Best LBS in Britain

pigman said:

Bike shops are now moving towards how the motor industry is. Franchaised shops. So here in Sheffield we have a Giant/Liv shop, a Trek shop, Evans is essentially Pinnacle and Brompton. There's the Pinarello shop in Manchester. All are looking at selling spanky , new glitzy machinery. Plus manufacturers have made routine maintenance difficult so that specialist tooling is required, so what was once a cheap, low-tech item is now a very expensive and complicated item

All it needs is for them to sell you PCP finance and they've replicated the car dealerships

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pigman said:

Bike shops are now moving towards how the motor industry is. Franchaised shops. So here in Sheffield we have a Giant/Liv shop, a Trek shop, Evans is essentially Pinnacle and Brompton. There's the Pinarello shop in Manchester. All are looking at selling spanky , new glitzy machinery. Plus manufacturers have made routine maintenance difficult so that specialist tooling is required, so what was once a cheap, low-tech item is now a very expensive and complicated item

All it needs is for them to sell you PCP finance and they've replicated the car dealerships

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sjcprojects said:

Don't forget in Sheffield we also now have Veloroo, which is a 'Canyon Experience Partner' . Naturally, they can't describe themselves as a 'bike shop', that would be far too mundane. I don't really see it lasting long, I think they've rather mistimed the opening given the general state of the market, but then maybe by going for the higher-end of the market they are pitching it right. All I know is that I could never feel comfortable setting foot in a place like that (I don't have a moustache, for starters).

Thankfully we still have a decent number of actual shops and bike co-ops here, though. A Different Gear in Sheffield, for example, has the expensive e-bikes and £200 cycling jackets, but they do also keep a good stock of used parts and those awkward little bits and pieces you sometimes need, so I try to use them rather than resorting to eBay when possible.

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pwebb said:

This thread would not be complete without a vote for the Charity bike shop in Chorlton, not my LBS per se, but I visit frequently to rummage through the bins of recycled parts and come away with dirty hands but plenty of bargains that are used in myriad restorations. They also sell and service bikes ( that have mostly been donated to the charity) and are very cheerful, provided no-one wastes too much of their time. It's also a great place to find clothing donations from Rapha and Team GB as well as books for £1. There are plenty of exotic framesets and complete bikes, including retro items, so it's also a place to find new projects, although prices aren't exactly eBay or Facebook marketplace cheap.

I got really excited there until I realised you meant ‘Chorlton’, Thinking “how can I not know about this place two miles away in SE London?” Ah well.

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Scott-S said:

Dear gods above and below no!!!!!
Im the last person in the world you would ever want dealing with the public (apart from the fact that Im a complete dick)
I admittedly have zero filter and a lack of people skills which would lead to a loss of earnings for the bossman in Bristol,
he'd be much better off with somebody sensible and amiable like @novocaine or @Totoro

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wynne said:

That's hilarious. Having worked in a bike shop i wish I'd had your self-awareness before accepting the job.

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