… what an example of how trendy cycling has become! Saw it for the first time on Saturday and wandered in. More staff than customers, the staff were young on-trend kids and the products (most of them) eye-wateringly expensive. Mrs Engineer was shocked/disgusted “How can these kids afford stuff like this?” and “who do these people think they are?” etc.

I tend to agree. I bought a new bike from Wheelbase in Staveley last week and I did wonder how these well spoken, terribly trendy young shop assistants could hope to buy any of the stuff in the shop, assuming that they earn not much more than minimum wage. I sort of half expect them to apologise for the price of stuff. But then again, I am on old, old, man who’s first wage was £5 5s a week!

Dunno. I’d rather see people on 10k road bikes than driving round in cars though. Its all good.

The bike room on Deansgate I presume?

Never been in (walked past after hours a few times though), but I’m guessing their target market isn’t kids….

The £10k dogma and and price obscured dogma with campag 80th anniversay gruppo in the window caught my eye though….

Traditionally, shop staff are there to sell products as opposed to buying them.

Not sure how this is any more shocking/disgusting than any other shop selling expensive things no-one really needs, like jewellery or sports cars. Wouldn’t necessarily expect staff at those kinds of places to be able to afford the products either.

At least the shop is providing jobs and giving you something else to look at other than identikit high-street clone stores.

I’ve not been in, as I suspect I’d be escorted off the premises. Oh… and all road bikes just look the same to me, no matter how utterly obscenely expensive they are

They should should just call it the ‘More Money Than Sense, Middle Aged Mid-life Crisis’ shop and have done with it. At least then their target market can have it signposted to them before they end up doing something really daft, and buying a Harley Davidson instead

Good point Binners, they could save a bob or two and combine the Pinarello, North Face, Dianese and Ducati shops.

Now now binners, if you and me had 10k spare we’d have one. I bloody would.

They had these weird tartan Pinarellos in the window last time I passed – would be like riding a picnic blanket.

That bit of Deansgate is mid-life crisis central. You’ve also got Richer Sounds and the Scientology Shop within a few yards.

Now now binners, if you and me had 10k spare we’d have one. I bloody would.

Nope. I really wouldn’t.

Why? If I could spend 10k on a bicycle then you also drive a 911 and a Rangerover sport

Hmmm on second thoughts. There are probably the odd STW’er whose bikes value exceed that and they live in a shared house/drive a £300 car.

Indeed. Its all just ‘stuff’ anyway, isn’t it? I think most people would rather have a bike worth 500 quid and use the cash to allow yourself more time to actually ride it.

I’d hazard a guess that those 10 grand bikes do piddlingly small distances per year

I wouldn’t worry to much about it, if you don’t like that posh shop just pop into Halfords and get a pinarello.

Oh and if you want one to look cool(jumping on the Sky band wagon) to go with your sky kit, be quick as the rumour is Sky is having a new bike sponsor.

Oh and if you want one to look cool(jumping on the Sky band wagon) to go with your sky kit, be quick as the rumour is Sky is having a new bike sponsor.

No it was confirmed a day or two ago that they’re sticking with Pinarello for another 3 years.

^ Sky announced new 3 deal with Pinarello a few days ago!

Beaten to it by Crazy Legs!

Sounds like a lot of inverted brand snobbery and sour grapes going on here…

Not by me, I ride one! 😉

The bike room on Deansgate I presume?

I went there last week! Was looking around for some new gloves was on my way to evans and saw that place so thought I’d pop in – I shall try not to be too inversely snobby about it. <edit> I added that bit before reading johnellison’s post 🙂

Negative point number 1 it’s a bike shop and there’s nowhere to lock my bike up outside, Doesn’t look like anywhere inside to put my bike either hmmm.

Very posh inside and yes I do feel scruffy and out of place, couple of flagship bikes out with acres of space around them, no pile of tyres or bargain basket of end of line clothing by the door and I don’t have to squeeze past customers bikes waiting to be picked up, not very LBS-ey at all.

Look around and spot some clothes wander over, there’s assos and that’s it. Not having a pile of fifties weighing my wallet down I ask the nice lady on reception if they do any more clothes, “yes the giordana range is downstairs”. Selling clothes by the range is a new one on me. Downstairs is more of the same but slightly cheaper, sure I saw a bike for under £2K. Turns out giordana do a triseason glove, it looked good but not what I was after that day so I left without purchasing anything.

Definitely seems more of a “lifestyle shop” than a bike shop, I assume that appeals to some. Nowhere to safely stash a bike is pretty bad for a bike shop IMO tho.

Really not sure what the orginal thread was trying to say, that the shop staff cannot afford the goods? That’s true of many, many things you purchase.

I wouldn’t purchase a bike of that price, but I can understand that people do. At least a bike doesn’t really have much of an on-going maintanence fee and can actually save you money if you use it regularly, as well as being a long term purchase.

