Buying a Bike in the Winter
I'm looking to buy a new bike, and was hoping that this might be a sensible time of year to pick one up. I presume that bike retailers are not shifting so many bikes as winter draws in.
Has anyone had experience of seasonal changes in pricing?
I'm looking for a Specialized Roubaix Expert or Pro, and so far all I have found on the web is a few 2007 bikes with moderate discounts. My LBS won't discount, which is a pity.
If there is no real seasonal benefit from buying now, I might just wait until the spring and join the mad rush to buy at the same time as everybody else. After all, I wouldn't want to get a new bike all wet and muddy, would I?
Has anyone had experience of seasonal changes in pricing?
I'm looking for a Specialized Roubaix Expert or Pro, and so far all I have found on the web is a few 2007 bikes with moderate discounts. My LBS won't discount, which is a pity.
If there is no real seasonal benefit from buying now, I might just wait until the spring and join the mad rush to buy at the same time as everybody else. After all, I wouldn't want to get a new bike all wet and muddy, would I?
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October seems to be the best deal time, with new ranges generally launching.
Possibly, mid November is moving in to the Christmas market, which may be causing a reluctance to discount.
Oct 2006 saw a large sale on at Evans - Especially compared to this year - I wonder if some over-stocking took place at the big chains due to some seasonal glitch?
You've probably missed the discounts on Trek, as their new range has been out for at least a month now - My LBS had a lot of their old-season bikes on some good discounts.0 -
Thanks JW. You might be right - shops have no need to chase sales as December 25th draws near. I read today that a local LBS sells 1000 bikes a year, which shocked me. It's a lot more than I would have imagined, even allowing for some exaggeration. I wonder if the 'Cycle to Work' scheme is helping sales too, now that it is being more widely adopted.0
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Strewth! How big is the shop?!
That's 19 bicycles a week for 52 weeks! - If most people pick up on Saturday, that's one every half hour!!
I've found with bike shops, there are different approaches for each.
I use the one near the office - I never asked for a discount on the bike however the setup and attention to detail was fantastic. They've given me discount on parts and clothing since.
In fact, they spent so much time ensuring I had a good initial setup, that I felt too embarassed to ask for a discount! The setup made the world of difference.
When I bought 2x MTBs from a small chain, we got all the accessories thrown in.0 -
Yes, I much prefer dealing with my LBS, although to be fair I have bought a fair bit of clothing from the online retailers without any problems. I suppose we all have a tipping point though where the potential saving makes the risk of buying on the web worthwhile. That's where I came in with this thread, really - if I could get a big seasonal discount from elsewhere, I would grab probably grab it.0
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Oh - The point I was making really was that don't give up - just try a few different LBSs.
Ring around - Maybe a small local store has a "last year" bike hanging around looking for a home in the showroom, in the right size.
I just opened the front page of last week's Cycling Weekly...
www.jejamescycles.co.uk - Trek Madon 5.2 D 2006 - 2100 down to 1500
Bianchi, other Trek and Giant bikes on similar large discounts.
Oooh - and three Pinarelllos, and Looks too!0 -
You're right - that site does have some cracking discounts. Well spotted. I'll keep looking for the right deal on the right bike (for me).0
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My LBS is pretty good and a Specialized dealer too, Martin is very down to earth.
http://www.citycycleschichester.com/default.aspx0
