Seems like a surefire recipe for disaster.stinkyboy said:And now that they are a Cannondale dealer, how can they go wrong?
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When do you stop supporting LBS?
- Thread starter Blieb
- Start date
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This is just not true with bikes, and less true with components than it used to be. Bike shops rarely make money from basic bike sales. They might get a 25-30% margin. Maybe, usually less. With that margin they need to pay the rent (don't forget storage space), insurance, and utilities as well as the salaries of the dude that took it off the truck, the dude that built it, the dude that sold it (and sometime commissions too), the dude that's gonna "deliver" it when they come to pick it up, and the dude that's gonna give it at least one free tune-up. Do the math.stinkyboy said:
As for parts, yeah the customary markup is pretty big but few bike shops can get away with it any more, especiall with all the e-comparing.
Wanna make a small fortune owning a bike shop? Start with a big one.
For me this whole debate turns on the quality of the LBS. It's ridiculous to generalize about all bike shops, they can be so different. Most can agree that the world would be fine with fewer crappy shops. Few would argue that a good LBS is a bad thing. For anyone that likes bikes, a good bike shop should be an important, desireable part of your local community, and I say support them however you can.
Or maybe you would rather see another starbucks/borders/taco bell in your neighborhood so you can fuel up like all the other lemmings before you hit the aisles and try to find disc brake pads at the Walmart or Costco on the Friday before a race weekend...
Lizards are really that expensive?stinkyboy said:
So you don't think it has anything to do with you wearing chick pants?Ciaran said:
I talked to the owner of my LBS last night and he told me he's not trying to get rich. He makes only $30,000/year but loves going to work and he get's a new mountain and new road bike every year.
Also, I hear ya Ciaran, there's an elitist roadie shop in town that I made the mistake of buying a bike (MTB of course) at a few years ago and no one there wanted to even speak to me after they got paid for it. Landis sux!
Also, I hear ya Ciaran, there's an elitist roadie shop in town that I made the mistake of buying a bike (MTB of course) at a few years ago and no one there wanted to even speak to me after they got paid for it. Landis sux!
^^this guy knows what's up.^^SkaredShtles said:
how come this type of discussion doesn't come up about other stores, such as ice cream shops or music stores? if you find something you want at a price you want to pay, you get it.
I am never, ever going to live that one down. Well, at least I didn't post pix of myself in chick pants. coughcoughcaptainpollutioncoughcoughBrian HCM#1 said:So you don't think it has anything to do with you wearing chick pants?
Even though I don't currently support my LBS, I always give 'em a shot when I move into a new community. When I was in Whittier I went to the LBS there. They were good knowledgeable guys who also rode locally and lived locally. I didn't get much of a price break but I got great service and advice. Sadly the shops in Pasadena have not proved themselves as worthy. Of course my going into the roadie shop looking for disk brake parts probably didn't endear me to them much. (I went to two other LBS's looking for parts first)
And not all online retailers are big mega conglomerate monsters. Some, as has been mentioned, are an LBS who happens to also do online sales. Or are like Unreal Cycles who are online only but is essentially an LBS as he's just a guy who loves bikes. So while I may not support MY local bike shop, I support somones local bike shop. And now that I am on here and have met some of the folks on here, I would rather give Go-Ride a chance to be my LBS than say, SuperGo. Part of it for me is convenience. I prefer to shop online rather than in a store. Part of it is the cost. I am at a point in my life where every penny counts. If I can save a couple of hundred dollars over the course of a year, well, that's money going into my house fund. And I get less grief from the GF about all the bike stuff I buy.
