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Planet X charge 10 % on top of the purchase price of the bike when bought on cycle scheme. Now every bike shop i've been in has told me it costs them 10%, so there's no getting away from that, however only Planet x want to pass it on to the customer. A company their size should be able to absorb it. The real cost of their bikes seems to be increasing, in a similar sneaky way to budget airlines!
I was all set to buy a carbon bike for £999 on the scheme, but by the time i've paid a £100 admin fee, and the £100 fitting, i'd be as well just going to my local Trek, Cannondale et al dealers and spending £1200 +
[i]i'd be as well just going to my local Trek, Cannondale et al dealers and spending £1200 +[/i]
Why don't you do that then?
£100 fitting? They charge £100 to make sure it fits?
I got a sale bike on c2w at another shop and had to put the 10% on top of it, but didn't mind as essentially got it for less than half oprice
It just seems strange that a big player like PlanetX choose to pass on the admin cost on C2W, while small LBS with tight margins will absorb it for the customer.
Has anyone bought bike on the C2W scheme and had to pay 10% admin fee on top of the bike purchase price?
You'd get a carbon frame and fork with full Rival for £1200 from trek or canondale........I think not.Cube or canyon maybe.
I'd have a look at Ribble tho.
Rutland cycling did charge me this but I still got a cracking deal.
They are a disgrace to the cycling undustry for charging for fitting! fitting is part of the service ffs!
and then to add 10% for c2w!!! this actaully makes me angry!
I would avoid at all costs!
Basic economics 123 innit. They reckon they'll make more money selling bikes on the scheme at their normal profit margin than they will selling more bikes and having to take a 10% hit. That's down to some combination of how large their basic profit margin is, and their calculation of what proportion of people the 10% extra charge will put off. Those calculations are doubtless different for a small LBS.
They are a disgrace to the cycling undustry for charging for fitting! fitting is part of the service ffs!
Which shops do a full pro bike fitting for free when buying a bike?
£100 seems like about the going rate
http://bikedynamics.co.uk/options.htm
Has anyone bought bike on the C2W scheme and had to pay 10% admin fee on top of the bike purchase price?
No, I've bought two bikes through Cyclescheme from small, independent, local bike shops and they haven't charged me 10%. However, one of the shops told me that, after Cyclescheme had taken their cut, they weren't making a great amount on the sale but relied on volume of sales to make it worthwhile.
A company their size should be able to absorb it
They're not exactly 'massive' but sell a lot of quality stuff, post free, at bargain rates so maybe their profit margin is not as great as some other companies. They may need to charge the 10% to make it worthwhile.
I'd have no hesitation in buying a Cyclescheme Pompetimine Alfine through PlanetX/On-One, and paying the extra 10%, if my employer had not now abandoned the C2W scheme. It would still be a bargain if I bought it at the bike's normal price, and not ultimatley discounted by a C2W scheme.
I would avoid at all costs!
I suspect you won't be missed.....you really don't get how they work do you?
All the LBS have to pay the 10% just some of them put it on the upfront price - my friend owns a major bike store and tells me this. It's why you generally don't get a discount on C2W bikes too.
while small LBS with tight margins will absorb it for the customer.
I have it from a small LBS that they really suffered with that 10% and are reluctant to do any more cyclescheme business with their tight margins being eaten into.
Which shops do a full pro bike fitting for free when buying a bike?
are you for real? your going to spend a lot of money with them on a product that costs them usually around 50% less than what you are paying for it and then you pay £100 for them to tell you or make it fit propery?!? i wish i could throw money about like that!
i dont know of a single bike shop in the west yorkshire area that charge!
I suspect you won't be missed.....you really don't get how they work do you?
actually i know a fair amount about how they work having worked for 3 major bike shops and 2 british bike companys! 🙄
on a product that costs them usually around 50% less than what you are paying for it
50%? LOL!
50% less lol, I'd love to have a margin that big in the shop.
