Bad bike services

[Brakepad]

One can not compare huge online shops with LBS

Just look at cost structures and services offered

Online : Warehouse somehere cheap + website

LBS: good location ,must present products nicely,  compare to the number of customers has a huge variety of products,
gives anybody advice ,chats to you for half an hour even if you don't buy anything,
sells you one single spoke if needed, .....

i could carry on for another hour but i rather go cycling now.
Even if the pricing of online shops are sometimes compelling i will always support the LBS
 

[ChrisF]

One can not compare huge online shops with LBS

 

Just look at cost structures and services offered

 

Online : Warehouse somehere cheap + website

 

LBS: good location ,must present products nicely,  compare to the number of customers has a huge variety of products,

gives anybody advice ,chats to you for half an hour even if you don't buy anything,

sells you one single spoke if needed, .....

 

i could carry on for another hour but i rather go cycling now.

Even if the pricing of online shops are sometimes compelling i will always support the LBS

 

 

up to a point ....

 

When a LBS charges R399 for the same item that another LBS sells for R260 .... let's just say it leaves a bitter taste.

 

But YES, it comes down to location ... and rental .... and the "feel" they create in the shop .... and clearly there are enough people out there that pay these inflated rates to keep some of these over priced places in business - comparing physical shops, not on-line sellers.

 

 

 

Thankfully we do travel a fair bit, so if I am not in a hurry for an item I get to shop around.  Frankly the physical bike shops in Hermanus and Worcester is significantly better than the local "big boys" .....  No wonder so many are turning to on-line stores

[ChrisF]

about 20 years ago I used to work at an lbs opposite Marks bike shop, and people used to come from far to have him work on their bikes.......and he still has a great reputation

 

1992 to 1996 we bought our bikes from Peter Alan.  Still remember my ATX780, drooling over it, as it stood in that centre island .....  Mark later joined the team, and took over when Peter retired.

 

 

 

That "other store" has moved a few times over the years .... 

 

 

Pity Willie Engelbrecht could not pull it off ....

[RoddieJ]

Haters??? You mean unhappy customers! Perhaps if shops had more happy customers things wouldn’t be so tough?

 

But seeing unhappy customers as “haters” is bad business.

@Patchelicious... your response is appreciated, but allow me to clarify... I believe an unhappy customer and “hater” to be different types. Haters will find any reason, reasonably or otherwise, to discredit shops or suppliers (read in this very thread and you will find examples). These are the folk who complain without justification.

 

I will never call an unhappy customer anything other than that - it happens for good reason, and that is why that same unhappy customer has the choice of going elsewhere to spend their hard-earned cash.

[Eugene]

One can not compare huge online shops with LBS

 

Just look at cost structures and services offered

 

Online : Warehouse somehere cheap + website

 

LBS: good location ,must present products nicely, compare to the number of customers has a huge variety of products,

gives anybody advice ,chats to you for half an hour even if you don't buy anything,

sells you one single spoke if needed, .....

 

i could carry on for another hour but i rather go cycling now.

Even if the pricing of online shops are sometimes compelling i will always support the LBS

 

That's the point. It's about choice.

 

You can choose to have the convenience and benefits of an lbs and pay extra for it or choose to save money, get no value add and buy online.

 

Being frugal, I would rather choose to save the money.

 

Forcing us to buy local (as with Sram/Shimano) is taking that choice away. Making us buy from one specific supplier slaps right in the face of competitiveness. It also gives carte Blanche for local industry to hike their prices to what they want because there is no longer competition.

[Grease_Monkey]

Just to be clear, there are no import duties on bike parts. I played importer/distributor for a while and there is 0% on parts.

 

And the items that there is duty on; eg: complete bikes (15%), are not bypassed when you order online from overseas.

 

So the issue lies with places like CRC getting a lower/same cost price as distributors hence being able to sell at lower prices to consumers, and NOTHING to do with duties - although those duties on some items may be ridiculous, everyone is on a level playing field there.

[Grease_Monkey]

Oh and online vs physical shop... has anyone here actually worked out what it costs per click to get people onto an online store? Then factor in conversion rates...

 

Running an online store is not cheap, epecially if you run a good one that holds stock on hand.

