Humongous

moar pics pleez...

can we get some top tube & seat stay close-ups, the crankset, etc?

challaday

I can't say I've had any horrible experiences, but I have had a few mildly irritating ones.

I went into a branch of a small chain bike shop a couple of months ago looking for tubular glue and neither of the employees had ever heard of tubulars or any type of tire you glued on to a rim. They did know about tubeless though, and thought I was trying to glue the beads on a tubeless system, which didn't strike them as surprising.

I pre-paid for a cycling jersey and bibs at another LBS on February 17 and still haven't seen them. They've been holding $230 of my money for almost two months now. I'm in no fear that the shop's going to stiff me, but it seems like a long time to wait even for a special order.

TVS_SS

sure, i'll take some tomorrow

roadwarrior

I know that all of this is way above your head...but we'll try again...

A customer and a sales representative that begin a conversation with mutual respect normally results in both getting a lot done.

A customer that comes in thinking that because they have a couple of dollars in their pocket and are going to treat people in the store like shti, (my favorite "Do you worrrrkkkk here?" with that condescending look...or "Do you know anything about bikes? which usually gets my resonse, "Do you?") is going to get the level of service they deserve.

Competition in the bike business? We just bought out the fourth store in the last two years to go out of business and are an A+ rated business in all the local and national systems.

The reason I don't get bad service anywhere I go is that I treat the store employee, wherever I am with respect. It works every time.

There ought to be a law that you are not allowed into a retail store uinless you've worked in one first.

LMAO...

nitropowered

Just as much as you all complain about poor LBS service, the same can be said about customers. There are always really rude customers that expect us to treat them like God.
1: The customers who expect their POS NEXT to run like a $1000 bike for $20 of service! And then they get mad that it doesn't run perfect
2: Customers who expect to jump the repair queue. I had a guy come in two days ago that I had told him in the dead of winter that he needed a new drivetrain (cogs and CR skipping and pointy, chain on its last life) He didn't have the money at the time and said he will be back in the spring when he had money. Well when he came in the other day, he said well you told me in DECEMBER! that you can get it back to me the next day! Well yes in december when I saw maybe 1 or 2 people a day I could have gotten your bike back in a day, or even the same day, but not now.
3: Along the same lines, a few customers think they are King (or queen). They drop off their bike and say "I need a full overhaul, new this, this, and this. Ok I'll be back in an hour" Dead serious!
4: people who expect a small shop to have obscure and expensive parts in stock. Then they get pissed off that we don't have it. Oh you don't have Super Record in Stock? no Gibili disc wheels, Boras or Corima Trispokes? Well we can order it and have it for you in a week. No I need it now.

roy5000x2

I couldn't agree more. I really hate the customers that want to jump the queue. They'll whine and complain to every other employee in the shop, who will all say, sorry, but that's the way it is. What really sucks for my shop is that the owner will undermine everyone by actually putting the customer at the head of the list, even though some people have been on there for two weeks during our busy season.

The customers I really hate are quite rare, but the ones that are absolute dicks because they are the custom. They straight up tell you "I'm the customer. I'm right and you're wrong. Make me happy." (No joke, a customer said this to me once.) Granted he only wanted a tube in the end...

pabuck

No worries, I'll just drop by there some day - it's close to my work.

Kurt Erlenbach

Wait a second. He only wanted what?

yhelothar

Where was this? I live near your area.

Tristan86

If you treat someone like **** than you get what you deserve. But there are plenty of times when you treat someone with respect and you still get treated like an idiot, or get bad service. There are morons on both ends, this thread is about the morons who are employees. A thread about bad customers would be justified as well

bbtm

Old bike store I stopped going to. Never wanted to deal with you, unless you were there to buy a bike. Bought a Schwinn's (before the sale to Pacific cycle) and 2 Trek's, and was looking to get a third (A Trek 1500). They weren't too interested in helping me when I went to look for that third bike.

Went to a different shop. Guy spent 3 hours with me looking at road bikes, fit me, found accessories, etc. I'll probably buy a mountain bike there. Went in a few weeks ago to look and they tried to upsell me (about $700), but I don't blame them. I do the same myself at work.

Ratfish

LoLz

Whenever I drop off a wheel or a bike they always try to tentatively broach the subject of how long it will take and I always say, "Oh yeah, take however long you want." They always end up taking less time than I expect.

Glynis27

I took the guys at my LBS a case of beer and the door blew shut in my face making me drop one of them. They heard me crying and came out to see what was wrong. That was a pretty bad experience.

malevolentoilet

Bike store employees are such a mixed bag. Half the time I get unhelpful pedants, the other half they're great and go beyond the call of duty.

But here's a tip, if a guy asks a question, it's because he wants to learn and likely doesn't spend all his free time studying the cycling product market. There's no reason to be a jerk about it. Nobody likes the pedantic IT admin, and nobody likes the superior bike shop clerk.

roadwarrior

Incorrect.

"Your worst LBS Experience" is the title of this thread.

That includes everyone.

roadwarrior

Very well played sir.

My compliments.

priorat

There ought to be a law that you are not allowed into a retail store uinless you've worked in one first.

I own a chain of wine stores, which if possible, is likely the only retail category with more inherent snobbery than bikes. So yeah, you can dispense with the "you guys just don't get it" rhetoric. I deal with hundreds of customers every day that range from the giggly milf who wants our "cheapest, sweetest blush" to the condescending tweed and pipe crowd looking for a bottle of '82 Latour and willing to pay the equivalent of the GNP of a small country to get it, and there are sure to be a handful of customers that are challenging to say the least. In the event a customer crosses the line and is verbally abusive (which happens MAYBE once a year) to an employee, I will remove them from the premises, but that's not really what we're talking about here.

My response (as well as several others here) was to your continued insolence regarding customers in general, perpetuating the subject of this thread. Why don't you do us a favor and instead focus on those occasions when you offer exceptional customer service, instead of banging the drum of "customers are so irritating sometimes!" Yawn.

chriscook42

I went to my LBS and they said that they would not fit me unless I bought at least a $1200 bike. Psshhh. please.

RacerJRP

Agreed. There are some REALLY annoying and disrespectfull customers that come into the shop I work in. Ive actually told two people in the year ive been there to please get out of the store.

I also love when you tell a customer that a part is on backorder so you can't get it for them. And they can;t for the life of them grasp that concept that the bike shop can't get something.

nitropowered

I also love customers that come into the store and ask "I saw this [insert part, frame, etc] online at [ebay, pbk, craigslist, etc] for $XX. Is it a good deal?"

or "I'm looking at this frame on ebay. I don't know if it will fit me, can you tell me if it will fit me?"

TVS_SS

here you go..

YOJiMBO20

11) Dork disc

Tapeworm21

Wrong gear, valve stems in incorrect positions, saddle is nose down, flip it, find a white garage, and get a second water bottle cage to make it look like you'll go for 20+ miles.

I'd also say to get a wireless computer but I don't want to look like a snob.

TVS_SS

wow... nothing like rolling out the welcome to road biking mat...

thanks..

if this is the crap i'll get everytime i try and post something, i think i'll just stay away from this site.

Tapeworm21

C'mon man... I even had a whistling guy and a smiley face. I kid, I kid.