UPDATE: Reviews section refreshed, redesigned, searchable: Go take a look
Ok…long story short.
Mid-50s freelance senior graphic designer ATM. Had plenty of long-term roles in the past, but the waters have been pretty choppy over the last 4 years. The creative world seems to be on its arse now with everyone using AI and cutting jobs with huge amounts of applicants for every position/opportunity. I’m on LinkedIn for visibility but loathe it - full of ‘me! me! me!’ types and I’ve had enough of it. Freelance is great when it’s busy - it’s just never busy or consistent enough!
I need to think of another income stream/career - I’m not ready to throw the towel in and work in a supermarket just yet (not that there’s anything wrong with that), though I know I’d absolutely hate it.
I’ve always ridden and tinkered with bikes and is something I’m passionate about, so wondered whether I could do something within the cycle trade - more so whether doing a Cytech spannering course was worth it. They look quite pricey and having spoken to 3 people that do similar, they only think it’s with it if you go into the trade as it’s the industry standard qualification - which is what I’m considering. Anyone here done it/doing it/think it’s def worthwhile?
I’ve love a design job within the cycling trade TBH but they’re like rocking horse s***!
Any advice on this or generally just feeling a bit lost and useless later in your working life?
I was a mechanic for years and I've never done a Cytech so it's not essential. Plenty of people with a Cytec certificate are still utterly useless because they don't have 10,15,20 or whatever years of DIY experience. You need to prove you know what you're doing and you can do that in a few days so ask for a free trial somewhere. There's nothing worse than when the boss employs someone because they have the right certificates but they've got no chops.
Also, can you live on minimum wage?
Can you handle customers telling you "I'm an engineer me" all the time?
Do you want to fix up rusty crap that's been living outside the garden shed for 8 years because someone wants to ride it on a whim but doesn't want to pay for parts and labour?
Do you want to work for a small, possibly family run business whose managers only qualifications are being the bosses son?
It took me a long time to find a permanent way out and I'm never going back. Currently working 3 days a week and taking home almost double what I did as a mechanic.
Have been thinking the same for a few years but the difference for me is that I'll be retiring with a pension and lump sum so won't be reliant on any other income I make. I go between mobile mechanic and working in a larger bike shop as general staff. We'll see.
There's nothing worse than making your hobby your job!
You won't have the same pride in the job when you have to get someones BSO finished by 5pm on a Friday week after week!
What area of graphics are you in?
What area of graphics are you in?
TBH I don’t specialise in any one area…Jack of all trades such as brochures, advertising, socials, I love branding jobs and am handy with concept work - coming up with ideas.
You got anything in mind? 😉
I'd go with a hard no. The only person I know who has made a fist of it at that age is running a virtual hobby business that just about pays it's way and relies pretty hard on his forces pension for actual boring things like food on the table.
Are you a people person? Might sound a weird question but you never know - does communicating, inspiring, standing up in front of folk come naturally? I know a couple of people who have carved out good jobs (as in secure, good pension, good terms and conditions even if the pay is not awesome) putting their passion for riding a bike into running cycling schemes for councils. Or a bikeability style charity mostly funded by council money promoting cycling as a way to stay healthy and sustainable. One guy I know makes a steady income running a small towns green ecargo and Ebike hire scheme.
But going to work in someone's bricks and mortar bike shop - no.
I have in the past written about this but I'll try and keep this short...
In most shops you won't be working on the sort of thing you call a bike. Keen cyclists who have worked on their own bikes go into a shop and think they are decent mechanics because they can work on their own bikes which are generally decent quality. The reality is you'll be working on bikes which have come from Sports Direct or Halfords if you are lucky. Can you set up canti brakes/calliper brakes? Work on BB's with loose bearings? Size cotter pins? You get to the point where a bike comes in with Alivio gears and you think "Cool, finally something decent to work on".
The other thing is how fast are you? It's easy working on your bike at home with a cup of tea or a beer and you can take your time, but in a shop most jobs are fixed price. You get a kids bike with SRAM MRX twist grips and bendy v brakes. It needs new cables as they are rusty. Can you replace two brake and two gear cables and set up the gears and brakes in 10 minutes? Replace a headset or BB in 15 minutes? Because you'll need to and Cytech won't teach you that.