 

Support your lbs, your online store, whatever - doesn't matter to me - but before people comment on how online stores have no overheads (they do), or how SA distributors are rubbish, or how lbs rip you off - whatever it may be, just try educate yourselves a bit before posting an opionion online and potentially damaging a business' reputation and endangering someone's livelyhood.

 

And here I am talking about opinion, not REAL experience with bad sevice.

 

Rant off.

Edited January 6, 2019 by Grease_Monkey

[Patchelicious]

@Patchelicious... your response is appreciated, but allow me to clarify... I believe an unhappy customer and “hater” to be different types. Haters will find any reason, reasonably or otherwise, to discredit shops or suppliers (read in this very thread and you will find examples). These are the folk who complain without justification.

 

I will never call an unhappy customer anything other than that - it happens for good reason, and that is why that same unhappy customer has the choice of going elsewhere to spend their hard-earned cash.

That’s fine, but don’t get lazy and simply brand people who might have valid complaints into the hater category simply because you don’t agree with their complaints. In an industry that is on the decline, every customer should be cherished.

 

99% of people simply want a decent service or product at a decent price. There will always be outliers that are just morons. But when one shop has more “haters” than another, I promise you it’s the clientele’s attitude that is the problem.

[forgotten1]

Grease Monkey, valid points.

And you are correct, in hindsight I was incorrect with regards to the duties. You are right, there are none on spares.

I personally have never imported or distributed. The thought and cost involved actually terrifies me.

The other thing we need to remember is that CRC will, like you said, negotiate better pricing from suppliers. Coolheat will never turn as much stock per year as CRC. SA is but a small player in this global cycling market.

 

You are correct as well, cost per click for an online store is something that eludes everyone.

 

Posting, bad mouthing or naming and shaming has so far reaching damage to a business. I agree...think twice. A Tweet, social media post or online comment sent when you are angry can have a devastating effect on someones business. Online store or brick and mortar...if they close, you will miss them.

[Eldron]

Everything is a balance. In theory if everyone bought their bits overseas then LBS fitting/servicing would go up (same rent but less profit from parts to pay said rent - or there will be smaller shops or less qualified staff etc).

 

I'm a fan of geolocking part sales (as long as ethics and morals are maintained).

[Skylark]

SKYLARK, I wish I had a answer that would be acceptable. But I dont. It is insanely soul destroying when my actual cost price from the guys like Shimano is more expensive than the online stores. I had a customer who begged me to match a price on a product, I resorted to taking him into my office and showing him my cost price. He was shocked. I think the perception is that the shop is killing it.

In an instance like Coolheat, keep in mind that they carry a very wide range of product from Shimano as they are the designated agents. They dont just keep the fancy Dura Ace and XTR stuff, they have to keep all the everyday workshop items, small parts, older spares etc. Try ordering a shifter ratchet for a 10 speed Ultegra left hand lever from an online store. Chances are very good that they dont have it. But 9 times out of 10 Coolheat will. Those very same import duties that you all try and bypass when buying online from CRC...Coolheat cant. They pay heavily.

In my personal opinion if our government dropped the duties on the bike parts, you would get way better and competitive pricing. These are the same laws that protect local manufacturers. As far as I know the only parts made locally are CSixx. (I might be wrong) Everything else is made in China but branded a South African product.

While I agree 1000% that the local suppliers like Coolheat are expensive in comparison, I also see their point of view. If you had a business where 60% or more of your warranty claims were on the product you were the agent for, but were not bought from your region, then you can see why they fight to geolock a product. Thats money thats literally been thrown away. How do they survive? It is massively unfair to expect them to cover a warranty on a product that was not provided by them, even though its the same product and they are the agents.

Believe me, in an ideal world I would love to be offering parts at ridiculous prices that would have the masses flocking to my door. But I cant. I respect the agencies that have them, I value their backup and training. And I carry on.

When I am asked about costs and agencies instore, I respond with this..."You are free to go and source an agency for yourself from overseas. Drop R200k on an agency for a brand and get the rights for SA, wait 3/6 months for your stock to arrive, pay the clearing agents and then go store to store to proudly offer them your product...only to hear that the store doesnt want to carry it because customers can buy it for half your price online"

Now you sit with a great product, but you are unable to sell it because its too expensive. And its frustrating because you did it because you wanted to make some extra money off the sport you love, and you wanted to change the industry and offer a great product at a good price. It is tough.

