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Should bike shops become collection points for on line sales?

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  • December 6, 2013 at 12:08 pm #20312
    Neil753

    It sounds daft, maybe even galling, but would this work for the mutual benefit of everyone? This is my argument.

    People are getting used to picking up their on line purchases at high street “collection points”. But would you trust your local corner shop to take care of that fragile delivery? Maybe not.

    But what if you addressed your parcel c/o your LBS, and they charged you a quid?

    It gives you an excuse to grab a free coffee, hang out with other cyclists, and get support from your LBS to maybe fit the part, while you wait, for a reasonable fee.

    And it gives the LBS a chance to earn an extra quid, perhaps dozens of times each week, picking up extra shop sales, some more workshop income, and a chance to build their presence in the community.

    Ok, a disgruntled LBS proprietor, determined to ignore the rise and rise of on line sales, might be aghast at the idea, but enlightened entrepreneurs might see my idea as an interesting one. And one that could help save the traditional LBS that we all love, but hardly visit anymore.

    Opinions wanted please.

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  • December 10, 2013 at 9:02 am #765007
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    Nzlucas

    CycleSurgery do Click and
    CycleSurgery do Click and Collect and Pricematch….. plus they have actual shops with workshops…

    But seriously, this business model wouldn’t work. Most LBS can order parts at your request if they have good relationships with the suppliers, they just can’t offer the low price wiggle et al does due to overheads (IE Hiring a Mechanic, having a physical premises).

    If you want cheap parts, get in the trade, otherwise accept that real shops cost money but have a quality that can never be replaced by a internet site. A good shop will have great service and expert knowledge, if you find one like that then support it cause they need you.

    December 10, 2013 at 8:14 am #765005
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    thebungle

    I like the idea in principle,
    I like the idea in principle, indeed I’ve e-mailed my LBS several times already asking for various things to be ordered and colleced them several days later, of course the danger of doing that is that you end up paying full RRP, not a concern if it’s a pound or two but anymore than that then quite frankly i’d rather the money in my own pocket.

    For instance I’m buying a set of 4 Seasons soon, £44 RRP, £30 online with free delivery, I’d rather buy the tyres online and spend the rest in the shop.

    December 10, 2013 at 5:35 am #765003
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    Forester

    My LBS in Wareham do offer a
    My LBS in Wareham do offer a service in checking assemby of bikes ordered online; my last two visits to them for adjustments to bottom bracket and disc rotor have cost precisely £5 each- people who love bikes and provide a good service.

    December 9, 2013 at 11:28 pm #765001
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    cristiansupernova

    I would rather stick a spoke
    I would rather stick a spoke through my eye. If you dont own/run a bikeshop, you have no idea how exepensive it is to do so. Everything costs, everything. The profit bit comes after several years of hard graft. So the thought of becoming a collection point for the very thing that threatens every ibd is absurd. Yes, we are workin hard on plans for next year to reduce the growing effect on sales, and no, i didnt go into business expecting it to be easy.

    December 9, 2013 at 6:51 pm #764999
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    Neil753

    giobox wrote:Pretty awful to

    giobox wrote:
    Pretty awful to read some of these comments. I fail to see how a local bike shop can afford to run a business with this? Especially when you have staff, mechanics etc to employ. Also, a stockless bikeshop, as mooted by some here, is a terrible idea. What about test rides before you buy?

    I’m happy to support my local bike shop, even if it means paying (often only very little) more. The service and help I’ve received for free far outweighs the money I might have saved.

    Even going by the original poster’s “Dozens of sales” at a quid each, its still likely to be barely enough to pay a single member of staff for a day.

    .

    The idea of a stockless shop is mentioned by one poster is is an interesting concept but, if you go the other way, I know of many bike shops that are unnecessarily large, paying a fortune in business rates, energy consumption, insurance, staffing and stockholding, trying to cover the demands of an increasingly savvy market.

    Participating in what would effectively be a “just in time” supply chain, could dramatically increase the profit per square foot, especially if it encouraged footfall that the LBS would never otherwise see.

    Certainly an interesting topic, and it sounds like you know your stuff, so many thanks for the comments.

    December 9, 2013 at 6:27 pm #764997
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    Neil753

    @jova54 – sound interesting
    @jova54 – sound interesting points, especially the one about car parts.

    I’m guessing that if the on-line retailer did ship the wrong parts it would give the B&M retailer the opportunity to demonstrate their superior knowledge, and their ability to sort out the problem at cost to the customer, which is only fair. If the shop is charging ex amount per hour, it’s easy to include any diagnosis and admin in the amount of time for the total job, just like any other tradesman would do.

    But, from personal experience, I know that LBS staff have also been known to get parts mixed up from time to time, especially “fish and chipper” bike shops with owners that fail to keep pace with technological developments. And I suspect that applies to many of the new breed of rider too, who may have inadvertently ordered the wrong parts themselves.

    December 9, 2013 at 5:29 pm #764995
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    giobox

    Pretty awful to read some of
    Pretty awful to read some of these comments. I fail to see how a local bike shop can afford to run a business with this? Especially when you have staff, mechanics etc to employ. Also, a stockless bikeshop, as mooted by some here, is a terrible idea. What about test rides before you buy?

    I’m happy to support my local bike shop, even if it means paying (often only very little) more. The service and help I’ve received for free far outweighs the money I might have saved.

    Even going by the original poster’s “Dozens of sales” at a quid each, its still likely to be barely enough to pay a single member of staff for a day.

    December 9, 2013 at 5:15 pm #764993
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    jova54

    So.
    You buy some parts from
    So.

