Would you buy a Retro bike shop or a Sports car....?

[Mike Muz]

Re:

If I REALLY HAD TO buy one or the other, it would be the shop. I know more about bikes and get more pleasure from them than I would a sports car. However, I know nothing about owning a shop, so I would hope it's easier than doing a big job on my Lamborghini Muira! If I had one that is.
If I simply had the money to spend, I'd buy a remote place abroa instead, near some mountains, where I'd live for a few months of the year, take some bikes there and enjoy riding them.

Mike

 

[Uncle Grumpy]

I've stressed about stock movements. I've put up with the industry brochures. II've dealt with arrogant know-all customers.

I've driven a 2004 911 Carrera GT4 which was amazing. I've driven a Morgan Plus 8 which had a worked 5 litre V8 from a Mustang that would have made the Mustang get up and boogie, except the Morgan weighed as much as a XC duallie and was 4 inches off the ground.

You really cannot compare a shop and a sports car.

Grumps

 

[mattr]

Can't think of many things that are more of a money pit than a proper sports car, a bike shop would be right up there tho.

 

[FMJ]

Well, my dog has her own water dish at a friend's shop that's full of stuff hoarded from the 90s, so I don't really need a retro shop............I'll take a GT2 RS.

 

[racer x]

Re:

Yep I'll take the sports cars

 

[Rod_Saetan]

That particular car and that particular bike shop? I go past it every day on my way to work (in a retro bike shop) and I'd take the car*






*which I would then sell and invest the money in things I liked, like bike shops.

 

[highlandsflyer]

Re: Re:

I know nothing about owning a shop, so I would hope it's easier than doing a big job on my Lamborghini Muira! If I had one that is.

I wouldn't hesitate to do a big job on a Miura.

My long legs, combined with the practical benefit of rapid evacuation lent by kilt wearing, would make it laughably simple.

Owning a supercar is one thing I have no remote interest in. So cycle shop it is for me, simply a binary choice as I am not particularly interested in getting more involved in that arena.

Now if a souped up G Wagen was on the table..

 

[sinnerman]

Thought Roly would get it, the car is for sale without the 40,000 worth of options for £154,000.

£150,000 would buy a few bikes, more if you were dealing in collectable Retro obviously....!

 

[M-Power]

Re:

If you had an equivalent ~ £150k budget, buying the right retro Ferrari/s is a much better investment than a retro bike shop. Being in the bicycle business can be a lot of fun in the right circumstances. Everybody and their dog wants to own/open a bike shop and sadly most shops are pretty crap. The ones that make big money leverage huge economies of scale and are well established. Cyclists in general are better educated than most and very deal savvy. The cycling market 'pie' needs to increase massively imo, to make it really worth it as a start up indie.

Love those wheels HREs ?

 

[sinnerman]

Re: Re:

If you had an equivalent ~ £150k budget, buying the right retro Ferrari/s is a much better investment than a retro bike shop. Being in the bicycle business can be a lot of fun in the right circumstances. Everybody and their dog wants to own/open a bike shop and sadly most shops are pretty crap. The ones that make big money leverage huge economies of scale and are well established. Cyclists in general are better educated than most and very deal savvy. The cycling market 'pie' needs to increase massively imo, to make it really worth it as a start up indie.

Love those wheels HREs ?

Of course the clever open a coffee shop hang some retro bikes up in a "lifestyle" inducing environment, with a minimal bike stock holding level, a bit of a workshop with some airtools and charge us £10.00 for coffee and cake,

give it a cool name and the trendies pour in.

Its nice coffee and cake, and staring at a classic yeti hung on the wall is nice, from my experience bullshit does baffle the brain in the business, but lets face it, the margin is better than 35points on coffee and cake.

Is it a real bikeshop...? who knows, do they make profit and stand outside the big chains and survive.....Of course they do.