I refrained from writing this for a while but after reading other posts on supporting your LBS I thought I would chime in and post. I did a alot of research for a new Tri bike replacement and finally decided to go with the Cervelo P3SL. So I went to the local Cervelo dealer in Miami and told them what i wanted and asked how much, the owner went over and got a copy of the latest triathlete mag and showed me a pic of the bike, like I didnt already know what it looked like, and said that he could order it for me, he said 3700, and then came back and said that the picture was last years model and I would have to pay 100 bucks more for the new model, I argued and said that the black one in the magazine is the 05 model and he said no and proceded to argue and said that team CSC used it in the tour this year therefore making it an 04 model, I gave in and should have walked out at this point and purchased it online but decided to stay faithful and buy from an authorized dealer, which I did. I paid a 1000 dollar deposit and paid an extra 100 bucks to have the bike overnighted so I could have it available for an upcomming race. Well three days later I call and they say that the bike finally arrived in the AM and to come in 2 hours and they would have it ready, well when I arrived the bike was still in the box, the appologized and said to come back in 2 more hours, I did and it still wasnt ready, after 5 hours of waiting and no bike my patience finally wore off and I said that I no longer wanted the bike and wanted a refund, they refused so I walked out. I called the next day and they said that there would be no refunds, so rather than loose my money I regretfully went back and purchased it and proceeded with the fitting, they ended up cutting my seat post and putting it lower and lower, I told them that it wasnt right but who am I to complain, these guys are professionals.
So I left and went for a ride, almost crashed it because the chain started skipping and noticed that they left out several spacers in the rear cassette and the bike fit was worthless. I called Lee at body zen and he hooked me up with a great fit, he ended up raising my seat post after I rasied it and inch myself and really dialed it in great.
Bottom line is the knowledege and customer service was horrible from ther owner on down, I was treated like I couldnt possibly know anything, I was jerked around and lied to and I still had to fight to have them eat the shipping, and I asked to change out the seat as a gesture of goodwill and they refused, they finaly offered to discount the seat at half price which was better than nothing. I drove out of my way to go there, about an hours drive and will never go back there again. I should have bought it from all3sports like others have and saved money, but I didnt, all i got was a bike and a swift kick in the ass as I walked out of the shop, never again. Just my humble 2 cents worth.
I always though the MSRP price was just that, the manufacturer’s suggested retail price. I don’t think I know anyone that actual pays that. There are always some sort of deal/sale/resale/whatever people do and always end up paying a lot less. To pay anything more should be a warning sign you are working with someone who’s customer services might not be up to par (or they’re greedy).
You talking about Bicycle and Fitness? I’m not sure who the Cervelo dealer here is but I’m assuming it’s those jackasses. I’m assuming you didn’t name names for a reason but I’d bet dollars to donuts it’s them. They are the absolute worst shop in Miami. Have nothing but amateurs working there (you and I probably know more about bikes than they do). The service is piss poor, the prices are way too high and they are morons to boot. I bought my last piece of gear from them a long time ago.
Now I only buy from Swim, Bike, Run. Those guys are super cool, super knowledgeable and what they don’t have in the store they will order for you at almost no profit to them.
This kind of shit really chaps my ass. Especially when you are dropping that kind of dough. LBSs need to get their shit together if they want to survive.
There are two sides to every story, and we don’t know the other side here, BUT, generally speaking, the weakest link in the bicyle business is the bike retailers themselves. Many of these folks are completely on their own agenda, despite all of the infornation and help out there. They want to do things their way - and typically this is completely counter to the advice and direction they are getting from their key suppliers.
It’s interesting to compare the growth and development of the run-shops and the bike-shops. 10 years ago there were few run specific shops other than some chains. Since then, both the chains and the private run shops have exploded and done really well. The main reason I see for this is that in the run business, the retailers actually work together with the suppliers, in many cases pushing the suppliers to do better. In the bike business it is the opposite, the suppliers pushing, but the bike retailers opposing or not listening/cooperating at all.
it’s a bit late for this, but if a store gives you the ‘no refund’ runaround before you even got what you ordered you can call up your c/c company (I hope you used a c/c and not a cheque) and block the payment to the lbs.
I bought a felt from swim bike and run last year and loved it, they were great especially pedro, they had what i wanted and had everything ready and provided a great bike fit as well, they are a model of good customer service, I wanted to buy from them but they werent an authorized cervelo dealer, so I had to go elsewhere. That whole group at swim bike and run is great, they even come up to me at the local races and chit chat and offer advice, kudos to them.
Obviously, like any business, there are good owners and bad owners. I think it tends to “trickle down” to the managers and the sales staff.
I’d agree with a few other posts that once you realized that this guy had no freakin’ idea what he was talking about, I would have bailed.
I also think you should mention the name of the shop so that others can be aware.
When I bought my P3 a couple weeks back, I had the choice of Nytro or the Trek Store here in San Diego. The deciding factor for me was that the guys at Trek spent an hour fitting me for a test ride. The guy at Nytro raised the seat a smidge, eyed it up and said, “go for it” (then again, I’ve been underwhelmed with Nytro’s customer service EVERY time I’ve been in there).
The Trek guys are awesome, the owner worked with me to match All3sports price, the fitting was great, just a great experience.