    You buy some parts from ABC Trading*, who claim that they are genuine bits and they will fit your bike, who send them to your LBS who have agreed to fit them at an agreed price.

    Bits arrive and they are not what you wanted or they are faulty.

    Someone now has to sort out the problem. The LBS aren’t going to do it as they aren’t making any money from the parts so why should they waste their time and anyway they didn’t source the parts. So it’s up to you. You have to go to the shop, inspect the parts, have a conversation with the mechanic/manager/work-experience assistant, contact the seller, argue about the problems, get the shop to speak to the seller, get the items returned, get some new ones and try to get the LBS to do it all a second time for the agreed bit of money to fit them.

    Will you re-imburse your LBS for their wasted time? Probably not, and you wonder why they baulked at the idea in the first place.

    This is a classic problem in the car servicing/repair business and why most garages won’t let you supply the parts, oil etc. Not only do they not make any profit from the parts they’re expected to deal with problems their fitting and subsequent use produce and to do it for free and with a smile.

    Buy your ‘over-priced’ bits at the LBS and admit that perhaps just once in a while you’ll have to pay full price for something.

    * ABC Trading is a fictional name intended to protect the guilty and the innocent.

    December 9, 2013 at 1:56 pm #764991
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    Neil753

    chokofingrz wrote:It would be

    chokofingrz wrote:
    It would be great for the customer to combine the price and variety of online with the service of local… unclear value for the LBS as they would do more labour and build customer relations but make fewer bike sales… I fail to see what value is in it for the online businesses though? They wouldn’t want your head to be turned if they can meet your needs in full.
    I think the advantage for the LBS is increased profit from labour, greater public awareness, and ancilliary sales.
    I agree, they wouldn’t want heads turned, but there’s no law that says you can only have parts delivered to your home address. No special agreement has to be reached.
    I’m guessing that on line sellers won’t make things “difficult” for customers using their LBS as the delivery address.

    December 9, 2013 at 1:01 pm #764989
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    chokofingrz

    It would be great for the
    It would be great for the customer to combine the price and variety of online with the service of local… unclear value for the LBS as they would do more labour and build customer relations but make fewer bike sales… I fail to see what value is in it for the online businesses though? They wouldn’t want your head to be turned if they can meet your needs in full.

    December 9, 2013 at 12:08 pm #764987
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    KirinChris

    Sounds like a good idea
    Sounds like a good idea actually.

    The other benefit to the LBS is that it reduces their cash tied up in inventory – it’s difficult for them to deal with the big brands anyway, who prefer retailers to go deep into one brand rather than spread themselves across a range. But of course the customer wants to compare and contrast.

    Also makes returns potentially easier, and gives the LBS a chance to see what people are buying or upsell them on other products.

    December 9, 2013 at 10:16 am #764985
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    William Black

    joemmo wrote:there might be

    joemmo wrote:
    there might be something in the concept of a ‘stockless’ shop taking in parts ordered online…

    This seems to be happening already on the high street… All I wanted was a new pair of size 9 DC’s tried all the usual shops; Schuh, Two Seasons, T’reds, Office, etc all of them said the same thing… we don’t have your size in stock but you can order them through the internet!

    After trawling round shops all saturday afternoon my blood was beginning to boil… So your internet warehouse has them in stock? why don’t you order them in to your bloody shop so customers can try a pair of trainers and walk out with a bag and pair of frigging trainers…you know like a shop.

    December 9, 2013 at 7:38 am #764983
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    mattsccm

    Joemmo
    Wouldn’t work for me.
    Joemmo
    Wouldn’t work for me. I refuse to buy things like furniture if I can’t take it with me. I want to swap cash for parts. Delivery to me is a bad thing not a good thing. In fact its the very opposite of what a good shopping trip should be.
    It would be a as bad as mail order where you pay for something then it doesn’t turn up or it isn’t in stock despite the magic lantern saying it is. If you have it in your hand you know you have it. If you can’t get it you haven’t parted with your money and you can buy an alternative if you want.

    December 6, 2013 at 1:41 pm #764981
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    Mikeduff

    I work in urban planning, and
    I work in urban planning, and we worked on a plan for a new district of Chicago, where most of the shops were stockless, and essentially showroom only. Customers could go in and examine new bits and bobs, and if they bought them, they would be delivered from high-tech logistics warehouses on the edge of the district. What this meant was that big lorry deliveries were kept off the streets, making the shopping experience nicer and the streets safer; the retail spaces were more productive (more selling space, less storage space); the shoppers didn’t need to carry around bags of stuff (leaving them more opportunity to partake in some other leisure activity in the town, which is good for them, and the economy); and deliveries were coordinated, by smartphone, to be at your house at a time you wanted anyway. Everyone wins! But it is an easier solution when you are proposing it for an entire district, and ALL its shops. Then it is THEIR stuff being sold still. It might be a tougher sell for LBS owners if they are only getting a quid… however you might get them to become part of the “wiggle network” or the “chain reaction network”, and should a customer choose them as the delivery site they get a % of the total sale (and the potential for the labour of installing the part). Because the alternative, of having LBSs become stockless, and selling things online like Wiggle and Chain Reaction still wouldn’t work, because the scale of those web businesses and their lack of bricks and mortar costs must make them nigh on impossible to undercut on price. So it becomes an “if you can’t beat em, join em”. And what is in it for Wiggle and CRC? Well, access to a market of loyal LBS customers who hitherto would not deign to shop online.

    December 6, 2013 at 1:12 pm #764979
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    joemmo

    there might be something in
    there might be something in the concept of a ‘stockless’ shop taking in parts ordered online and charging for fitting but as a service offered by a LBS that makes its income from retail it sounds like signing your own death warrant.

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