The shape of things to come....

[M_Chavez]

I've posted this a couple years ago. A conversation I had with a young sales guy in Evans outside my work:
- Do you sell rim-brake 650B rims in 32 hole drilling?
- Sorry, what?
- 650B rims drilled for 32 spokes.
- Just a moment, I'll ask our mechanic expert...
Mechanic expert sticks his head out of the back room: "650B? Never heard of them".

I bet you the c**s will soon be looking at a BSA square taper BB and telling you "It doesn't look like it's a bicycle part, mate".

 

[August Bicycles]

I've posted this a couple years ago. A conversation I had with a young sales guy in Evans outside my work:
- Do you sell rim-brake 650B rims in 32 hole drilling?
- Sorry, what?
- 650B rims drilled for 32 spokes.
- Just a moment, I'll ask our mechanic expert...
Mechanic expert sticks his head out of the back room: "650B? Never heard of them".

I bet you the c**s will soon be looking at a BSA square taper BB and telling you "It doesn't look like it's a bicycle part, mate".

I’m sure that if you’d have asked for 27.5” they’d have known.

I guess they know of it as a new size developed especially for mountain bikes.

 

[Rod_Saetan]

650B rim brake is still relatively niche, and say 5 years ago was extremely so - I couldn't name the modern manufacturers of 650B rim brake rims that Evans would have an account with let alone go out of their way to special order in. Yes they didn't know what it was, but lets give the 'mechanic expert' the benefit of the doubt and say he probably knows more about modern bike set-up of suspension, electronic groups and disc brakes than most on here, which is far more relevant to their day to day work. The same with cutting / chasing a thread in a 1" steerer, what relevance does it hold for them, are there any bikes on the shop floor with a 1" headset? You wouldn't pop into Screwfix and expect the guy behind the counter to be able to talk you through repairing a 40 year old boiler. I trained as a sommelier in my youth, did I know more about wine than an oenophile? No. But I did know more about the wines on our wine list than the majority of customers, and that was sufficient.

I don't know why you are all so surprised that 20 somethings working minimum wage jobs in modern bike shops don't have the breadth of knowledge of older, and arguably irrelevant bike components.

It is frustrating that these kinds of shops are disappearing but the solution isn't likely to be whinging about it on the internet.

Not trying to pick a fight, just hoping to add a modicum of balance.

 

[M_Chavez]

I trained as a sommelier in my youth, did I know more about wine than an oenophile? No. But I did know more about the wines on our wine list than the majority of customers, and that was sufficient

That's the difference between a salesman (who doesn't need to know anything apart from how much commission he's getting from Widget A and widget B) and a technical subject matter expert.

But why are salesmen fixing bikes in Evans?

 

[Guinessisgoodforyou]

We'll be fine

 

[pigman]

A natural mechanical ability, and
A friendly customer service manner

...aren't necessarily found in the same person.

So true. That's the AS for you.

Gifted nerd who works best alone in the back room and enjoys being consulted to provide facts but doesn't do small-talk

Versus

The amiable chatterbox who gets the customer on side but doesn't like technical questions.

In a perfect world, both are employed to do what they do best and help each other out assisting with their colleagues' shortfalls. But employing 2 when 1 could probably manage the workload is an expensive option. So which to go for?

 

[highlandsflyer]

I've posted this a couple years ago. A conversation I had with a young sales guy in Evans outside my work:
- Do you sell rim-brake 650B rims in 32 hole drilling?
- Sorry, what?
- 650B rims drilled for 32 spokes.
- Just a moment, I'll ask our mechanic expert...
Mechanic expert sticks his head out of the back room: "650B? Never heard of them".

I bet you the c**s will soon be looking at a BSA square taper BB and telling you "It doesn't look like it's a bicycle part, mate".

Evans though. Not really bike people.

 

[Rod_Saetan]

But why are salesmen fixing bikes in Evans?

Cost-saving, anyone can do a PDI, most bikes can be easily built from a box with little experience or mechanical knowledge.

Some years ago I worked for Cycle Surgery (actually, this refers to my second stint with an Indy inbewteen), I managed a large, high turnover shop just off Oxford Street, the business had recently been bought out by a big outdoors company and we were taken under the umbrella of Cotswold Outdoor. It was clear from the beginning they had no idea what a bike shop did or even that it was particularly different to an outdoor shop where your shop floor staff may need to know how to fit a shoe comfortably or have some technical experience of waterproofness/breathability. Almost every interaction in a bike shop stems from a question that requires some knowledge to answer, it isn't customers picking things off shelves and taking it to the checkout - consider the inner tube for instance, a myriad of answers, leading to further questions about tyres, frame clearance, puncture proofness, tyre levers etc etc.

Once the accountants and excel warriors in head office realised that they couldn't staff the bike shops in the same way they staffed fleece shops they started to ask the really important questions: "Why can't the mechanics work on the shop floor as well, they can't be busy all the time?" and "Why don't we just get the shop floor staff to do repairs on the floor whilst they are serving customers" and my personal favourite: "Why does every bike shop even need their own mechanic?".

Had the mere incompetence persevered then Cycle Surgery may have muddled through, sadly it was replaced by a deeply toxic culture of threats, cutting of hours and screwing good people over left right and centre, it wasn't perfect but London especially is poorer without a well-stocked chain (mostly) staffed by enthusiasts, hopefully the big guns at Cotswold Outdoor still got their bonuses, may they rest in shit.

 

[Rod_Saetan]

So true. That's the AS for you.

Gifted nerd who works best alone in the back room and enjoys being consulted to provide facts but doesn't do small-talk

Versus

The amiable chatterbox who gets the customer on side but doesn't like technical questions.

In a perfect world, both are employed to do what they do best and help each other out assisting with their colleagues' shortfalls. But employing 2 when 1 could probably manage the workload is an expensive option. So which to go for?

15 years in the bike industry, I have worked with TWO good mechanics who were also comfortable working the shop floor.

 

[Canuk]

Our local bike shop is incredibly posh, it's a Shimano Di2 service centre and they stock (in no particular order) Bianchi, Focus and Orbea. I'd say about 50% of the stock is electric, and very little under 2k. But folk here are buying electric bikes like they would a second car (though very few commute). The owner is a nice bloke, but always confused when I come in, never buy anything, and only ask for bike boxes!

He won't touch anything pre 2000, he'll just say 'I'm fully booked for repairs', even if he isn't. They still build wheels, but the per wheel cost is eye watering. I reckon I've maybe bought a saddle off him, and a spare tube once when I punctured far from home. I mostly shop online. I used to feel bad about that, but I can save 30% on what my lbs charges and it comes to my door in 48hrs.

I have literally no idea how bricks and mortar only bike shops continue to trade. Even eBay is getting cut throat, and Amazon is absolutely killing even the bigger retailers like Decathlon. In Europe, there's still a fair distrust of buying online (which explains the 7 shoe shops in my local town pop. 50k), but sooner or later they'll abandon shopping for real.

There's a massive explosion of drop lockers and WiFi drop locations in Spain and France, for convenience it's hard to beat. You can pick up on the way to work or at midnight on the way home from the pub. There's a shop not far from me with 100+ top end Carbon frames sitting on the wall, a stock that has hardly shifted in two years. I really fear for the future of bricks and mortar, and it would be a real shame not to be able to rock up on a Saturday morning and have a chat with the mechanic.

I remember the days when you got a cup of tea and a biscuit at my lbs, and no pressure to buy anything (but of course you did!)

Perhaps that's the secret: make it social, cup of tea and a biscuit seals the deal every time!