[Closed] We're opening a new shop - tell us about the services and products you want?

Make sure you can offer a good fitting service. General sizing is all well and good but being able to swap over stems etc (and know why) would be really useful.
And decent test rides are a must. I'm always surprised by the number of places that can't (won't) offer a good test ride yet expect you to pay a fortune on a bike.

get in a good line of clydesdale specific clothing and i will spend a small fortune with you......... 8)

Which area will the shop be in?

Friendly approachable knowledgeable staff with a good customer centric attitude, much more important that whatever brands of bike you stock...

Yeah where are you for a start ?

Should open up a specific Freeride section.....

Helicopter tape !

Along the same lines as i_am, it'd be good to show that you're happy to change parts on new bikes you sell to tailor the fit ie swapping the stem, saddle etc. Or taking it even further and allowing upgrades of brakes etc on stock models.

Get a good coffee machine.

Sweets on the counter.

Try and remember customers who frequent your shop.

Don't try and compete with Wiggle and CRC but dont take the pi$$ with prices.

Should open up a specific Freeride section.....

That wont work but a jey core gnarly XC is a must

Sorry IGMC

 

Please have an inept member of staff who can mess up on a regular basis. It will keep you in free publicity on this forum for years.

Good coffee.

Make the 25th phone call of the day as courteous as the 1st call of the day, & be as nice to the 25th walk-in customer of the day as the 1st.
Take a number / email address & take a couple of mins to email / text the customer to check their new bike is ok.

While coffee bars & cakes etc, can be all very nice, they can make places a little bit clique'y.
(Mammoth Cycles in Milford should take note. :?)

Can understand that having a fleet of test bikes is a big outlay for the shop, but what about some rollers, so that any bike in stock can at least be sized up, sat on & pedalled (in private - not in a busy shop) for a while.

I was very impressed with Islabikes when we visited recently. Within 5 mins our little ones were on their purpose built test track trying the bikes out. They offered a lot of good advice & we came away very happy with the service we received. They had an appointment system that meant we had the staff member's full attention for a good 15-20 mins.

Judging by the previous comments of the stwistas:

You need to let people bring in parts they've bought cheap off the web, fit them FOC & give them a free coffee (none of your intsant muc mind you, only fresh burr ground premiere beans) while they wait,
keep every possible part in all styles/colours/fittings and let people try them out for few days for nowt,
have a massive selection of tools for customer use,
and of course, don't forget to massage their egos and stoke their niches.

Just think of all the things you would want from a shop! Remember you cannot be ALL things to ALL STW Forum contributers!

Good quality stock that you would use! If a customer asks what do you ride/use/wear you need to be able to back it up.

Good stock levels.... If you stock it have have it IN stock.

Some choice but not over the top... So in bikes I would have 2-3 key brands and maybe 1 or 2 niche ones.

Good opening hours.... People like to drop their bikes before work for a service and pick them up after (sorry the joy of retail).

Good layout.... Dont try and cram in as much as you can!

And remember good service! And just because a 16 year old kid pestered you for weeks for info on that 3k bike doesnt mean that he might not one day walk in with his dad (who buys and sells Ferarris for a living) and buy not only the bike but ALL the kit to go with it.... True story that all the other guys in the shop told me I was wasting my time.

Yea Hilldodger just made a good point.

Let the customers use your tools!!! Unless they are in use of course.

Not sure where you are, but if you have a local club/riding area have a 'membership' club with them (say 10%).

You can't compete with CRC etc on price, but you have to on service - if they can deliver within 24/48 hours, then you need to - obviously where required.

Plus don't scare the 'no-bikers', be prepared to put in a new tube for £5-£10 on any wheel, and fix Apollo's...

As for specialist stuff, concentrate on a couple of manufacturers, and carry their range, e.g.
Hope for brakes/wheels/headsets/BB/lights
Easton for bars/stems/seatposts
SDG for seats/seatposts

But you also need to sell basic items for those that just need something for their BSO's.

Have you workshop area behind the sales counter, so they can see you fixing, and you can see them browsing plus can talk without stopping the 'job'.

Sell Singletrack?

