BigDL Posted March 29, 2017 Share My LBS here in Northern Ireland is quite happy for me to bring parts to him to fit. However, he also charges me an hourly labour rate that reflects the value of his time and allows him to keep his shop open. With CRC literally up the road from him, this model seems to work, but I also don't quibble about paying his labour. Where the model is challenged is when we want to buy discounted parts and get cheap labour. Edited March 29, 2017 by Wahoofish Brandon P and andydude 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
awesme Posted March 29, 2017 Share A very good example of this is Sprocket and Jack. Grant Usher. He focuses on servicing your bike, Bike and part sales is secondary (he also does amazing wheel builds, but again he can supply components, or you can supply, and he will build the wheels), and then to reduce facility costs he's co sharing premise with WhiteInc, Nic & Di White, They also have a Masseuse / Physiotherapist on site. Recognizing that the entire business can not just be dependent on bike and part sales, change the business to something that can NOT be bought online. G BigDL and ChUkKy 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
awesme Posted March 29, 2017 Share Perfectly fair. Same as Sprocket and Jack this side G My LBS here in Northern Ireland is quite happy for me to bring parts to him to fit. However, he also charges me an hourly labour rate that reflects the value of his time and allows him to keep his shop open. With CRC literally up the road from him, this model seems to work, but I also don't quibble about paying his labour. BigDL 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andydude Posted March 29, 2017 Share Maybe to make my opinion a bit clearer. I think the losers are actually the LBSs and consumers. We have discussed the profits of LBS on another thread and two things we must remember, (1) don't confuse mark-up with profit and their profits are actually not that great. We even said we won't be investors in bike shops, although an owner/manager can make a living; (2) it's the large companies like Shimano making the most money and dictating terms and with their resources it's difficult to fight against them. My beef is more with these global conglomerates and how they treat consumers. On a side note, our Consumer Protection Act gives an automatic 6 months warranty for material defects. Even if you buy from an overseas company. And no company policy can override that! GrumpyOldGuy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popit Posted March 29, 2017 Share I need a new BOA dial for my road shoes .Local price R450..... CycleStore.co.uk R112.00 .Come on guys ... stop ripping us new A... holes !!I will now buy more than R1000 worth of stuff , just to get my dials at a cheaper price ( and free shipping ) . Long Wheel Base and ChUkKy 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigDL Posted March 29, 2017 Share Maybe to make my opinion a bit clearer. I think the losers are actually the LBSs and consumers. We have discussed the profits of LBS on another thread and two things we must remember, (1) don't confuse mark-up with profit and their profits are actually not that great. We even said we won't be investors in bike shops, although an owner/manager can make a living; (2) it's the large companies like Shimano making the most money and dictating terms and with their resources it's difficult to fight against them. My beef is more with these global conglomerates and how they treat consumers. On a side note, our Consumer Protection Act gives an automatic 6 months warranty for material defects. Even if you buy from an overseas company. And no company policy can override that!CPA does not cover outside of sa. How would you enforce it if it did? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Fastbastard Mayhem Posted March 29, 2017 Share CPA does not cover goods purchased outside of sa. How would you enforce it if it did?And the car dealership is a false equivalency thing. If you brought a Fiesta in from the UK, the local guys are under no obligation to cover the warranty. CPA was not in force, as the goods were not purchased locally. Patchelicious and BigDL 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MintSauce Posted March 29, 2017 Share I'm not sure where exactly the problem lies, whether (as an example) Shimano HQ charges the local distributors high prices or whether the local distributor makes a massive mark-up. Only they can answer that question and it's unlikely they will. What I do know from a friend in the bike business, is that the prices bicycle manufacturers pay for Shimano parts are so low, that it will truly BLOW.YOUR.MIND! It did mine when he gave me some examples. Let me put it this way, if companies like CWC or CRC are paying those prices, even they are making an absolute killing when they sell at the supposed, discounted prices. Bottom line is, capitalism is completely out of control & as a result end-consumers are being fleeced in every aspect of the consumer society by industry. But that is a system all of us created by wanting all these nice things and being willing to offer up our hard-earned money without questioning anything. This is all a long discussion for another thread/day. As for buying online....I have 2 orders in the mail & about to click 'CHECKOUT' on a loaded shopping cart Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andydude Posted March 29, 2017 Share CPA does not cover outside of sa. How would you enforce it if it did?As far as I know the CPA covers a person buying products anywhere in the world from within South Africa. It doesn't matter where the supplier is. Enforcement is the problem though, but that is a different matter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andydude Posted March 29, 2017 Share And the car dealership is a false equivalency thing. If you brought a Fiesta in from the UK, the local guys are under no obligation to cover the warranty. CPA was not in force, as the goods were not purchased locally.I think you are missing my ideological point. We are in a global market. All I see is a consumer buying a product from supplier. The supplier has his own in-house warranty department and/or outsources to agents. Why would it matter where you are in the world? The agent/bike shop will send it back to the supplier. The suppliers are quick to sell around the world, whether through agents or to the CRCs of the world, but not as quick to honour any warranties. But like I said, more head in the clouds thinking. Edited March 29, 2017 by andydude Skylark and GrumpyOldGuy 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Fastbastard Mayhem Posted March 29, 2017 Share In an ideal world, yes. But AFAIK it doesn't work like that. andydude and Patchelicious 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christian van Zyl Posted March 29, 2017 Share So if that is true, and a lot of people here wont mind 30% markups - instead of 100/200%. Then why do SA shops not buy from CRC instead of "official" channels. Tell their cusotmers about the "greyness" of the product and work with CRC on their no questions return policy (as you explained) for warranties. This will send the message to the official channel that people so not like to be ripped offBecause CRC does not give credit. A lot of the distributors are funding the retailers in a way... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daniemare Posted March 29, 2017 Share Because CRC does not give credit. A lot of the distributors are funding the retailers in a way...A Christiaan. You are a shop SA shop onwer right, albeit online. Why do you not give us some real world case study examples of why you are SO much more expensive than CRC and the like. No one here will argue against clearly stated facts. Will it change buying decisions, maybe not, but it will at least raise some credibility Skylark and andydude 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daniemare Posted March 29, 2017 Share Do you also refuse to buy from the food retailers ? I mean they do need to explain why they inflate the prices of food so much.No, as none of my research has shown me that I get fleeced 300% for a loaf of bread. When that day comes, I will start doing the same. (Shipping and freshness might become an issue) So your argument for me for now is not relevant WrightJnr and andydude 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hansolo Posted March 29, 2017 Share I'll also continue to support the likes of CRC (at my own risk) especially considering that local distributors are playing nasty by enforcing export restrictions. I've had my ups and downs with CRC, but in general they are not too bad. I had a Ragley frame that cracked and they gave me a warranty after I sent in photos of the crack and later the destroyed frame. Local support is also a myth, the ratchet on my locally bought Shimano shoes stripped and Shimano does not seem to carry these parts. Even local bike shops takes the piss sometimes, I bought a roll of Gorilla tape for tubeless the other day. Bike shop charges R130, the same roll goes for R80 at the locals Builders Warehouse! There is alot of arguments for and against buying local, our local online shops is really not too bad for tires and general parts. For big purchases I'll continue shopping around for the best deal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stefmeister Posted March 29, 2017 Share Buying online from CRC et al, is as much as buying 2nd hand, a calculated risk.Is the savings in money worth the risk should something go wrong?Yes? Buy it.No? Pay the full price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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