Some cycle schemes charge 12% admin fees
As Slugwash mentioned, it's all about volume when it comes to cycle scheme
We don't offer a full 'professional fitting service', but we do make sure a bike fits you properly, free of charge.
ok maybe 50% is abit high but im sure you get the point.
50% is way off, how long ago did you work in the trade?
Meanwhile, back on topic...
I believe that Paul's charge for the C2W scheme too, or they used to. Haven't checked in a while if they still do
Only got one word for it. Diddums.
Then there ar other words for people ripping the arse out of the C2W tax dodge. But I'd get banned for telling you what they are.
then you pay £100 for them to tell you or make it fit propery?!? i wish i could throw money about like that!
i dont know of a single bike shop in the west yorkshire area that charge!
jimbob - perhaps something like this is what the OP is getting...
[url= http://blog.bike-science.com/2011/02/23/the-perfect-fit-at-no-extra-cost ]bike-science [/url]
the RETUL Level 2 pro fit at half price when you buy a bike. Seems fair enough really - not just a 'bars right, saddle right' job there.
50% mark up isnt actually too far off on some products for some companys. for example the konas you see on the banners on this site at the moment from crc wont be far off 50% mark up. dont forget people get better trade prices than others, especially when you are buying shed loads.
Actually though planet x bikes cut out the middle man as its an own brand product so margins are possibly higher for those bikes.
I bought a PX road bike on the BTW scheme last year. I saved the 10% fee as I dealt direct with them and my boss (avoided cycle scheme). I think it's fair enough though given they run on high volume tight margin sales. If you're not using the cycle to work scheme you get the cheapest possible price, if you are, they have to up it a bit. That's the price - if you don't like it go elsewhere (Ribble etc as others suggest).
I'm not sure where the "fitting" fee comes in. They sometime charge £100 to build the bike for you (if not, you get a box full of bits - which was a highlight for me:)) but they're throwing that in for nowt with the current deals. They certainly weren't charging for fitting you with the right bike last year.
Actually though planet x bikes cut out the middle man as its an own brand product so margins are possibly higher for those bikes.
Have you seen the deals they offer? I doubt very much they run on much of a margin. They just offer high value, high volume sales. I got a carbon road bike with full Ultegra groupset for under £1000!
A few of the guys I work with and myself have bought a few bikes on the scheme from various suppliers. The 10% charge was only applicable if you're going through one of the 3rd party providers (voucher system etc). We managed to sweet-talk our HR/payroll to administer it themselves so the 10% doesn't apply. We all bought sale bikes etc and just paid with a company credit card and payroll sorted out the salary sacrifice etc. Before we sorted this out internaly I recall Pauls Cycles were only charging 10% extra on sale bikes (but most of them are aren't they?...) but if not using a third party voucher scheme it didn't apply...
Mmmm, there seems to be a bit of confusion here , unless my 3 glasses of "2007 Garda Doc Classico Rosso 2007" have blurred my vision to the point of incompetence I dont think this thread is correct and its possibly a bit unfair towards us.
We planet x dont charge for bike fitting .
We do charge 10% for cyclescheme and thats what we get charged by cyclescheme , companies can avoid this by simply taking up a direct scheme with us .
Now Andy Sexton of Bike science Bristol and Derby , one of our resellers , who performs a retul bike fit that I believe takes 2-3 hours , uses the Retul bike system (that costs over 10,000 usd to buy and involves getting himself trained up to a high level )- charges I believe 175 pounds for a Retul bikefit . I think he may then discounts this to 100 pounds for a cyclescheme bikefit . Retul bikefit is not your normal pop your customer on a bike and see how it looks jobbie , its a 3d motion cature system used by the worlds best pro riders including Lance Armstrong . 100 pounds for a Retul bikefit is a very cheap price and I dont recall it being anywhere like that price at any other retul centre, so if the bikefit in question here is the retul one for 100 quid its very good value .
Bikefits done by planet x themselves are free of charge as our staff arent currently using retul bikefit , we are training our in house staff in the next month to use Retul , and at that stage customers will then have the option of a 3 hour retul bikefit where they will have to pay , or a more basic non retul bikefit that will still be free .