Somewhere safe for people to park their bikes when/if they come to you?

oh and Bloody Good luck!!!

Where are you going to be?

how quickly can you change the bearings on a kona??

hilldodger +1

Loads of good ideas above
also - Your service and repair pricing - put it on a list and on display - Keep away from the 'step's back / rubs chin and inhales' approach to giving a customer a quote for the work they want.

Also - take care in capturing details, phone, e-mail etc - make sure your forms state it may be used for contact other than ref the job in hand, and be sure there is an 'opt out' option.
Database the info and e-mail when appropriate - anniversary of bike purchase 'is your due a service', discount vouchers around crimbo, birthdays (if you capture that), offers on the anniversaries of your shop opening etc... little things make the difference

I'm guessing you'll not be able to compete with the big boys so whey not stock something different? Everyone has Giro and Specialized lids. Maybe stock stuff from Bell and MET.

Lake shoes instead of the two big S brands.

Can you tell I'm struggling to get a new lid and some new winter shoes.

1. EASY cycle parking...
I know its not always practical, but so many cycles shops have no/poor parking for bikes.

2. EASY cycle access...
If at all posbile make it really easy to wheel the bike in to the shop. Getting a bike through a swing door into a crapmed shop would/has put me off using a shop.

3. Dont make me feel like I'm shop lifting...
I understand this is difficult to achieve, but if I feel comfortable in a shop then I'm likely to stay longer and buy more. I like to browse for a long time, maybe an hour say. If I feel like everyone thinks I'm a shop lifter I'll leave, browse on the internet and buy from wiggle instead.

Good luck in the new venture, where is the shop going to be based?

And if you sell something, understand how it works plus pros/cons.

Stans kits come to mind here...

If you decide to offer a club discount, don't make the members of that club feel awkward by having to ask for the discount each time they pop in. At the other end of the scale, we have another shop that will give the discount as a matter of course without being prompted.

If a customer has left something for repair, and are waiting for parts, keep them updated. It may be Shimano causing the hold up, but its still nice to be told each time the delivery estimate gets pushed out, rather than ringing for five weeks in a row, only each time to be told that actually the bits still haven't turned up 👿

Friendly approachable staff who are KNOWLEDGEABLE.

I went in my LBS the other weekend, to be confronted by a surly mechanic. All I wanted was some sintered hope mono mini pads. They didnt stock Hope, but had EBC. I had to go behind the counter and pick the ones I needed as he could not work out which were sintered or organic.

I just don't get the coffee in a bike shop thing, I want bike shop not a coffee shop.

I want clothes and shoes to try on (I am tall with strange feet so I like to buy these things from my LBS), I want a good range of spares that I will need last minute (tubes, brake pads, chains, tyres, etc.), I want good, impartial advice on stuff (knowledgeable staff) and I want enough bling to keep me coming back and possibly make me make the odd snap purchase. A good workshop is a must, ideally with a mechanic who will show you how something is done if he is quiet enough to give you the time.

Finally, I want it to be open late on at least 1 week night and on Sundays, a lot of people work days during the week so being open until 8pm some nights will mean I will pop in and spend my money there rather than Halfords. Sundays mean I will go there instead of being dragged around Tesco by my girlfriend. This could be tied in with regular group rides as well, that would seem like a good way to get people associated to the shop.

Sell stuff that is easy to store, doesn't go out of date and has a nice high profit margin. That way, you'll be a profitable and succesful shop.

So,
Tyre levers
Inner tubes
Puncture repair kits
etc.

DO NOT MAKE EMPTY PROMISES (or threats even), and remember we your customers are always always always always right!! Bet ya thinking I've had some rubbish treatment from LBSs in my time? I have and I' sure plenty here have too. Hope that's a start for you guys...

Add value. A bike shop could just be a shop that sells bikes, or it could be everything everyone up there has said. You find your place between those two points and be comfortable with it. What do you two do well? Work on your own strengths - you'll do best at your own strengths. Perhaps work out local rides from the shop and lead them? Give people a reason to come to you. Good parking always helps too.

Thanks all, keep the ideas rolling!!

