LittleSkink
Retro Guru
syncrosfan":2y0idg6z said:
they did exist, my mum and dad ran a shop like that very successfully up until about 10 years ago - it was one of the biggest in the UK, had brilliant mechanics and a tonne of NOS stuff dating back to the 1920s and beyond. In the basement were a lathe, welding gear and metal working tools galore. There wasnt much we couldnt fix. Customers came to the shop for their kids bikes because their parents had taken them there for their bikes years before - customers were really loyal
Competition from pseudo bike shops (ie Halfords et al) and box shifters (ie Argos, ToysRUs) got tougher and customers would look at stuff in our shop and then buy on the internet - often to turn up few weeks later and complain it needed servicing or hadnt worked properly from new . . . :facepalm:
I had considered taking over the family business when my dad got poorly (he hadnt always been a grumpy guy!) but there wasnt a decent living to be made any more. Margins on bikes were tiny, margins on parts thin but at least accessories and the workshop were able to make some money. Customers werent loyal any more. Finding, training AND keeping a good mechanic was really tough - once they were qualified the only thing that stopped them setting up on their own was loyalty. Running a successful "mom and pop" bike business in 2015 is a tough proposition
Me, I learnt all I could and do all my own bike work - it really isnt that hard if you have some mechanical sense and some decent tools