This is why shops and agencies are going out of business all the time. I am not trying to save face for Coolheat or paint all the Bikeshops as hard done by...but simply giving my 2c worth having been the demanding customer and now the sleepless shop owner!

Trust me...its not easy!

 

You have got a few things wrong there.

 

A common complaint with Coolheat is the opposite - they will not have obscure spares or often not have even relatively common parts and spares(or have them on endless backorder, who has 4 months to wait for spares to arrive and then pay a hefty premium for the convenience??) and then people will have to search online for them and find them far cheaper(all costs incl) and more easily available online from intl sellers. I have found that a few times, eBay for one has almost every conceivable obscure little bike spare part and rebuild kit.

 

And ordering parts from overseas, there is no choice to pay or not pay duties(if applicable) and VAT. Customs inspects your shipment and you just hope they don't gouge you by incorrectly assessing the category the goods goes into.

 

I don't know anyone who would be foolish enough to think Coolheat will entertain warranty claims on overseas purchases of the brands they carry and whatever that case is they don't end of story, so that does not form part of their costs base.

 

If an importer or shop doesn't want to do proper market research before starting a business then as with any industry they will crash and burn, that's not unique to people who wanted to make some extra money off the "sport they love". Having an agency or retail outlet is a business firstly, the sums must be done as to the feasibility, the cycling industry does not have an exemption from that.

 

I think a fair amount of the players in the cycling industry are still stuck in the days before the internet arrived with online shopping and lower shipping costs, it's here to stay and the "problem" isn't going away.

[Eugéne Alberts]

Maybe a roadbike, but an MTB, come on. It should be full of scratches and dings from riding the trails. If you want to then go through a check in procedure be ready for time wasting and higher prices.

 

Damn I get a few scratches and dings almost every-time I go for a ride from stones and debris being thrown up from the trail by my tires or my riding buddies tires. What is one more scratch that possibly comes from a bike stand or similar in a bike shop?

 

Cant find the face-palm emoji.

Then clearly the advice doesn't apply to you.

Some people however have new bikes and are particular about them. Hence the origin of the this thread.

 

I also have chips on my bike but I'd be pissed if I get it back with the type of damage shown here.

 

If these type of things bother you enough to start a thread about it then being a bit more proactive won't hurt.

[Quagga]

This is NOT a dig a bike shops, we KNOW there are some fantastic LBS out there. But whoever worked on this needs to rethink his occupation

 

I assisted two friends last week with their bikes, after good money was spend at some LBS

 

 

Will post two different post so I can attach pics :-)

 

 

This one, the RD Cable was replaced after the rider said that the gearing is not working 

You can see how bend the hanger is

 

 

There cables were ratteling in the frame and when I checked.....

 

This was the chain lenght

Edited January 7, 2021 by Quagga

[Meezo]

This is NOT a dig a bike shops, we KNOW there are some fantastic LBS out there.

 

I assisted two friends last week with their bikes, after good money was spend at some LBS

Will post two different post so I can attach pics :-)

 

 

This one, the RD Cable was replaced after the rider said that the gearing is not working

You can see how bend the hanger is

1.jpeg

 

1b.jpeg

2.jpeg

3.jpeg

 

There cables were ratteling in the frame and when I checked.....

4.jpeg

 

This was the chain lenght

5.PNG

It's not a dig at bikeshops...

 

 

Nice work!!!

 

Otherwise damned be bikeshops

[DR ◣◢]

Interesting kickstand coming out of that frame. What even is that? 

[Quagga]

The 2nd bike

 

Pivot bearings were replaced

Every bolt was over tight

Extra grease on the bearing causing grinding paste to form

Pivot bolts had soooo much locktide that it went into 2 bearings causing them to seize up

The RD cable was sooooo short that it made a 4mm groove in the bottom of the frame 

The crank hadd been lock tighted so much that it can not come off now.

 

Note to these mechs.....

1. Grease goes into the bearing and you only wet it with grease on the outside to install it.

2. Locktide goes into the treads or onto the bolt AFTER you have put the bolt throught the bearing NOT before.

3. It is not a good idea to mix Stans, Sludge, and whatever else in a tyre