We will continue to charge for cyclescheme , but companies are free to avoid this and buy direct to avoid the cyclescheme fee .
I do think that is the situation , and its pretty transparent .
We think our 999 procarbon bike is still ahead of the competition in terms of value and allround spec - its a tight battle to spec the key 999 bike - in the past months focus and Boardman seem to have given up the ghost in trying to squeeze the carbon monocoque sram rival / shimano 105 bikes under 1k - and as carbon prices are now on the rise again its getting very tight even for direct selling tight arse northerners like planet x to maintain this price . Its clearly the key pricepoint in the market and whoever gets to 999 with the best value bike gets a decent slice of the market and thats our aim - and believe me we cant afford to "absorb" 10% to cyclescheme on these bikes .
Any rising prices at planet x are not to do with ryanair type tactics - its more likely due to the drop in the TWD rate from 31 down to circa 28 , plus the ever increasing raw material and labour prices in china / taiwan and USA (in the case of Sapa / Titus) , and maybe due to rising overheads and petrol prices etc in the UK .
dave@planet-x-bikes.com
Enough of your factual nonsense, that has no place here!
This is a moaning thread for ill-informed people. Be off with you!
😉
charges I believe 175 pounds for a Retul bikefit . I think he may then discounts this to 100 pounds for a cyclescheme bikefit . Retul bikefit is not your normal pop your customer on a bike and see how it looks jobbie , its a 3d motion cature system used by the worlds best pro riders including Lance Armstrong .
FFS, what's wrong with people?
If I'm going to go to a shop to buy a bike then I'm not going to sit on some sort of an X-Box simulator and then cough up £175/£100 to see what bike fits me. I'm going to sit on one of the real, actual, bloody bikes and maybe get the stem size changed or the crank length swapped or something, so it fits me. I've got nine bikes, a spanner, and a couple of allen keys and have never had a problem getting any of then to fit so far.
£175? Christ, I could get a month's worth of EPO for that. Then I'd have something a little bit more tangible that's used by the world's best pro riders, including L...., etc.
I guess someone needs to tell poor Andy Sexton of bike science his business model is completely flawed .
He does seem pretty busy so maybe there are a few customers out there who value and use his services but each to his own .
FWIW I do believe also retul is actually done on the "real actual bloody bike" but its clearly not for everyone .
FFS, what's wrong with people?
It's a free world you know, people are allowed to choose. People pay for suspension to be setup/tuned for a mountain bike, how is that different to find the correct position on a bike you might ride for 8hrs in the saddle?
I think some irony was possibly overlooked in some replies? Either way, it's great dave took the time to give us some insight to the retailers side of things - and if I ever became mincey enough to want a roadbike I'd be giving them a call, but until then I'm quite happy with my scandal clown bike.
Ps. Does the bike fit system apply to mtbs too, or just the consistent position on roadbikes
Paul's Cycles also add on the 10%. I paid,I was still getting a good deal on my commuter. And I can't blame them- high-sales/low margin is their model.
Mud dock in bristol do the same. They have some nice stuff in there, I'd not buy anything from them though.
Only got one word for it. Diddums.Then there ar other words for people ripping the arse out of the C2W tax dodge. But I'd get banned for telling you what they are.
What he said.
My position probably isn't quite as extreme as this, but having dealt with customers brandishing a table of measurements and then refusing to consider bikes which have a top tube 5mm too long/short, I do feel that some folk are taking this [i]way[/i] too seriously. In addition, we also get folk coming in with various ailments (dodgy knees, ankles, back, shoulders) thinking that a bike fit will somehow resolve or overcome these. Frankly, they are after a degree of medical knowledge which you are not going to find in a bike shop.slugwash - Member
FFS, what's wrong with people?If I'm going to go to a shop to buy a bike then I'm not going to sit on some sort of an X-Box simulator and then cough up £175/£100 to see what bike fits me. I'm going to sit on one of the real, actual, bloody bikes and maybe get the stem size changed or the crank length swapped or something, so it fits me. I've got nine bikes, a spanner, and a couple of allen keys and have never had a problem getting any of then to fit so far.
