There are plenty of reasonable things a shop can do make good margins. My answer isn't going to be reasonable. Designing a shop that fits my needs is going to be very niche, there aren't enough people like me to make any money.
1. Carry an extensive selection of high end race fit clothes. You often simply can't find or buy the real stuff in almost any bike store and you really need to try stuff on before buying. I'd be willing to pay full retail to get exactly what I want. Carry brands like Bio-Racer, Ale and Sportful.
2. Sell bikes that only feature threaded bottom brackets. Press fit bottom brackets are all stupidly designed, prone to failure, prone to making noise and finicky to work on without exception. The presence of a press fit BB automatically disqualifies a bike from my consideration.
3. Sell every tool in Park's catalog. Also, run clinics covering esoteric stuff like wheel building.
4. Carry a large assortment of saddles and allow people to rent samples to try for 100 miles.
5. Don't spout hype. "Efficient power transfer", "save you five seconds over 40 miles", "lowest rolling resistance of any tire", "laterally stiff, vertically compliant", "these shoes offer really low stack height" etc, etc. Cycling is full of snake oil bulls#!t these days. I can smell the meaningless hype a mile away, stop it.
6. Host well organized training rides, not 50 riders all over the road in various states of fitness. Tight pacelines, strictly defined groups/experience levels/pace, careful instruction for newbies, quiet focus for serious folk.
7. Be welcoming, professional and cordial when someone comes in. Don't have your front line staff be a sullen 22 year old Cat 1 who hates his / her job.
8. Respect and know cycling traditions. Put a sagging picture of Anquetil on the wall. Offer an immaculate 1986 Rossin with C Record for sale. Call the shop "Souplesse" or something. Get a grizzled Belgian mechanic who says "for sure" a lot. Have a battered espresso machine running, $2 a shot, no sugar on offer. Sell embrocation. Don't be offputting or pretentious about it, be welcoming... but subtly show us that you understand, man.
9. Offer everything from a steel rando bike to a titanium fat bike to an Argonaut SpaceBike with disc brakes. Have a list of local custom frame builders on speed dial.
See, there no money in that. There's money to be made in selling $500 hybrids to path riders who bring their bike in to fix a flat, don't wear a helmet and want "one of those gel saddle pads, because they make your bike more comfortable".
1. Carry an extensive selection of high end race fit clothes. You often simply can't find or buy the real stuff in almost any bike store and you really need to try stuff on before buying. I'd be willing to pay full retail to get exactly what I want. Carry brands like Bio-Racer, Ale and Sportful.
2. Sell bikes that only feature threaded bottom brackets. Press fit bottom brackets are all stupidly designed, prone to failure, prone to making noise and finicky to work on without exception. The presence of a press fit BB automatically disqualifies a bike from my consideration.
3. Sell every tool in Park's catalog. Also, run clinics covering esoteric stuff like wheel building.
4. Carry a large assortment of saddles and allow people to rent samples to try for 100 miles.
5. Don't spout hype. "Efficient power transfer", "save you five seconds over 40 miles", "lowest rolling resistance of any tire", "laterally stiff, vertically compliant", "these shoes offer really low stack height" etc, etc. Cycling is full of snake oil bulls#!t these days. I can smell the meaningless hype a mile away, stop it.
6. Host well organized training rides, not 50 riders all over the road in various states of fitness. Tight pacelines, strictly defined groups/experience levels/pace, careful instruction for newbies, quiet focus for serious folk.
7. Be welcoming, professional and cordial when someone comes in. Don't have your front line staff be a sullen 22 year old Cat 1 who hates his / her job.
8. Respect and know cycling traditions. Put a sagging picture of Anquetil on the wall. Offer an immaculate 1986 Rossin with C Record for sale. Call the shop "Souplesse" or something. Get a grizzled Belgian mechanic who says "for sure" a lot. Have a battered espresso machine running, $2 a shot, no sugar on offer. Sell embrocation. Don't be offputting or pretentious about it, be welcoming... but subtly show us that you understand, man.
9. Offer everything from a steel rando bike to a titanium fat bike to an Argonaut SpaceBike with disc brakes. Have a list of local custom frame builders on speed dial.
See, there no money in that. There's money to be made in selling $500 hybrids to path riders who bring their bike in to fix a flat, don't wear a helmet and want "one of those gel saddle pads, because they make your bike more comfortable".