HenryL

"I love these threads. It's amazing how many people think that because they have a heartbeat, they should have their @$$ kissed."

Ok I have to bite on that comment. Started cycling 7 years ago and bought a recumbent (which I know is a four letter word on this particular forum) Made the rounds of shops in my area looking for help with service, spares etc. One shop in particular (in Westfield NJ) treated me like I shouldn't be breathing their air because I wasn't a "roadie". No I didn't want my @$$ kissed but common decency would have been appreciated. Brought bike to another shop and owners first comment was "cool bike" He became my mechanic and sold me two road bikes, built up my fixed gear, works on my other two bikes (commuter and MTB) AND is building a custom steel frame for me. Helped me with the sport and now I average 4K miles per year with all of my riding.

So do the math, treat people like $h!t and loose the opportunity for 3 direct sales, maintenance on 7 other bikes plus referrals, or keep your ego intact.

I know who John Galt is, he would have been dissappointed!!!

priorat

So do the math, treat people like $h!t and loose the opportunity for 3 direct sales, maintenance on 7 other bikes plus referrals, or keep your ego intact.

Exactly. There's more competition than ever in the bicycle business, and just like any other biz in the tertiary sector, exceptional customer service will be the difference between success and standing in the unemployment line. Berating a customer just beacuse they didn't understand that the service department opens at the same time as the retail showroom, then moaning about having to kiss customer ***** is a one-way ticket out of business, no matter how much you think you know about cycling.

pabuck

I like that shop, they've helped me out a few times.

Do you recall if they have the Specialized butt-measurer?

Humongous

Well that's the problem with your logic. Customers put food on your table. Sure, a few of them might try to take advantage of the storefront, but the mistake is to treat all customers like they are trying to work the system.

That is the paradox of running a business. That's why wealthy blacks feel like 2nd class citizens when the ignorant store clerk treats them like they are just there to steal something.

TVS_SS

its just human nature.. i mean EGO...

Customer thinks people should earn their buisness and feel the need to show their superiority
Store owner/worker thinks customer is taking advantage of them or just plain dumb

and the cycle continues.. its not just bike stores.. its everywhere and everything..

campyman099

My 2 cents...to everyone that has never worked in a Bike Shop, don't be so quick to judge. Most shops will bend over backwards for you to make you happy and get you on a bike of your choice or to get your repair out in a timely manner.

waporvare

Recently had a LBS tell me they had last years model Trek Madone 5.2 that a customer bought and returned, still had the lifetime warranty, barely rode for $2000. So I look at it and it's obviously a 2006 not 2008, and had obviously been ridden a lot. There was some rust on a few screws, it was dirty, even had hay on the tires.

The tech confirmed it was a 2006, and was on consignment for sale. Which meant, who knows how many miles were on it, and no warranty.

Real shady.

LarryMelman

i.e. if you're in the shop at 9:15 and someone calls to see if you're open, you don't say "sorry, we don't open till 10." You say "normally we open at 10 but come on in, we'd be glad to help you".

Unless of course, you're not glad to help anyone.

And you don't then proudly tell the story of your poor customer service on some internet forum.

RichinPeoria

It was around 1982 when I bought my UK built Dawes Super Galaxy from them and I remember the whole experience was very uncomfortable for me when it should have been something happy and fun. It was the first new bike I had ever bought. No dealing, pay this or gtfo, very advesarial and unfriendly...It was scratched on the BB because they put a kickstand on it and having them remove it and touch it up was again, difficult.

I didnt go back in there for at least 10 years.

waporvare

It's the price which is BS. I know one shop quoted me $175 for a fit, while another was $50. The $50 shop didn't care if it was bought from them or not.

rollin

Not all "fitting" is equal. $175 could be buying you a lot more than $50.

Not all service is equal. I am happy to pay for good service.

The thought of people trying on shoes so they can order online is just ridiculous.

roy5000x2

Naw, we just let you listen to our shop owner tell you that we open at 10 when the recorded message starts playing

Usually we aren't there until 10 to begin with anyways...

waporvare

No, they charged $75 if it was their bike. A friend had bought a caad9 from someone on craigslist and they gave him the inflated fit charge quote. He went somewhere else for $50 and bought about $500 worth of equipment.

roadwarrior

The point is that's not what happens. Which is why we did 9 million last year. And we are ahead of that so far this year. Despite what the dinsoaur media would have you believe.

Looks like the Bikeforums Canadian Thinktank Division met today.

Treespeed

When I first moved to my neighborhood I did a tour of the local shops. At one the owner couldn't even be bothered to get out of his chair while he's watching a tv. No surprise, the store was empty.

Where as the shop I frequent now, even though they stock tons of high-end bikes and are on the edge of Beverly Hills, treats me like a king when I come through. I've only ever used them for service and it's always exemplary without them trying to upsell me to lightweight superficial crap. But I think it goes both ways and that you can have an expectation of good customer service and then you have to be patient and give them a chance to provide it. We've all been behind the "a hole" who wants his bike worked on RIGHT NOW. That's why you have more than one bike if you're serious about the sport and can't live a day without riding, let alone if you're racing.

wampus13

Here is my worse LBS experience. I had to bring my bike it for a warranty replacement on the stem, I road the bike to the shop and it was raining. I carried the bike to the service station and the mechanic who was very helpful was in the back getting the new stem. The owner came up to me and asked what was wrong with the bike and I just simply said it need a new stem because it was a salsa and salsa had a stem recall. I than noticed that the bike was dripping a little water on the floor because of the rain, it was nothing major, just a very small puddle. I saw that and apologized to the owner for that and he than we said, yeah you are really making a mess here. I thought he was joking around not being serious, so I told him that is what happens when you bike in the rain. He than said next time I should not bring my bike inside the shop and I can just leave it outside and he said nobody is going to steal it! I was so flabbergasted when he said that I didn't know what to do, does he want the tech to replace the stem outside in the rain? I would of just simply left at the time but the mechanic was very helpful and knowledgeable. What sucks is I was going to frequent that shop a lot because I can't wrench if my life depended on it and I really liked that mechnic but I just simply can't go back to that shop because of that ***** of an owner!