You'll have customers come in with bikes they bought for £100 and can't understand why a basic service costs more than the value of their bike, and even worse you get the folks who come in with high end stuff and want to talk to you for hours about their bike and where they ride and are you part of the scene and do you want to sponsor them because they once came 5th in the local enduro. And can you just do this little job for them before their race tomorrow 'cos it'll only take a minute and they'll give you some biscuits they got from Home Bargains, it's just installing cushcore in both wheels and they saw how to do it on a Youtube video and it's dead easy so can I pick it up in 20 minutes.
For minimum wage, minimum legal holidays/sick pay/pension. Oh and you have to buy your own tools (depending on the shop)
And breathe...
I'm so glad I got out. When I did get out after 10 years or so I didn't even want to look at my bikes for 6 months let alone ride them.
I’ve always ridden and tinkered with bikes and is something I’m passionate about, so wondered whether I could do something within the cycle trade - more so whether doing a Cytech spannering course was worth it. They look quite pricey and having spoken to 3 people that do similar, they only think it’s with it if you go into the trade as it’s the industry standard qualification - which is what I’m considering. Anyone here done it/doing it/think it’s def worthwhile?
Just a note (which you probably already know so apologies if this is blindingly obvious) but the pleasure and pride you get from working on your own bike doesn't come into the equation when you're working on the third BSO with back-to-front forks and a parent who's adamant that they set it up right and how can it cost £100 to fix it, the bike only cost £120 new.
Where there are opportunities is in e-bikes, cargo bikes etc. The more specialist / niche areas which are actually still seeing some growth.
Bikebiz is normally a pretty good place to keep an eye out for cycle industry jobs.
https://bikebiz.com/jobs/
You got anything in mind?
Sadly not!
Print trade is on it's arse at the minute, nearly everyone you speak too is quiet. My paper delivery guy came last week and he said I was his last drop that day - this was 10am. 😱
I'm fortunate that I'm the only (decent) print shop in my area. But there's just me to keep busy so I've not got to chase work to keep others employed.
And in recent years I never really offered design work (as I'm too busy with print) so AI isn't hitting me yet. People still need their shite AI posters and flyers printing!
I've had a dabble with AI design but after 40+ years in the trade it doesn't come naturally - cranking up InDesign seems way easier.
I’ve done spells as a bike shop mechanic between jobs and during COVID. It’s certainly not something you do for the money. I wouldn’t worry too much about Cytec if you have some basic workshop and bike mechanic skills and just starting out - most of your time will be spend rectifying BSOs and various neglected shed-ware. If starting out, I would definitely get some shop experience first, at least to get some knowledge of the various tasks, how long it takes and what to charge. Getting experience of e-bikes and electronic fault finding and diagnostics is increasingly essential.
Funnily enough, I started my career in engineering and product design but deviated into various jobs in the corporate world because the pay was way better and more secure.
These days I have my own design and print business making gifts for the tourist market on a Scottish Island - it’s far easier making fridge magnets in my workshop than trying to drill-out someone’s seized thro-axle because they couldn’t be bothered greasing it.
Blimey.
Sounds like a shit way to earn a crust!
I ended up up as a bike mechanic but that was after I'd retired (age 50) and was looking around for something to do. I'd agree with most of what sharkattack has to say but the upsides were the folk I met, then rode with, then made friends with. While I'd been cycling "a good bit" before that job, my enthusiasm (aided in part by trade prices 😂) took off immensely and I now can't imagine how different my life would have been without it.
We'd get a decent variety of bikes in. You'd be surprised how many really, really nice bikes are owned by folk who don't know the difference between a spanner and a screwdriver and are happy to pay for someone else to do even the easiest adjustment. Yes, we'd also get the real shitters in too and we've all got tales about them.
If you can find a job maintaining a bike hire fleet, that's a great option. You'll have less variation, newer bikes and components and a completely different sort of customer.
Peatys were looking for a designer.
Thinking out loud reading this… is there any mileage in learning and getting good at ebike motor repairs and specialising in that… maybe in or with with a local bike shop? It must be a growth area?
I know some shops simply ship them off to places like the ebike motor center. If they could do them locally and faster and cheaper maybe you would build up some trade? I guess ebike motor center is so good that it would be hard to beat? Motors are also a bit boring - like repairing vacuum cleaners or windscreen wiper motors!