It's really interesting to hear the comments....some great, fundamental customer needs that we've been trying to address in the shop(s) that we work in p/t......but, how can you suggest to a sailor how to run his bike shop?!!?!?

Don't really want to give too much away location wise until we've confirmed the location with all suppliers, but will update when we know more.

Kona bearings, hmmm

hilldodger - Premier Member

and stoke their niches.

I think you'll find you need a different shop usage licence for that type of thing 😯

I like my LBS because i can walk in and pick their brains without feeling they are trying to sell to me all the time and the staff there really know their stuff (even the part timers). The only gripes are that, even after being a regular customer of theirs for 2+ years (since i started riding again) including riding all the time with the club they have a link with i still have to ask for a 10% discount where as the other bike shop in town which i go in to from time to time give it automatically 🙄 .

Also if you have to order a part in know before you quote a timescale when its likely to be in. Otherwise your creating a false expectation which leaves the customer feeling let down when it hasn't arrived when you say it will. If its going to take 2 weeks to arrive then tell me, don't say it will be a couple of days and then act surprised when I'm annoyed its not in after 5 days 🙁

Oh and Ton what do you mean by Clydesdale specific clothes 😕

A good range of women specific clothes and not just Altura/Endura. You'll have the ladies flocking from miles around as the usual selection at most shops is pish!

my expectations of shop staff:
- if you don't know about something say so or ask someone else, don't make it up or try and sell me something I don't want, I won't come back
- have an intelligent and convincing armoury of responses to all those - 'I can get it on CRC for £10 less' questions

things I buy in bike shops (stuff I need in a hurry or stuff I need to try before I buy)
- tyres - I hate buying tyres online as you don't get a good impression of volume, the profile of the tyre, and opinion is subjective
- inner tubes - you may be able to get a job-lot of 10,000 specialized tubes for 50p a pop, but provide an alternative that doesn't cost a tenner
- clothes, particularly gloves and tops, lots of choice of tops, Fox ones (!)
- contact points = grips and saddles in particular - stuff that people want to touch and feel rather than just buying blind

Under promise/over deliver. There's nothing worse than a shop that tries to please the customer by telling them it'll be done by tomorrow when it won't be ready.

He means cycle clothing for real sized men - not the 'malnourished Italian waif' that most shops carry. Twin 6 in XXL might be a start.

If you pay peanuts you get monkeys is very true. If you are going to employ staff pay them a good wage so that you can then expect top quality service from them. Paying minimum wages, or just above, will get you the surly "can't be arsed" type. Not good for your reputation.

My LBS uses YTS types. I went in for some XT chainrings, and despite there being over 100 bikes on display they didn't know what I was on about. After some time they offered to order some for me. "2 weeks wait - give us a ring to see if they've arrived". CRC had them to me next day.

Don't do things on the cheap - it shows.

scruzer said "and remember we your customers are always always always always right!!"

Not True..... you must remember that the customer is only right when they are right.

Offering Honest good service is key.... and eating humble pie if you need to.

There's a chap on this forum who's apparently good at 'tuning' frames! - how about employing him?

For further down the road when you're rich and successful:

I'd love my LBS to work with the CTC to provide an evening course once in a while where you could learn to do stuff on your bike. Or charge a fee for use of the workshop (with a decent deposit for broken bits)!

Secure customer bike parking and access for bikes through the shop to the workshop is a good one. Those two really used to annoy me when I <cough> used to actually shop at a shop </cough>

Offer a "free bike check" kinda lie quickfits "free brake check"

customer wheels BSO in

You check it, determine all the crap thats wrong, and then charge to fix it. Youd spend all day fiddlign with BSO's but itd sort out all the brakeless wonders chained up outside the coop.

Dont open on Sundays. Sunday is for riding. Anyone who wants a decent bike shop as above should realise this.

I used to work in a large independent shop. It closed Sundays and Mondays. When it opened every day, you just took the same amount through the till over more days and pissed off all the staff who used to enjoy riding/racing at weekend.

If people know you're closed, they will come when you're open.

