Ok so I am getting ready to go and purchase my first road bike from my LBS. I'm getting a Specialized Allez Sport in white, the test ride felt amazing. I am going to be paying with cash and was wondering if I could get some tips on making deals and talking a bike shop down on price or other incentives I can get from them by paying with cash. Any tips from past experiences? Thanks everyone.

Plain and simple, just ask "whats the chance of getting the price marked down a bit?" as you pull out a stack of $20s (or $100s) and start flipping through them... They won't always be able to mark down prices however, so it's worth a shot but don't be totally shocked if they say thats as low as the can (or are willing) to go. Good luck with the new bike, ride the hell out of it!

Bikes are a commodity. Good luck with the whole bargaining thing. If it's an old model or if for some reason they want to move it quickly (for instance, it was built up in non-standard fashion for a customer who then walked out on the deal), you can probably get a couple hundred bucks out of them, but if it is just stock this year's or last year's model, you're likely to get squat.

barter on accessories. mark up is tiny on bikes. why would paying in cash (rather than by card) make the shop want to give you a discount. they're just going to have to take it to the bank and cash it anyway.

If you buy with cash, they don't have to pay 3% for the card fees. See if they'll let you keep those.

Credit card companies take a chunk of each charge. Cash is far better!

I do a little dance when customers pay me in cash. I try to hide my despair if it's a big bill and they pay with a card.

+1

You might be a little more likely to get deals from an LBS once you make it YOUR bike shop. The more they see you, the more you buy, the more likely you are to get deals on things. Someone buying one tube a year doesn't make me want to give the same "loyalty discount" that someone who has their service work done and buys multiple accessories does.

This.

/thread

+2

I've been going to the same LBS for a couple of decades now, and I get all kinds of discounts and "freebies" whenever I go in and get something.

The reverse can also be said, as "customer loyalty" is worth earning as well. I was given a 10% discount (without asking for any) on the purchase of my new Scott CR1, and I took that as sign of good faith from an LBS I had not previously dealt with. I have since purchased new shoes, pedals, carbon bottle cages, and most recently a Garmin Edge 500 from that same LBS. I'm not perfectly loyal though. I did just buy a pair of bibshorts from Performance as the price was just too good to pass up. I'd say it's safe to say, my bike will go to the LBS when it needs serviced, and I will continue to shop there.

The best deals I have received have been in the fall or early winter on year old models. If I owned a LBS, I wouldn't be willing to deal much in June on a bike I have the whole summer to sell. It never hurts to ask but I wouldn't expect too big of a discount. You are more likely to be able to negotiate a discount on assessories, but I have usually been able to buy on the internet for even less. I don't think the cash thing is even that much of a factor because the 3% CC fee on $1000 is only $30. Unfortunately, sometimes buying bikes isn't a negotiating game like buying a car.

There's usually not a lot of leeway in bicycle pricing.... And the higher you go, the thinner the margin gets. If shops could get away with it, most of them wouldn't carry bikes at all, doing special orders only, and focusing on repairs and accessories. That's where the money is.

Our shop uses the manufacturers minimum price as a guide. We typically won't go any lower because we very quickly start losing money on the deal. Most of our bikes get marked down almost that low on the floor anyway, so our deal making capability is pretty low.

If you are starting out, I'd definitely ask if you can get some kind of discount on accessories. The margins tend to be higher, so the shop can help you out there with out going bankrupt. Get a couple pairs of nice shorts to ride in, and you don't even have to wait for shipping...

If you are looking to join a club/team, often times LBS's offer small discounts to them (there will be fees, so you'd have to be serious about joining).

As a shop owner (non-bike) it always depresses me how you can offer somebody great service, fair pricing and even discounts and they still want to chisel you. As a tight-fisted consumer myself, I certainly understand.

You may want to just ask them... tell them you're trying to stretch your budget so you can buy pedals, shoes, jerseys, shorts etc. and ask if they mark bikes down or as somebody else already mentioned, cut you some deals on apparel. I can't remember ever getting upset when people ask if we have upcoming deals, sales etc. And our frequent customers are precious to us, we bend over backwards for them. Be friendly.

I just bought the bike (today) this is the story if you are interested:
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...1#post10998978

I figured out the smaller the store, the better chance to negotiate the price.
In our town I have found only one store where the price was negotiable. I bought from them.

Maybe you know....

What is the best time of the year to buy a bike?

I found it very difficult shopping for the bike this time. the stores run out of this year models inventory and nobody has the size I need. they tried to sell me a little bigger bike instead. The new year 2011 bikes are being shipped to the stores now, and they likely are not going to be discounted.


don't worry if you don't, I already bought it

Visa charges 1.9%. At the very least they will mark that off if you pay cash. You should push for some where in the neighborhood of 5% off realistically. They should be able to swing that. Or get them to throw in a nice saddle bag,multi tool, C02 pump, maybe some other stuff you need.

New bikes are not high margin items like clothing, bottle cages, tubes, etc. but there is margin in them. A bicycle shop makes their bread and butter money on service. That said, you can absolutely get a good deal on a new bike, and you don't have to wait until the next year's models to come out, although it's a lot easier that way. Don't be stuck on a certain make or model in a certain color. Ride a few bikes from different shops. Let the owners know that you want a package deal. Don't play them off of each other, just make mental notes about the pros and cons of each bike, shop, and price, then choose the best deal for you. For me it came down to a 2009 Kestrel or the 2010 Felt. The Kestrel had a better group and was lighter but I liked the ride of the Felt better. I wound up with about 25% off but I bought the bike, pedals, accessories, and soon, shoes. Good luck.