My personal experience is that you buy a bike in the right size according to a sit-on/test ride and then adjust accordingly. It's worked for me on 200km+ days and on multi-day tours. Maybe the Lance Armstrongs/Mark Cavendishes of this world can benefit from that extra 1-2% which a custom bike fit can offer, To the rest of us, it's all a pretence.
Maybe the Lance Armstrongs/Mark Cavendishes of this world can benefit from that extra 1-2% which a custom bike fit can offer, To the rest of us, it's all a pretence.
Do your 'down-to-earth common sense ethics' prevent you selling carbon bikes to fatties and XTR to weekend warriors as well?
I'm a fat weekend warrior and have a 2 carbon bikes (the others are Ti) and XTR. It would be rather hypocritical of me not to make them available to customers.....
Why on earth shouldn't fat weekend warriors have carbon bikes with XTR and ti bling? Should only F1 drivers be allowed to buy Ferraris?
In the grand scheme of things, top-of-the-range bikes are actually quite cheap (compared for instance to buying a new Mondeo every 3 years, which some people seem to think perfectly normal).
To clear up any confusion as to what we do/don't charge for at Bike Science. Our bike buying process usually works along these lines...
Firstly, anyone buying a bike or considering buying a bike from us comes in for a 45 minute appointment. We use this time to talk about and advise on required spec, budget etc plus use an adjustable fitting jig to determine the most suitable frame size, bar width, cranks and stem. This service is free no matter whether the customer chooses to buy a bike or not. If 45 minutes isn't enough, we'll book further appointments as necessary. We prefer to use a jig rather than a real bike for this session as it allows more efficient changes of frame size, frame model, crank length and stem length and bars. It also means we don't need to keep 20 models of bike in stock in 4, 5 or maybe 6 sizes per model. We keep a number of test bikes in the most popular sizes so where possible customers can test ride the bike too. Each bike is built to order which is one of the big advantages of working with a company like Planet X.
If the customer decides to go ahead and buy a bike, we send the order up to Planet X and get the bike shipped in with the riders choice of spec. Once the bike arrives with us, the customer gets another free set up session on the bike. This session again takes around 45 minutes where we'll look at basic set up. Saddle height, saddle fore/aft, bar height, stem length again (and swap if needed), grip position. This is a fairly traditional "static" fit (although of course we'll watch the customer pedalling, we're not actually taking any accurate measurements of the pedal stroke).
If the customer wishes, they have the option to have our higher level Retul bike fit at half the usual price. This is a pretty involved process and looks at rider flexibility, detailed knee movement, uses a motion capture system to take rider movement measurements on the bike and match the bike to rider flexibility (and ability). For the majority of people buying a £1k bike and riding a relatively low mileage there's no real need to go into this level of detail and most just go for the free set up option. For riders either racing or riding big miles for recreation we can often help eliminate injuries and improve performance (we get a lot of LEJOG riders, long distance sportive riders an ironman triathletes coming for Retul fits for instance).
This is why I love STW and the modern bike industry. When it works it really works.
Someone comes on spouting I'll informed inflammatory outrage; some more people stoke it up a bit with wild assumptions and some conspiracy theory; some people who know what they are talking about are ignored, and then the actual companies being defamed come on and explain the reality. And of course the original posters aren't seen for dust.
Better than soap opera, better than real life. I'd like to thank you all. Looking forward to the next instalment.
On our BTW scheme (Somerset CC) we get 10% off list price 😀 (only at identified LBS - so couldn't get something that's not sold in county).
I love this thread!
bol +1 (and SBZ +2 too).
I don't really understand the OPs complaint
I take it the 10% fee is pointed out upfront and not added at some later point after you've committed?
So you know what the cost is, if it's too much, just take your business elsewhere