Good luck.

mccett, I’m not sure I agree. I know Sundays is for riding, that is why when I realise I have no brake pads left at 9am Sunday morning I want to be able to get hold of some. I know you would rather be riding during the day Sunday but as a shop, if people want to spend money at this time, you have to be open. Even a half day Sunday, say 9am until 12pm would be fine, just enough time for those who are riding to dive in, get what they need and get out whilst still letting the staff have the afternoon off.

Good displays. Not just the branded cabinets with the Hope range, but for things like stems, saddles, grips etc, nothing worse than goin in looking for something and wanting to look at your options and you end up standing around trying not to get in the way while they cart things about from the back of the shop! Display prices of all displayed items!

Good luck!

ditto, if a shop isnt open Sunday (or whichever day I want a part) I'll jost go on CRC and get it the next morning (or Tuesday in the case of Sundays)

thread stop compound [ see halfrauds thread ]

be honest with your customers. the reasons i no longer use local bike shops is the lies that i got told over ordering rims.

"we will find out and call you back this afternoon" repeatedly

"none in the country trying to source form the eu"

then how come somone else bought them from the uk dist and got them to me that week. they obviously never heard of the internet!

Maybe, i only have experience of the shop i used to work in (now a roadie bling haven for toffs in South Manchester) and my current Lbs where all the decent staff from previous shop went to work once they got sick of the way said roadie shop was run.

I know that all the mtb customers from first shop all now go to my lbs and are quite happy its shut on sunday. Maybe they are just more prepared and check their pads the night before! 🙂

Plus you will have enough late nights and other stuff to be doing getting it up and running, give yourself a day off dude.

Open sesnible hours that suit your customers, not those that suit the general shop hours - what use is a shop that closes at 17:30 when most people are finishing work around then, maybe try 11:00 to 19:00?

If you say a job will take 3 days make sure it takes 3 days and the bike is ready to be collected when agreed, if not let the customer know at least a day before hand.

If you say you're going to check something and don't, ensure you tell the customer you didn't and give a valid reason.

Think about the layout and lighting (effective merchandising) as most LBS's are pretty dark inside, not clever if you're trying to sell things.

If you have the capability get a little online shop going.

Stock low end parts for everyday people who want their work bike sorting quick, not just good quality MTB stuff.

Put a track pump on a chain outside the door, fekkin great idea for commuters.

If you open on Saturday close on wednesday, or you'll never have enought time to yourself.

Know your local area well to give riding tips. And stock maps!
If there aren't many clubs nearby think about arranging some shop rides.
Think about arranging a demo day once/twice a year and try and entice your suppliers to bring along multiple demo bikes.

All of the above but most importantly, have some decent stock and be nice. I had one too many "big-I-am" comments from a guy in my LBS, I just stopped bothering. Went back a few weeks ago, he'd gone, had a nice chat with another fella and what do you know, I'm a customer again.

Decide how you are going to make money.
Selling loads of stuff at keen prices? you need a web site, but you're up against CRC and Wiggle.

Think about the relationships that you need to develop with your customers; I've got at least 30 decent bike shops within 30 miles of my house, what makes me spend money in the ones I spend in?

The nearest is well stocked, has a web/mail order side, has extremely knowledgable staff, ones a world champ... but it's not my first choice.

My first choice is a 30 mile round trip, no web presence to speak of, no world champs, yet I'd go there and pay more for something rather than use the web.

The second shop also led, indirectly, to me leaving home for a short while... long story, lady involved, need to know basis...

But I went and dropped £2000 on a road bike there without a problem, and my mates now go even though it's farther for them than me...

Service & repair Zocchi forks. You will make a killing as you know thay ALWAYS break!! 😉

Smile anmd have a joke.

Look as if you actually ride a bike,

Stock a few things like Irons, Hairdryers, Vacum Cleaners etc, for when the Wife comes in with me.

A sofa.

Transparent pricing - displayed price lists are good for this.

Open for 2 hours on Sunday morning (9-11) to capture those who have forgotten to buy brake pads, lube, tubes, whatever the day before.

Evening activities - say, showing an MTB film - every month.

Deciding who your market is.

First off excellent question.