Amani576

I didn't ask/know to look for it. I'm buying a Surly LHT from them, but they'll likely get my business whenever I go to buy a carbon roadie. I can ask when I go pick it up if you want me to (If I can remember).
-Gene-

Ratfish

The only bad experience with bike shops that I have had was really minor where they said they couldn't true a wheel, but another shop had no problem with it. The rims looked pretty bad, but they were sound. I don't avoid that shop as a result, but the shop that did true it has done all the work for me at really cheap prices. It's a recumbent shop that reluctantly works on road bikes and is always really honest.

For example, I brought in a RD for them to install and the guy said, "I think we charge about 20 for that" and I said, "Actually, to be honest, I was quoted 25" and then when they finished they only charged me 15. I'm sure they have a rate they charge for time spent on things, and if it takes less time than expected, they charge less. The mechanic was saying how nice he thought my bike was and I was swapping one DA part out for another DA part, but they didn't assume that they could charge me more than usual because of it. I always recommend these guys to everyone I can and take my bike there for anything they can do.

Those guys told me that my rear Helium hub is on its way out but that they couldn't order the bearings for it in a timely fashion since they place two Mavic orders a year or something, so I went to this other road shop that only sold bikes over $3K and I thought they were going to scoff at it but they said no problem and were all really nice.

From the customer service angle though, I can totally understand a shop's frustration with people who are gaming the system or just wasting their time. I sell nothing bike-related, but I get a lot of "customers" who call to see if I carry something and then when I tell them no, they expect me to tell them exactly where to go to find it when it's just a Google search away. I mean, they found me on a Google search, so they can just go to the next result. In that way, I can understand the "customer is always right" entitlement attitude that these shops encounter. If someone walks through their door, they shouldn't have to throw an infinite number of payroll dollars at the person until they are satisfied.

I run a business, so I don't have trouble relating, and to be honest I kind of feel bad when I get charged less than what I consider to be an appropriate amount for the time they're investing in me. I'll usually try to give them more business in the form of other repairs that are less pressing or else I'll buy extra stuff to show my appreciation.

youcoming

I find most shop are pretty good and sometimes it's the people going into them that have the additude. It's like some expect to get bad service in an LBS so no matter what happens that is what they get. I have thou been in some that won't give me the time of day. The reason I like the shop I go to is service. The owner caters to all markets but is a roadie at heart, he can have someone elses bike on a stand and if I come in with an issue my bike goes up right away and I must admit that keeps me coming back and it recently paid off with a great price on a P1 Madone.

youcoming

[
Looks like the Bikeforums Canadian Thinktank Division met today.[/QUOTE]

Hey what's wrong with being Canadian eh!!!

campyman099

Still, like it was stated above, not all Bike Fits are created equal.

gabdy

Nice bike, I like that colour scheme.

Tristan86

I have had a couple of minor annoyances.

1) Brought in my 1995 Trek 2100 for derailleur adjustment before I really knew how to work on bikes. When I was talking to the mechanic he asked me "does that bike still work?". I should have known that old bikes just stop working when the aren't the newest best thing out there. To add insult to injury they did a terrible job adjusting it. I taught myself how to adjust derailleurs after that and did a much better job.

2) Brought in a frame, fork and headset for an install. The guy calls me and says a piece is missing from the headset. I had the headset (used) in a plastic bag and was pretty sure it was complete. I tell him to check again and he was fairly rude about it saying that it wasn't there. I drive down, look in the bag, pull the "missing" part out and say "is this it?". The guy doesn't apologize at all, just says "yup". When the install was done the stem was not lined up with the wheel at all, way off. Again, taught myself after that incident.

bmw5nkj

i got a flat, and i went to one of my LBS and got a tube. first one, i pinched the tube and it bursted (at about 80 psi). it was my fault, so i went back to get another one. when i got the second one, i pumped a little bit of air to get some shape for easier installation and after only 2 pumps, the tube bursted on me.

so i went back to the shop to get a refund from the b*tchy manager. the following was the dialog:
manager:"this is a classic pinch flat."
me:"it bursted when the tube wasn't even in the tire yet."
manager:"i've been in the biking industry for 11 years, i know what you did wrong."
me:"the tube wasn't inserted into the tire."
manager:"i've been working on bikes for 11 years."
me:"ok, i got 2 tubes from you and i just want a refund for one."

what was the point of telling me how long she'd worked on bikes? i've been riding for 8 years and i'm at least 20 years younger than she was. teenager-despising witch. anyhow, the refund was successful, but it took her 5 minutes to count out $7+ (yeah they overcharge too). stopped going there ever since.

dxn2

So what shop in Jersey did you end up at. I visited 3 today and each was worst than the last. I would love to start a relationship with a shop I can trust.