 of the list price, so it'll cost the shop $50 to include a $100 helmet. Of course, shops are in business to take your money, so they can be pretty hard-nosed. Your principal leverage is the possibility of taking your business elsewhere. I shopped around for a Trek for my wife and all the shops quoted me the same price, about 5% off list, but one shop offered 10% of the price of the bike as credit toward anything in the shop. It was a Madone 6.2 so that came to $550 of free stuff.

caloso

Personally I wouldn't. Any helmet thrown in as freebie is likely to be hot, heavy, and ugly.

LesterOfPuppets

Asking for freebies isn't unreasonable. Getting bent outta shape if they say no would be.

What bike and what helmet are we talking about here?

myrridin

Asking (which is not the same as getting) for such items is always a reasonable thing. Sometimes you will get it, sometimes not. There is no harm in asking for freebies, discounts, etc... A helmet can start at retail for $40, so its actual cost to the dealer is likely only $10 or so... Hardly a big deal on a reasonably priced bike.

That said, these folks are in business to make a profit. It makes no sense to provide discounts/freebies that deprive them of enough profit to earn their living.

TrailViewMount

Why would I even ask? Let's see, oh yeah an article on bicycling.com suggested it some time back. The article said since most shops have zero profit room to negotiate on bikes, negotiating for an accessory would stand a better chance. The markup has more room to work with. Thanks for the input here.

LesterOfPuppets

Did the article say negotiating for free helmets or 20% off helmets?

I'd give it a whirl.

Like homebrew says, chances are much better with $3000 bike and $30 helmet than $400 bike, $150 helmet, of course.

CraigB

Asking? No. Expecting? Yes.

IME a couple of shop-printed water bottles (so you can advertise for them) and maybe a very modest discount on accessories for some limited period of time is about all that can be expected.

theoddone

I don't think it is unreasonable, whether you get it or not will depend on how much you are spending on the bike I think. My LBS offers 5% off the price if you buy two bikes from them. since their bottom priced bikes are in $500 range, you are spending at least $1000, so $50 off the price is what they will throw in. In my case I was foolish not to ask when I bought two bikes worth about $1000. However, I am trying to buy a third bike, this time more expensive road bike and they are offering me 5% off the price. Moral of the story, always ask.

DCB0

It never hurts to ask. But think about what you are asking - like you said, the margin on bikes is thin, so they don't want to move on the price... but if they give you anything for free they immediatle cut into their margin. So ask for whatever you want, but be prepared ot accept less. If they are insulted or angry you asked that is their problem.

bobn

I would definately try to package a deal. I'll bet there is more profit in a bike sale, new/used than most folks think.
The dealers that move the most product for a manufacturer get better deals from that manufacturer than those that don't. It's a two way street.
If I were the dealer, I would package deals as long as I was making a reasonable profit overall.
A bike and accessories gathering dust and perhaps getting knocked around doesn't do the dealer much good, but moving product does.

Bumer

Unless helmet comes with the bike.

If you are buying lower priced bike, don't really expect any freebies (other than bike adjustments).
Unless bike you are buying is uber custom specialed ordered bike... But then again, if you are buying that kind of bike, you probably would not want "free helmet" that LBS would be willing to throw in, and would pick your own uber helmet.

Asking for discount, however, is always appropriate. ;-)

fietsbob

10% off on all accessories atLBS ,here. at point of sale,
if you get a $500 bike , a $35 helmet may be a possible inclusion .

Large USCG presence , active duty get a 10% discount on bikes too.

homechicken

Asking for a helmet is a bit much unless they have some really cheap ones. Ask for something a little less expensive like a free kickstand or water bottle and cage, etc. I personally wouldn't feel right asking for anything free unless they had some promotional items laying about that I knew didn't cost them much if anything. I asked my LBS to put a kickstand on my bike when I ordered it, fully expecting to pay for it and they gave it to me for free and said any other accessories I wanted would be 6% off, which in my case is the same as the sales tax rate. When we bought my wife's bike, already on sale, at a different LBS they threw in a free water bottle and cage also. Its nice when they do that, giving away store branded or other inexpensive accessories is good business strategy, but I wouldn't expect them to.

ratdog

Yes it is.

If you're buying a $300-$500 bike, the LBS is not making a huge profit on the bike, but is anticipating making his profit on the accessories and service so why squeeze them unless you are buying a lot of other accessories to give them enough margin to work with.

Now, if you're buying a $2,000+ bike then I would have to say you obviously have the money to buy your own helmut and are just looking for the thrill of the bargain instead of looking for a fair deal.

TrailViewMount

Lots of excellent opinions here. Thanks.