What I'd like is to know where I stand on help with a build and how you feel about fitting parts else where, new or second hand.

I'm not expecting charity I'm looking for a service I pay for. But I'm also not looking for sulky looks. The reality is lots of your customers will by online for less. You might as well get the trade fitting
stuff. Servicing is hardest for online to compete on so push that

A leaflet on your service suff would be great. Perhaps with prices to do jobs, like fitting forks, but different prices for forks sold by you and prices forks supplied by the customer

You might put together some service packages. eg All new cables, wheel check etc for a flat fee. This is common in American shops

Spell out what your providing when you sell a bike.

Buy here and get say sizing help, swap of saddle stem etc. on difference in cost, service after 6 weeks. Point out that you don'get this online

Having moved to an area that is inundated with shops, 3 within a mile here's some advice.

Follow up requests...... i.e. Can you get a .........? How much will it cost? Call the customer back. I have never returned to a shop who sait they'll look into something and never did. The shop that did, got my business.

Remember to tell the customer what you can order in. You may not stock an "x" but can get it, let the customer know you can. If a customer "orders an item" get them to pay in advance, but give them a discount. You have a guarenteed sale with no "in stock cost". Your margin can take a small cut.

Remember one upset customer will tell more people than a happy one. Imagine you are on the other side of the counter. Look after your staff, pay, product and training. Sell them stuff at cost it's free advertising.

Build loyality by stocking what customers use, people will return if you stand and have a chat, don't be afraid to. Get out on the floor yourself, work it. Have a workshop that allows interaction.

I think that spotlessly clean company vehicles & a neatly mowed lawn are essential.

Joking aside, you'll never compete with the big online guys on price, so make sure you offer the best service in the area. A good mechanic & an efficient workshop booking-in procedure with fast turn around is very important. If you have to order stuff in for people, make sure you do it quickly.
If you offer good advice & can get things fast then customers will likely pay a little more to support their LBS, rather than go to CRC. There's nothing worse than waiting an age for something that could be delivered next day if you bought it elsewhere.

Good luck mate!

Also if you have to order a part in know before you quote a timescale when its likely to be in. Otherwise your creating a false expectation which leaves the customer feeling let down when it hasn't arrived when you say it will. If its going to take 2 weeks to arrive then tell me, don't say it will be a couple of days and then act surprised when I'm annoyed its not in after 5 days

to provide an evening course once in a while where you could learn to do stuff on your bike. Or charge a fee for use of the workshop (with a decent deposit for broken bits)!

Good displays. Not just the branded cabinets with the Hope range, but for things like stems, saddles, grips etc,

Dont open on Sundays. Sunday is for riding

If you say a job will take 3 days make sure it takes 3 days and the bike is ready to be collected when agreed, if not let the customer know at least a day before hand.

Good luck guys 😀

I am sure you know that bling is good to look at but not a seller.
How many Hope/CK headsets will you vs affordable Cane Creek for example.
I reckon the bike industry is about to go the same way as the car industry, back to basics.

Reciprocity - if I come in and I treat you with polite respect, just do the same. I don't need you to be my best mate, nor do I want to have to buy you biscuits so you don't look down your nose at me. I will buy unfashionable and non niche items alongside shiney things, and when doing this I would just like to be treated with some basic manners. Do this and you would find I am a repeat customer.

Always have the basics in stock. Set up your eftpos program to have a good re-order level for the obvious stuff... Tubes, patches, co2 carts, energy powders, energy gels.. and the obvious spare parts.. mech hangers for ALL the bikes you sell, bar tape, brake bleed kits, pads..
All the stuff that someone will be frantically needing at the last minute you've got to have. These are the staples and the bits that folks will remember you for.
Don't open Sunday, even for a couple of hours. Pissing off your staff to hang around in a mostly empty shop won't make you friends. Opening late one day a week will net you more money, and cost you less in staff time. If you do open late, post a big sign on the door so people know it.
Advertise. I've worked in some very niche shops who expected people to just walk through the door. Make it directed so you don't waste money. Hitting large local employers with cycle scheme advertisements would be good. That's the kind of thing that generates repeat business and good word of mouth.
After a year or 2 when old stuff starts to accumulate, be ruthless in clearing it out. Open an ebay shop. Don't let the old stuff use up the space you have, and if it ain't shifting then don't fret about selling it at a loss. If you don't sell it now, you'll only have to sell it at a greater loss later. Keep your stock as low as possible while retaining what you want to sell. That way you will stay profitable rather than getting drowned in stock.
In servicing have a clear price structure, and make sure it reflects the real costs of doing a job. Produce service reports on jobs, noting parts that may be due for replacement, and make sure your eftpos program keeps a record of these. Never offer a discount on labour. It's the largest drain on your profit so sell it for what it's worth.

