Having recently had slow delivery from chain reaction I ordered some new handlebar grips from a shop called UBYK. Ordered on 19th September and apart from an email from them on 27th September apologising for the ‘slight delay’ I still had no delivery.
After emailing them over the weekend to say that if they could not ship them by the end of monday 9th October then cancel my order.
So a day short of a 3 week wait my order was cancelled, yet UBYK’s website is still showing the grips as being in stock…
I have reordered them from CRC (where they are cheaper).

How can something that is supposedly in stock not be shipped after almost 3 weeks? Poor service…

A lot of retailers have links with their suppliers systems. So ‘in stock’ may be that their supplier is showing stock and they have a short lead time on orders with the supplier.

Of course if the supplier’s stock control is poor the whole system falls apart…

As a customer who wants the item delivered I can see a few flaws with that system. Not least the poor communication from this retailer…
In stock should mean just that.

some of them differentiate between ‘in our stock’ and ‘in our suppliers stock – expect a wait of a few days’ which seems fairer, tbh.

I’ve heard similar about ubyk – if they have it great, if not expect a wait. I’ve been fortunate when I’ve bought from there I think.

UBYK just says in stock..

I will stick with what I know in future : a few days for CRC delivery is way better than this crap!

My experience of UBYK is that they are a bit Tredz. Price looks good but the item may or may not exist. Go in with low expectations and you may be pleasantly surprised but I’d rather shop elsewhere

This is why I miss the good ol’ days of mail order, where you had to ring up and ask for the thing that you wanted, talking to a real person who could tell you if the item was really in stock or not.

Fields etc

Wwaswas has it. I was having this conversation with a bike shop owning friend of mine, in particular related to Tredz and he was explaining how the model worked. You’ll find it hidden in the small print somewhere and it’s a clever use of wording to differentiate between their stock and the suppliers without putting people off. I guess UBYK is the same?

It is just lying to customers, (small print or not). In stock should mean the item is physically in the warehouse – CRC/wiggle manage to advise when an item is out of stock and how long it will tare.
The truth always helps – as an example I have just ordered an item from eBay that is in Taiwan as I can’t source it here. They have clearly stated it could take a month for delivery and I am prepared to wait for it. No problem.
An item for my bike that I need should be dispatched within a few days (that is if it is actually in stock!)

I had a similar experience with these guys with some DMR pedals which took about 3 weeks to arrive. Nice enough to deal with when you do speak with them but I wouldn’t use them again if I was in a hurry for something.