Thinking out loud reading this… is there any mileage in learning and getting good at ebike motor repairs and specialising in that… maybe in or with with a local bike shop? It must be a growth area?
If I had the brains I'd be doing this right now. Repairs and refurbs on out of warranty e-bikes plus the usual servicing and workshop tasks.
No retail, no foot traffic, no window shoppers. Quiet little unit somewhere.
Blimey.
Sounds like a shit way to earn a crust!
It is but it's miles better than most minimum wage jobs in my experience. I mean, it's tolerable most of the time. It's not psychological torture like doing night shifts on a production line with the local radio station blaring out of a knackered speaker.
There are positives as listed above. I worked with some great people and we used to have a right laugh. We used to have some great regular customers. Couldn't ride much as I worked every weekend but I built a load of bikes while I could get trade prices.
The main problem for me is the low wages. If you're a boomer retiring with stacks of cash and you just need something to do it would be fine. If like me you're decades away from retirement with a mortgage that keeps going up and up it's just not possible.
There's nothing worse than making your hobby your job!
Definitely agree with this! I work in the MI industry, as a result the last thing I want to do is pick up my guitar at home any more. It's sucked all the joy out of it for me. But saying that it's still a fun job and I'd rather be doing this than something I have absolutely no interest in.
If you can find a job maintaining a bike hire fleet, that's a great option. You'll have less variation, newer bikes and components and a completely different sort of customer.
The sort that can't ride for toffee, haven't ridden since childhood and will bring the bikes back with brakes worn to the limit and a chain that's been repeatedly crashed across 8 cogs under extreme load.
I looked after a hire fleet decades ago and it was a constant circle of chain and brake pad replacement. I remember a couple of people coming in at 9am on Sunday as we opened, hired two bikes and took the little route guide leaflet. They came back about 15 minutes past closing time absolutely shattered. Turned out they'd done a short but pretty hardcore route having ignored the bits in the leaflet about "experienced riders only" and simply looked at the mileage (about 18 miles). It was a route that an experienced rider could smash around in 2 - 2.5hrs. It had taken them over 7.
Anything that relies on discretionary spend is going to be challenging for the next few years. Bike and marine industries (my other passion) will be amongst those struggling I expect.
I think if I was going to work in the bike industry I'd be looking at a non customer facing something that matched my skill set rather than going on the tools.
As others have observed, bad pay, bad things to work on and customers who don't appreciate the work done. If you're going to get the second two you might as well look for a grim job that pays better 😉
I looked after a hire fleet decades ago
I looked after one much more recently and it was mostly folk going out for a wee spin along canal paths to a pub/cafe/loch, and some long-distance tourists doing the NC500/Outer Hebrides so it's going to very much depend on location.
Go self employed as a bike mechanic? The chap I use (not enough time / skill myself) is a quality mechanic, always pretty busy, works out of his garage. He works two days a week in a “normal” job then does this three days. Seems to make a living and with a good rep is busy. Probably a good way to work with the bikes / people you want rather than having to make bso’s functional.
Peatys were looking for a designer.
This sounds good. Making a career change once you're older is best done by utilising some of the hard-earned experience you've gained and transferring it to another field. I'd be trying to set up as a specialist designer freelancing for the bike industry if I was you.
“Definitely agree with this! I work in the MI industry, as a result the last thing I want to do is pick up my guitar at home any more.”
How long have you been in the MI industry for? I went through a long phase of not writing or playing much at all but now (after 18 years of running an amp business) I seem to be playing more than ever, which is nice!
Go self employed as a bike mechanic? The chap I use (not enough time / skill myself) is a quality mechanic, always pretty busy, works out of his garage. He works two days a week in a “normal” job then does this three days. Seems to make a living and with a good rep is busy. Probably a good way to work with the bikes / people you want rather than having to make bso’s functional.
I did this for a couple of years. The pros are you charge what you want and choose what you work on. The downside is you spend a lot of money on tools you never knew existed and you are mega busy from Easter to September when you want to be out riding, and the phone doesn't ring at all from November to March.
There's so many manufacturers, distributors and retailers gone bust recently and as a consequence there are hundreds of qualified, time served people trying to find bike related jobs whilst working at Tesco. Two years ago there were 5 mobile mechanics round here, now there's none, and they were all pretty decent.
Any advice on this or generally just feeling a bit lost and useless later in your working life?