I’ve never actually seen anyone in the shop in question. Noticed an espresso machine in the corner though. 🙂

I’d hazard a guess that those 10 grand bikes do piddlingly small distances per year

Not convinced. Go to a popular cycling cafe on a sunday and you’ll see a steady stream of £5000 plus superbikes, the majority of them ridden by people who look pretty sodding fit. I’ve no idea if they’re hitting 10000km/ year but there are a lot of people out there riding them.

Oh, and I’ve found roadies are a very fasion conscious lot. I discovered this when going on a holiday with a load of them to do a Grand Fondo and they were all on about latest clothing lines,colours and even going down to height of their socks! Very different from going on holiday with a bunch of mountain bikers.

Traildog – is that a wind-up? Seriously?

I probably expressed the original post badly. I tried to say that the staff in these shops act and talk as though it is normal to spend £5000 or so on a bike and £200 on a jacket or pair of shoes etc. It’s obvious that they are quite well off young (mainly) men. It’s not a criticism, it’s an observation and I freely admit that it’s probably because of my age and upbringing. And yes, I have spent more than is ‘normal’ on a bike several times and I like nice things but I feel as though I’ve earned it (although I always try to find bargains!). Still sounds trite.

I’m assuming that having failed at engineering, you’ve not pursued a career in sales.

Well, You’d be right. Although my job title is actually ‘Sales Manager’, I wouldn’t call it a career. I was too lazy and greedy to carry on in Engineering, something I now regret. Still, ‘Musn’t grumble’, eh?

they are there to sell the bike ffs, the last thing they are going to say to someone is “**** me mate….6k just the frame, you must be bonkers even looking at this”

Some loverly kit in that shop, shame all my money goes on coke and hookers

GarvinB – I’m not winding you up. Shoes particuarly were of interest, costing eye watering amounts and a limited edition set caused much excitment I rememeber. All the kit had to be matching colours, meaning lots of sets of overshoes. They were very excited when the associated trade show was opening and came back with a load of the latest clothing. It was like going on a shopping trip with a load of girls!

They were all very serious riders though and trying to earn the right to be in the fast elite group (i.e. banned ex-pros) for next year (which one of them managed).

When I see that Rapha leg shaving kit I now think of my roadie mates.

Mountain bikers I find are more interested in actual hardware, always talking about the latest suspension, disks, groupsets etc.

D0NK – Member
Definitely seems more of a “lifestyle shop” than a bike shop, I assume that appeals to some. Nowhere to safely stash a bike is pretty bad for a bike shop IMO tho.

Ever been to Chris Paulson’s in Rochdale?

I recived a very, very cool reaction when I actally had the cheek to ask if I could take a bike in with me.

Not been back since.

Not all

I’d hazard a guess that those 10 grand bikes do piddlingly small distances per year

A clubmate has a Ridley Fast with Record EPS and other assorted top end parts (over £10K). He rode the whole of the Tour De France route on it this summer, going round the day after the race.

You also see some similar bikes at vet road races.

PS. It doesn’t make you faster though 😀

The shop, the Pinarello shop, it ain’t marketed at you lot is it, it’s for folks with a few quid and a new/old hobby they love doing and can’t be arsed getting muddy.
Makes sense to me to have it there, big market for good bikes, you’ve got some amazing countryside and hills too, best go enjoy them on something spangly.

My whippet mate has a 65.1 and I don’t like it one bit, makes not a jot of difference to him that I don’t either. He still, and always has, kicked my arse into the gutter whatever bike he’s owned. Good on him I say. 😀

That place won’t last. No chance.

Traildog – I live and learn!

@failedengineer

I work in a “concept store” selling bikes ranging from £300 to £12,000

the guys who work in the store don’t earn much money, £16K a year including sales commission would be average

what the guys do is buy the entry-level, carbon fibre production road bike, strip the parts (sell them off on Ebay) and then transfer their existing groupset and wheels to the new frame

suddenly a £1200 bike becomes a very good quality ride, without spending silly money they cannot afford

I was surprised that we actually sold 9 x £12,000 bikes and over 30 x £4,000-£7,000 custom builds in the last trading year to paying customers 😉

Wonder how many of the smartly dressed well spoken Porsche sales guys drive 911’s ….

I wonder how many estate agents live in million pound houses….

@esher shore. I remember a couple who owned a bikeshop said they were poor before the win…even though she already owned 7 horses..

I did wonder how these well spoken, terribly trendy young shop assistants could hope to buy any of the stuff in the shop, assuming that they earn not much more than minimum wage.

in the bike industry you make approximately 80 percent markup on everything especially bikes

couple of hundred quid trade for a chinarello frogma

9800 quid markup

job done

Bollocks

It’s an odd one that shop on deansgate, however they are the distributors so it doubles as a warehouse/trendy showroom, so their point is reall attracting the sort of rich prick that parks his Bentley on deansgate and displays his purchased blue badge!

So all the best to them, some idiot has to feed the secondhand market!