Which do you prefer, small bike shop or big commercial shop? Do you use each for different reasons?
My friend bought a bike from a more commercial shop and didn’t get fitted well (they did a year later after several small shops said the bike was not fit properly). However, at the smaller shops you get the proper attention but it seems the prices are higher to compensate for smaller inventory sales.
Any thoughts?
I have seen what you are talking about happen more times then I can count. Many people get to caught up in getting a deal or what they want rather than spending a little extra to make sure they purchase what they need and in many cases getting properly fit.
I think you need to go to a shop that will service the customer & not themselves regardless of their size.
If you spend $5,000 of a new bike but saved $1,000 cause you got a deal, was it really a deal if that brand or frame size was not a good fit for the person and they really need a different bike all together?
I saw a guy buy a P3C loaded at a big shop. This guy could not even get in the aero position and so the whole purchase was a waste because the bike did not fit him. All the shop cared about was pushing a big ticket sale on this guy because he wanted to buy the best bike and was a newbie. So they sold him what was fast, even though it would not work for him.
The end result was this guy ended up having to buy a whole new bike to fit him from a different shop that properly fit him and sold him a bike that was right for him.
I would suggest in Kansas City you go see Jeff Williams at Elite Cycling. He is the best bike fitter in Kansas City and has fit almost every top triathlete who lives in the area. If he ends up costing a little more than someone else, it’s worth it in the end.
I’m also a fan of Sunflower in Lawrence. They give you a free fit before you leave the shop if you buy a bike there instead of asking for $150 more if you want the bike fit with the new bike… I mean… buying a bike and bike fit should go hand in hand. Seems like a bait sometimes.
However… they have a limited supply of tri bike so I had to stay in KC. =)
what exactly is a “big” bike shop? I have been in some of the largest volume bike stores for tri bikes and they are not big by any means. They may have a large warehouse somewhere else but are big by no means. Are there really huge bike shops in KS?
The ones I am referring to are All3sports in ATL and racycles in NY. The difference between them and your average everyday bikeshop is that they have a bunch of high dollar tri bikes sitting around instead of that “we can order it for you” crap.
I also find it hard to believe that the best fitters are working in very low volume places. Lots of people are very happy with the buying and fitting experience and have crap fits.
Just sayin
I shop at a bigger chain that does mail order and stuff. I just happen to live ~10mi from one of their stores. I used to work at the biggest bike shop in the state, that had 4-5 stores but locally owned.
I get way better customer service at the mail order store than anyone gets at the locally owned store. Way better prices too because they are competing against mail order, therefore way lower than anywhere local. I do all my own service and fitting so that stuff is irrelevant to me.
I understand people like to have a local shop that they think will go out of their way for them, but wait til you’re in a jam and you end up waiting just as long for a part as a bum off the street. I think paying 1k more for a bike with a good fit and a friendly wave is overdoing it. A thousand bucks can get you a top-notch fit and tires for a couple seasons.
-Physiojoe