Do you need a job that pays decently to add towards retirement, or it is it more to keep busy as you head towards said retirement? I.e. how much does money come into it?
As many people above have said, bike shop work pays a pittance and is generally a pretty thankless task. I only ever did it as a weekend job in my 20s, and couldn't ever see it as a long term job.
I know two ex-bike mechanics who have ended up working in school I teach in. One is a DT/Engineering technician - general workshop stuff + maintenance of machines and a bit of helping out in the classroom. He loves it. He came in with some engineering knowledge, but was given plenty of training.
The other works in site staff and maintenance. It's a big school (split site with over 2000 pupils!) and he drives around in a little 4wd buggy sorting out doors and windows, etc bit of gardening, painting, and general DIY. Again he enjoys it (and has a great tan!)
Wages aren't massive, but over minimum wage, and the jobs let them work quite independently within the school.
I'd go with a hard no. The only person I know who has made a fist of it at that age is running a virtual hobby business that just about pays it's way and relies pretty hard on his forces pension for actual boring things like food on the table.
The guy who fixes my bikes is able to retire early next year and will be focusing on his bike business on top of his pension. Even with 20+ years and a good reputation on the local club scene and a specialism with vintage bikes, he is not confident he'll make enough.
Job Opportunities - DalesBikeCentre https://share.google/UxCvD5IN9976hhU9U
Not sure where you are but this sort of thing might suit. Well established, popular company with multiple revenue streams and the owners are nice, decent people.
Awesome people. I imagine there are a lot of people with bike shop management experience in Yorkshire looking for a role like that. Problem would be accommodation costs if looking to live nearby.
My Missus keeps suggesting I might want to "fix People's Bikes" as a semi-retirement option in a few years.
I can't imagine anything worse TBH, I sort out the families bikes, I occasionally help the odd friend but I can't imagine a better way to ruin a hobby/passion than making it your job.
There's nothing worse than making your hobby your job!
You won't have the same pride in the job when you have to get someones BSO finished by 5pm on a Friday week after week!
This.
Any advice on this or generally just feeling a bit lost and useless later in your working life?
The bike trade is also feeling a bit lost in general, though with areas that are between great or doing ok all things considered. It's not all doom and gloom but you'd need to find a niche that suits you. It's an overinflated industry that's being forced to scale back steadily to a more realistic or sustainable size as well as consolidating, so take care in considering where you end up.
Mechanic work could be good if you get to work on the kind of product where people will pay a fair rate (top end bikes), however I think they are the most undervalued part of the industry in general, earning much less than what the same skill level earns in many other lines of work. Avoid BSO work, no-one wants to pay anything to have a cheap bike fixed and there isn't the means to pay someone well to do that work, even self-employed you'd be struggling I think.
Qualifications will help if self employed, for PLI.
While you're here, why not share a link to your site/work? There's a few bike brand folk on here, no harm doing a bit of self-promotion away from linkedin.
I bumped into the guy who co-owned my last LBS recently, he was driving a bus. He sold up a few months back and reckons, in his words, 'the bike industry is done'. I'm not sure it's quite that bad, but it's not a massively lucrative area atm. I get the impression that things are in a state of flux/consolidation/e-bikeification etc.
Any advice on this or generally just feeling a bit lost and useless later in your working life?
I keep chatting on the doorstep to blissfully happy Tesco delivery drivers who are enjoying the relatively low pressure nature of the job. Coincidentally one of them was a graphic designer who mixed up freelance graphics work with delivering groceries across the Peak District. He loved it.
I'm not suggesting that you do the same, but it's an interesting take. I'd be half tempted if the delivery vans weren't such horrendous rolling shacks on wheels.
As someone who writes stuff for a living and loves working on bikes, I can see the attraction of the bike industry btw. I have two ex riding buddies who now own bike shops and are doing really well at it, but I'd be wary of screwing up something you love doing by making it into day in, day out grind - that said, you probably have a somewhat better idea of whether that would be an issue for you than I do.
Mechanic work could be good if you get to work on the kind of product where people will pay a fair rate (top end bikes),
You would be amazed at how unbelievably tight most cyclists are. £10,000 bike, fast estate car (or the ubiquitous camper van)... buys parts on AliExpress, parks in a layby 100m away from the trail centre car park to save £4, rides Sportive routes on the same day as the event but without paying.