honest
dependable
approachable
product knowledge
skiled mechanics

get that bit right and even if you are more expensive than online you will get me to part with my cash (and maybe beers at christmas time) 🙂

Don't know what the problem with Sunday opening is. My LBS in Bath opens on Sunday nowadays, is always busy all day, right up to closing time at 4pm, Sean will then usually go for a ride with various customers, and he'll take a day off during the week and thrash the FoD or the Welsh trail centres, sometimes with customers testing bikes, sometimes testing bikes himself. There will usually be a couple of weekend staff in on Sunday as well. What's wrong with that set-up?
Perfect way to operate a bike shop. I can pop in and borrow a bike for a day or so to test if I want, and that goes for other customers. John's Bikes in Bath is about as good a bike shop as you can get, IMHO, and sets the standard to follow.

Decent selection of women's kit - ideally not all in pale blue/pink, if you can find manufacturers who understand this concept.

Depending on where the shop is, maybe do 2 shifts on a Sunday and have a long lunchbreak, so that people who want to buy stuff on the way back from their rides can; obviously that depends on staff and trading laws, but it would be nice not to have to finish a ride early if I want to get to a bike shop on the way home.

Put on shop organised rides for customers. Our LBS runs a fast ride on Tuesdays, a beginner/intermediate ride on Wednesdays, semi- organised one on Sunday mornings and a road chain on Fridays. Numbers for Wednesdays can reach 50+ regularly and 10-20 on Tuesdays. Nearly all will use that shop when they need stuff and it creates a 'scene' locally. Also means you get to ride loads if you do the guiding. Minimal organisation required (just regular meet time and place). Gets new potential customers/beginners into riding too as they get to ride good trails with a group with the associated banter and technical backup from day one.

Works here anyway 🙂

+1 for what bikewhisperer says ^^.

One more comment about stock - know exactly what you have in, whats on order and when it's due. Nothing looks more amateur than someone scrolling through a computer screen or a ledger then saying "yeah, we should have it" and going off on a fruitless hunt for 15 mins only to find it in the window display then not be able to find the box for it or the associated extras that it comes with (ie lights on display, where's the charger, manuals, mounts etc?)
It comes down to being scrupulously, anally tidy about where you put things. Sort of efficiency OCD...

Remeber it's a business first and foremost loving bikes and cycling makes it harder not easier. The more stock you have the more start up capital you have to find. Bling will turn slower than small consumables so your working capital is tied up for longer before it becomes cash. Cash pays the bills not profit. Basics right like workshop and spares

Forget the cappucino and cake unless you want to open a cafe.

Mystery shop a few well regarded LBS and get an impression on what it is they're doing well. Also, didn't notice it in posts above, do whatever is required to be a cycle to work scheme stockist. Then see if there's links to be made with large local employers- council, unis, hospitals etc. LBS near where I work does bike checks during 'travel to work' differently week and the like. You don't just need the right 'offer' you need to get the customers

I don't think you will have a good business model using the STW type as your target customer.

People that are really into there bikes and gear tend to know what they want, where to get it
cheaply, quickly, and fit it themselves. Its impossible to stock all things for all people.

I think you would do better looking to the growing commuter crowds who would take a new
rech mech, wheel or tyre at a good price and not care to much about the brand.

basics = range of consumables, spares, knowledgeable staff, pricing and margins. service the community's need for bike caee too.

For some reason this wouldn't go in last post. Joys of a pda!

Okay so here are my observations having worked and shopped in various bike shops over the years.

