A buddy of mine was looking to buy a Felt B2 and there are none around here so he went online and saw at the NYTRO website that they have them in stock, so he calls them up and the dude at the shop says that he cant buy it because they cant ship a Felt bike out of state, he says its some aggreement with Felt that no bike shops can ship bikes out of state. Whats up with that!!! Needless to say he might opt for a different bike brand just because of that.
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INTERNET SALES AND MAIL ORDER:
Thinking of buying a Felt bicycle over the Internet or mail order? We strongly advise against it and here’s why.
Felt Racing forbids sales of complete bicycles via Internet or mail order by its authorized dealers. We do this because we want our bikes built carefully and inspected by a qualified authorized retailer before being delivered to you in person. This helps insure your safety and our desire to provide service that’s in keeping with the quality of our products.
A bike purchased via mail order or the Internet will not be warranted by Felt Racing, please do not buy Felt products by mail order or Internet sales.
Felt isn’t the only mfr. that doesn’t allow internet/phone sales. That said, tell your friend to keep trying other dealers. Some will explicity advertise that they can’t sell over the phone/internet–yet when you pick up the phone and call, they allow it. They’re not supposed to do it, but lots of them do. I know because I called MANY Felt dealers across the country last year as I was trying to get my hands on a B2…and was only told a few times that they couldn’t ship it to me (sell over the phone). I did finally locate a B2 in my size though 
Check your PM.
Felt, by virtue of their tight reign on supply, dictates strict distribution policies to thier dealers.
When a dealer breaks the rules, suddenly Felt has nothing in stock for them.
When you do business with Felt, you paly by their rules, or you don’t play at all. The competition for bikes from Felt between dealers is so intense no dealer can afford to ruffle any feathers at Felt.
“We do this because we want our bikes built carefully and inspected by blah blah blah,” bullshit.
They have this policy as an attempt to maintain some control over the pricing and distribution of their product. Lots of companies do it. It’s not a bad idea, but from the customer’s perspective it’s a total pain in the ass. (It’s also a nice way of saying the customer is always stupid. ASfter all, we apparently can’t be trusted to inspect and build up our own rides.)
Yep. All BS.
My suggestion is to have your local dealer locate one and do the leg work for you. Otherwise, hop a cheap flight to NYC and go to RA.
Felt feels it is in your and their best interest to get you a bike delivered out the front door of a bike shop. There are countless hurdles to over come should you choose to buy a Felt online and have a problem.
Where are you located? Who is your local Felt dealer?
-SD
"Where are you located? Who is your local Felt dealer? "
Are you asking me or the original poster, because I’m not in the market for a new bike. But I’m lucky enough to live in San Diego, so the Felt dealers that I know of are Nytro and Supergo. A couple of months ago I helped a buddy who’s a newbie buy his first bike. Wouldn’t you know it’s a Felt.
“Felt feels it is in your and their best interest to get you a bike delivered out the front door of a bike shop.”
Of course they do. Their policy is good for them, and more importantly in my opinion, it’s good for the LBSs. The policy hopefully gives the LBS some piece of mind knowing that they don’t have to worry about a web retailer undercutting their prices.
I just also believe that this policy is a typical “fear of the web” policy. Are their problems with purchasing bikes and frames online? Absolutely. Do customers want that option? Definitely. What is Felt doing to cater to these customers and address the current problems with online purchasing? I dunno. But I think embracing new technologies and some creative thinking and business is sorely needed in the bike market. Surely there’s a way for Felt, the LBS, and online/phone availibility to co-exist. Instead the customer is left to deal with it. That’s great. The countless hurdles you mention need to be overcome by companies wishing to grow and thrive in the context of bricks, e-tailing, and phone ordering, not by the customer. Why is this made out to be the customer’s problem?
Wow, I didnt know this, Ill tell him.
But I really dont understand the whole " warranty is not vaild if bought over the internet" deal. He was looking for a frameset so why wouldnt they warranty it no matter where you buy it provided you are the original owner. Secondly, say you do buy a complete bike from an authorized dealer and decide a couple of months down the road to upgrade or swap out some parts such as the aero bars or the cranks and you do the work yourself or another shop that doesnt sell felt does the work, is the warranty Void???
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Sorry for addressing you regarding the Heavy D’s location.
You can’t buy everything online. Felt is one of those things you can’t buy. There becomes a point in which you decide to do things one way or another. Opening the door to mail ordering the bikes closes the door on hundreds of opportunities to sell the product in smaller shops. It also pretty much eliminates the need (or possibility of having) for outside sales reps and territory protection.
-SD
Looks like what Felt is doing is simple economics and marketing. Build a brand and then make it scarcely available, hence allowing for higher prices and margins for Felt and the LBSs.
