On the way into work i saw yet another new bike shop being opened, well i say new but they already have shops elsewhere.. i’m talking about the new Evans cycles in Chester which has the bike factory, specialised concept store and edge cycle works already on the same road! all within a few hundred metres of each other!. good grief they could at least try and spread them out!!

Bike shops seem to be becoming coffee shops too. Just had one open locally here which is half and half. Quite nice really, can pop in for coffee and cake and check out shiny bike bits at the same time.

But yes, getting a bit spoilt for choice down down south too. We had one that closed down a few years back and were down to only halfords for a while. Now we have 6 within a couple of miles.

Market research has told them the best place to open a shop.

Hence them all being in the same location.

Retail works better if you cluster similar shops together. People are more likely to buy if they have a broader choice- so although those shops might be in completion they benefit from each other’s proximity. That’s why you get streets in London that only have tailors on them or only have art dealers. Or towns like Wigtown that are all book shops.

Edit. Or a towns like Bexhill that are all charity shops 🙂

I love popping in to Rockets and Rascals in Plymouth when I’m working down there. Lots of bike porn on show and half decent tea.

There’s also 69 Cycles behind the Bike factory and Dave Millar’s and Eureka on the other side of town (and not counting Cheshire Oaks,Global,Tweeks,Bike Logic and Alf’s all within 15 miles).
Evans arriving has definitely set the cat amongst the pigeons though 😉

@MrBlobby ProBikeFit?

quite a few round here – but need a few more Cliff Richard look a likes labouring away fixing old grannies big rings – what goes round……
[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHJOrpKQhCM[/video]

This one is both: http://www.mud-dock.co.uk/

@MrBlobby ProBikeFit?

Yes indeed. We have ProBikeFit, Banjo, the Spesh concept store, Supernova, the Scott shop over the Mazda garage, and Halfords, all in a fairly small market town in west berks.

Yes indeed. We have ProBikeFit, Banjo, the Spesh concept store, Supernova, the Scott shop over the Mazda garage, and Halfords, all in a fairly small market town in west berks.

Although it’s stuffed with fairly affluent people, many of whom get bike to work deals.

It does seem slightly crazy though. I remember when the old bike shop closed (by the King Charles) and wasn’t there one sort of opposite the Dolphin that also closed?

Then along came Banjos and the rest is history. No Evans yet though…

Funnily enough our LBS is just opening a coffee shop next to the shop. Hope it goes well.

quite a difficult time for the shops, the coffee shop bike shops seem to attract high end customers, who are still spending a lot of money. the low end of the market are getting a lot of competition, from halfords, decathlon, go outdoors, etc.
the middle ground are getting the most competition, and are struggling unless there is more to the shop than its products, (workshop has to be the heart of the shop)

I was told by an Lbs owner “the workshop is there to get back the money from people I’ve had to give discount to” (to justify an overnight 20% increase in service charges).

or alternatively the workshop is where people trust you to fix their bikes, and a good workshop will be busy all year round, this regular work helps the shops cash flow as it is not tying money up in stock.

or alternatively the workshop is where people trust you to fix their bikes, and a good workshop will be busy all year round, this regular work helps the shops cash flow as it is not tying money up in stock.

Honestly, after working in Evans for a while, it seems their business model was more like what Rorschach said. Although it felt like their job was 90% to just build new bikes that turned up in boxes, 9% pre-planned services, and 1% odd repair jobs. Even when working there I took my bike to a different shop to get any spannering done that I couldn’t do myself. Every other bike shop did mechanic stuff cheaper, faster, and without having to book in and put a million details into the system.

Yes indeed. We have ProBikeFit, Banjo, the Spesh concept store, Supernova, the Scott shop over the Mazda garage, and Halfords, all in a fairly small market town in west berks.

They do a nice flat white too!

good grief they could at least try and spread them out!!

They’ll have their reasons for doing that – but from the consumer perspective means you don’t have to traipse for miles when looking to browse or desperately hunting for an odd part.

We only have one, they only seem to sell road bikes, when I take my mtb in they cluster round for a closer look like it’s something rare!

My LBS is like a coffee shop in the respect that when I nip in I often find myself watching the shop, while he nips out to get some milk so he can make a brew. I think you’d be waiting an awfully long time to get a latte 😀

It’s about time you lot got coffee served in yer bike shoppie, we all know LMNHs started it, coffee, eats, lock yer bike up.. Simple concept done good.

This concept has yet to reach the shores of Hampshire though 😆 & 🙄

I think you’d be waiting an awfully long time to get a latte

Is it still 2004 up there? It’s all about the flat white now

It’s about time you lot got coffee served in yer bike shoppie, we all know LMNHs started it, coffee, eats, lock yer bike up.. Simple concept done good.

It may be making money but it’s not for the service, coffee or food IME

Always been the same cyclists went into their favourite bike shop to talk bikes and drink coffee 70 years ago ,you just scrounged it off the owner as we still do (in exchange for doughnuts !)

why the bike shops cluster together

We have just had an Evans open in Leicester, I’m yet to visit but it might actually mean the older LBS have to up their woeful game.

It’s because most of the customers do this…

[video]http://youtu.be/JRCNwDpua30[/video]

beej – Member

@MrBlobby ProBikeFit?

Just what I thought! Now I only drink decaf at home it’s become a semi-regular stop off for a quick fix

The mechanic who did a wheel re-build for me really seemed to know his stuff too, which is nice and handy.

The cake is also quality…

Every time I go into my lbs the bastids send me to the shop for the milk !

Funnily enough I’ve only been to probikefit for a bike fit. Considering that they were only down the road previously, I’d never heard of them. Can’t see me using the cafe much as it’s not really in a good location riding wise.

retail clustering is very common in many large towns and cities

bike shops selling coffee? If you look at hard data, you are better off letting coffee shops sell coffee, and use the space for extra retail lines or workshop expansion

Evans? In London they don’t want scheduled services beyond a “bronze” in their stores; its all about bike building and quick profitable repairs like punctures. Allows them to staff the workshops with bike builders and junior mechanics on low wages.

Silver and Gold services are all transferred by their fleet of vans down to LCW (London Central Workshop) in Bermondsey.

Different business model to the LBS, or Evans stores outside of London that are too far from LCW.

Same way that Evans don’t offer / are not interested in “bike fitting”.

They are smart in that they know who they are, who their customer is, and have returned to profit.

Same way that Evans don’t offer / are not interested in “bike fitting”.

Interesting the difference in business models. ProBikeFit core business was originally all about the Retul bike fit (I guess the clue is in the name!) and they also sold bikes (some rather lovely Look’s on display) and bits mostly off the back of that. I think the expansion with the coffee shop and a larger retail area is still really to get people in and talking about bike fits.