1. Pimpery is all very good but dont forget the basics, loose bearing nuts bolts that type of thing, as i recall i think Raleigh sell a good starter set for trade, these parts can be used on all types of bikes right from the bso up to the most niche of bikes.

2. Remember that bike repairs are one of the highest profit margin of anything else you do and that doenst include the parts that go with them. Dont turn your nose up at BSO's perhaps even offer a christmas assembly service at a set price.

3. 9-5 Forget it, you wont see many shoppers before 10 or even 11 most week days and youll see many more after 5 after they finish work.

For me a recent visit (and then repeated visits) to Coventry Cycle Centre on Far Gosford Street in Coventry encompasses what I like about a bike shop. Like a kid walking into a candy shop-a good wide selection of not just top end toys/parts but all the necessary bits and bobs even down to bulk bought chains not in boxes at a slightly reduced price. If it kit like that that a rider needs before the weekend or midweek ride and you have it a a near compettative price to the internet alot of people will buy from you and not bother going home logging on and waiting for two days or postponing that weekends ride.
Folding tyres-so many shops seem to stock a limited amount of folding rubber, have as varied a range as possible from suppliers ie not the Standard Conti/Panaracer folders but perhaps some WTB/Maxxis and for all disciplines not just XC/commuting.
The most important thing is great knowledgeable staff who are all riders/ex riders and who dont have an up their own arse attitude. If you can go take a look at the shop I have mentioned and see what you think.

I suppose it all depends on your location and what kind of customers you want to attract but...

Know your sh*t

read the magazines and know what the current trends are. stock up on lots of Shimano stuff... and be prepared for lots of boring fixes like brake cables and gear alignments. And watch out for people who come in with worn drivetrains that don't work with new chains. the number of people who go into a bike shop with a broken chain and then complain when you tell them the whole drive train needs replacing... what do they expect? maybe offer a cheap "complete drivetrain replacement" package to suit people with no knowledge, and maybe an information leaflet explaining why they need to change their chain once in a while.

Don't try and compete with Wiggle and CRC but dont take the pi$$ with prices.

Also, have the small stuff like individual chainring bolts - not just sets of 4/5/6 fancy ones. If we can trust you with the small stuff, we'll trust you with the bigger stuff.

We need to be able to trust you with our friends that don't know about bikes. I've sent 10 friends over the last few years to one particular shop because each time they have come out with exactly the right bike for them at the price that person could afford (IMHO) rather than a bike that was a little bit more than they could afford but was good for the shop. Sending my friends there reflects on me as well as you.

Finally - make a profit. We want you to be around rather than bitter and grumpy in 5 yrs. Profit isn't all bad and can mean a nicer shop for us to hang around in 🙂

somewhere to park you bike is a great idea. I used to cycle to the local bike store, then when I got there had to lean it up against a load of crap and have people squeeze past.

Hire serious riders who are passionate about the sport. Treat them well, help them feel like riders not shop assistants by ensuring they are immersed in the local riding scene at grass roots, not just the race scene.

The weekend is for riding. If you open on Sundays your staff will hate you and treat customers accordingly. You'll end up losing customers and staff. Have limited Saturday opening so you and your staff can get out and meet customers in their natural habitat or at least have some part timers who can cover saturdays - the real riders won't darken you door over the weekend.

Have demo days.

As others have said, have a good range of consumables. Stock some mainstream brand bikes but don't forget the niche stuff - people will come to your store just to look at a bike they haven't seen in the metal and will probably buy something.

Create a vibe, a good mood. Make sure it is relaxed. Have a sofa and some flat screens. Allow your staff the freedom to talk and relax with customers. Keep any admin or managerial staff off the shop floor - they kill the atmosphere of a bikeshop for the customer.

Never make a promise you cant keep. Don't order something and lie about the arrival date. The customer will not be back.

Hire the best mechanic around and treat him well - he will ensure a loyal customer base for service work.

Keep a good range of clothing and protection.

Sometimes it's worth having a superior product with an inferior margin rather than an inferior project with a better margin.

And forget coffee. Beer is where it's at.