Uh, Felt is pretty much the value leader in the high end bike market these days - no one’s accusing them of hiking their prices. You might not like their policy about e-tailing, but let’s stay fair. In fact, as has been noted on several occasions on this forum, it’s amazing how Felt hits their price points with the great parts spec they put on their frames.
The bike market is evolving - still trying to protect the old lbs way of doing business whilst giving the customer what they demand. Truth is, very few people have the knowledge to purchase a proper fitting bike online - as easy as it may seem, problems do arise. The vast majority of people are better off buying a bike at their lbs - in the long run, they’ll be happier with their purchase. However, Felt, and manufacturers like them, should provide a way for dealers to move inventory around to meet demand (maybe they do and I don’t know about it!). If you’re going to forbid out-of-area shipping &/or online sales, then you need to help your customers get their hands on your product or they’ll start going elsewhere.
They’re fighting a loosing battle.
As an aside, lets say someone has a bunch of Felt bikes, but doesn’t necessarly care about what happens next year. Without the threat of revoking a shop’s dealership, would Felt actually have any recourse against the existing inventory getting dumped on the market? What can a manufacturer do about the sale price of what is essentially the personal property of the shop owner?
“However, Felt, and manufacturers like them, should provide a way for dealers to move inventory around to meet demand (maybe they do and I don’t know about it!). If you’re going to forbid out-of-area shipping &/or online sales, then you need to help your customers get their hands on your product or they’ll start going elsewhere”
That’s pretty much my job. Like auto dealers, I’ll move inventory to where it is needed throughout the season to make consumers happy. It is voluntary for the dealers to participate as the above poster mentions, it is their property.
caleb said" would Felt actually have any recourse against the existing inventory getting dumped on the market? What can a manufacturer do about the sale price of what is essentially the personal property of the shop owner? "
I don’t think there is anything Felt can do, but this is getting legal, and I’m in sales.
-SD
I’m not a lawyer, but absent an agreement prohibitting sales, the only thing Felt can do is to not let the dealer sell Felts any more.
One thing that seems missing in this discussion is that Felt seems to be selling all of the bikes they can deliver, so they must be doing something right.
Styrrell
So, how does that work? Do the two (or more) dealers share in the profit, or does the “receiving” dealer pay usual cost (+ shipping?) to the “shipping” dealer who is happy to get rid of some inventory? I figured there was something like that in place - not that there’s much inventory to move around.
100% true.
I had my lbs get a b2 for me - just for the reason you are saying. I provided all my measurements and had them ship the bike to the shop. I am of average size and weight - perhaps a little long legged - but the bike that felt said would fit according to convetional fitting would not fit - it has a very long top tube apparently - so I could never ride it comfortably.
For this reason I would make sure I get on a bike before I buy it. It has been a hassle returning the damn thing. I will never buy felt - and I will never buy a bike online without getting on the saddle of the exact bike to test it.
It is complex and seldom does the shop getting the bike participate in profit sharing. The shop giving up the bike is just earning good will from that dealer, Felt, and me. The shops that do that frequently get the favor returned somewhere along the line typically. Some shops will only trade sizes. It is somewhat crucial to keeping as many customers happy as possible. I am not compensated in any way for doing that legwork, neither is the giving dealer.
-SD
It sounds like someone didn’t do their homework properly. With proper measurements taken, and checking out the specs for the frame model and size in question, either Felt or your LBS should have been able to tell you ahead of that the bike was not to fit you right.
I bought an Aegis Trident frame directly from Aegis. ( I had won a $500 off certificate at Timberman last year for an AG win.) I had heard that Aegis frames have long top tubes and that the 48 might not work for me. I thought I was going to have to go for the Swift which is the frame for smaller riders.
I spoke to Pete Orne at Aegis, and Ian Buchanen at Fit Werx. Ian has done fittings for me on my old tri-bike and my road bike, so he has all my data. Ian took the specs from the Aegis website, and some additional measurements that aren’t on the website, and determined that the 48 trident was the best fit for me. Aegis likes to work with the LBS, so I had them send the frame to Fit Werx, and Ian then built up the frame for me.
I picked up the bike a few weeks ago, and have put about 300 miles on it. It fits great, and all of this was done over the phone until I made the trip up to Vermont to pick up the bike. Ian made one saddle height adjustment, and that was it.
I don’t think I would have gotten the proper set up and fit without the homework done by the bike company and a competant fitter. Not every LBS has someone who specializes in proper fitting, especially one who understands triathletes. I love my LBS. The mechanic is top notch, but when it comes to getting a proper fit, I gladly make the trip to Vermont.