It's an industry in-joke. Usually the more expensive the bike, the more they resent spending any money at all on any aspect of it.
I can't imagine anything worse TBH, I sort out the families bikes, I occasionally help the odd friend but I can't imagine a better way to ruin a hobby/passion than making it your job.
It depends. I mostly really enjoyed my time in the bike industry but this is going back a fair way - some great shops and people, good opportunities, discounts... More than the issues of making your hobby into your job is it does become a bit one-dimensional. You work on bikes all day, talking about bikes with staff / customers / reps, you then ride home and on your day off you go out for a ride and then spend some time on a bike forum or looking at a cycling website or watching some cycle racing, then you go to work and it's all bikes bikes bikes... You really need some other interests or occupations.
“Definitely agree with this! I work in the MI industry, as a result the last thing I want to do is pick up my guitar at home any more.”
How long have you been in the MI industry for? I went through a long phase of not writing or playing much at all but now (after 18 years of running an amp business) I seem to be playing more than ever, which is nice!
Coming up to 10 years now! It's the longest I've stayed in the same company/job so it can't be that bad I guess, but I do miss playing guitar. Just lost some of the enthusiasm for it when it's all I see and hear at work as well. Been thinking about picking up bass and learning that instead though after 20+ years of guitar - easier/more useful for getting into a band again and at least it's not quite the same thing I see all day! And arguably the cooler instrument anyway 🙂
Been a joiner for 40 years and had a small business for 28 of these. I was offered a job in a cycle wholesale business nearly two years ago and have loved the change, the people and the growth I’ve seen. Now building cycle wheels on a state of the art robotic line and sending orders off to customers.
it’s far easier making fridge magnets in my workshop than trying to drill-out someone’s seized thro-axle because they couldn’t be bothered greasing it.
Doesn't sound like you're really a qualified bike mechanic?, that's a lump hammer job 🙂
£10,000 bike, fast estate car (or the ubiquitous camper van)... buys parts on AliExpress, parks in a layby 100m away from the trail centre car park to save £4, rides Sportive routes on the same day as the event but without paying.
It's an industry in-joke. Usually the more expensive the bike, the more they resent spending any money at all on any aspect of it.
Usually because it's all on tick.
Usually because it's all on tick.
Yep. Too many people have read one too many "load up on debt" lifestyle/financial "advice" posts on social media where due to inflation the real value of debt gets smaller every year etc.
It might well do but the repayments are fixed and if you're leveraged up to the eyeballs the minute some little blip occurs in your cashflow the whole lot will come tumbling down.
I've known a few people who late in (work) life have worked in shops. I think the key is you need to have your financials in order first as you'll be be starting on a low salary. If you are financing a big house, SUV etc, maybe it won't work! One guy worked in HVAC and didn't know a huge amount about bikes, but he was smart and had plenty of transferable skills. People like this often have a good work ethic, and actually use their initiative and seek out work and be productive.
Surely it depends on the shop / location as to the amount of BSOs they get in. This is nearly 20 years ago now, but I remember working in a bike shop in the Midlands before coming out to British Columbia. Most of the bikes coming in were decent enough mountain bikes. But this one guy brought in a terrible BSO. I did what I could but it still sucked. The customer complained to someone. I'm paraphrasing, but the 'someone' told the guy something like "I am the owner of the store. Your bike is a piece of poo. Now fornicate over yonder!" Maybe find out which shop he runs now 😉 (I know but am not saying ha).
Related to the above, if the store has a reputation for working on decent bikes, and can do it in a productive manner then they'll be making more money from service. Just the chain that you'll install probably costs 3X more. A 'service' with some parts can easily be $500+ where I am. Loads of people fix what they can themselves with youtube etc, but plenty still don't. My car is at the garage having brake work and an exhaust fix. I could probably do this myself, but you know what? I really can't be arsed. I'd rather do things I want to do on my weekend. I don't know a mechanic who earns minimum wage where I am. Sure, the money isn't great, and I'm a rung or two up the ladder, but someone starting where I work is generally on around $6ph above min wage, plus small commission. If you are working for minimum wage and on BSOs all day, of course you are going to say it sucks. I've been on two long haul flight holidays this year, about to go on a week long road trip, another one planned for September etc. I'm lucky with cheap rent though. So going back to the beginning, if the financial situation outside of work allows it, it's a way more viable option.
