LBS - Best service and price

FSR_XC

I bought a MTB 7 months ago from my LBS - Certini in Saltash (Plymouth).

Their service has been absolutely excellent. Whenever my bike goes in to them, I get a loan bike (normally worth a fair bit more than mine too), they will always try to help and I have always got as good a price from them as anywhere else.

Yesterday, I popped in on the way back from a ride. I have been looking at a Garmin 305 Forerunner and currently Halfords have them on sale for £129. I suggested he price matched it. No problem.

In fact THEY WILL PRICEMATCH ANY ITEM if asked to do so. This includes special offers from the likes of Wiggle & Chain Reaction.

Is there a better LBS?

andy-mchugh

not mine!
i now travel 60 mile round trip for btr service
and its worth it n my opinion! sumtimes its nice wen u can just have a chat to the staff

teacherman

Not in my experience! You're onto a good thing there fella!

Like with most small businesses they survive on repeat custom. Wish more had a 'bend over backwards' attitude like that.

stumpyjon

Mine's pretty good, did a full service on my Fox forks for £ 40 including the TALAS side and priced matched wiggle for my helmet and and boots before I even asked (as soon as the guy serving me realised I was likely to buy he automaticaly offered me 10% off).

Surprisingly enough I'd recommend RIDE ON in Rawtenstall.

Anonymous

ah, well, i think the award for top shop goes to abbey cycles in liverpool. Ste is a Thoroughly nice chap and i got a steal of bargan from him for my willow. he threw in nearly100 quids worth of stuff too plus he knocked loads of money of the bike in the first place, even seling it to me for 100 quid less than i told him i was prepared to spend.

even my wife enjoyed the shopping as ste's mrs was lovely and kept her entertained.

jacktheoc

sounds good, i have to travel about 25 miles eachway to get to a good bike shop near me (bikescene) very happy with there service..

ddraver

NO Certini are the absoloue daddy of bike shops, you are, I was very lucky to have such a superb shop nearby, I'm in North wales now and you would not have thought given the amount of MTB ing between the two locations that i would be struggling to find a decent LBS,

I absoloutly love em, never once have i had a bad job done there and (all bar one) are very friendly when i ask innane questions with no potential for them to make money

They re legends

Will Snow

hmmm... i used to love my bike shop, spent bout £600 in 6 months (alot for me, im a student). then the old senile guy who owns it took my sister for a trip when she went in and ripped her off, coz she doesnt know squat basically... so i took back £6 worth of stuff...andpromptly got banned. yup, banned from me lbs.

Chaka Ping

FSR-XC - Your LBS sounds marvellous, I've never even heard of loan bikes being offered before - so I hope thy're doing good business as a result of their niceness.

My local-est bike shop is a bit of a rip-off merchant, but my second closest - Cycledealia in Broxbourne, Herts - provides excellent service and Paul there has been willing to talk me out of a sale if he doesn't rate the item concerned.

Also when Madison didn't deliver the new drivechain bits I'd ordered in time, they grabbed higher spec bits off a stock bike and gave me a discount.

benneally

Takes me about 15 mins to cycle to my lbs...which happens to be Rutland Cycling.
www.rutlandcycling.co.uk
Really good service, price matching and nice guys!

milese

Certini are round the corner from me, and yes they are very good, I feel a bit bad because I nearly bought a road bike from them, test rode it, found my size etc, then bought the same bike online for £110 less. Did it with my stumpy as well, borrowed their demo bike, loved it, but just as I was ready to part with my cash they sold there last 2007 sale bike, and I bought one off ebay.

I phoned them once asking for a price match on a bike I bought my misses, he said he wont price match as its not worth the trouble for them and that mail order can be cheaper because you know you wont have to worry about it ever again, but can give me a good discount. I gave him my number, he was going to call back with stock availability, but I never heard anything so I got it from the cheaper online place.

My Dad has spent a fair bit of cash up there and he swears by them, always give him discounts.

The Big Cheese

My guy focuses more on BMX and Dirt jump bikes (huge demand around here for that kind of riding - he comes from a Moto X background ans still races)

Although I have bought a few things from him I use him mainly for mechanical stuff that I don't have the tools for (headset press - steerer cutting - frame facing etc)

He can order stuff in but he's fully aware that I can get it from say CRC or wherever and it doesnt bother him at all.

He makes all of his money from BMXs etc and his workshop skills!

It's a tiny little shop also and the only thing that sometimes is a problem is his lack of niche' tools such as 1.5" star nut tools etc

But I can live with that and when needed he buys them - I guess it's demand!

videoman

The three local well known bike shops in the area where I used to live (Stoke on Trent) almost choke if you even dare to suggest discounts and usually act as if they are doing you a big favour by letting you frequent their shop.

f1fan111

My fav bike shop is in middle of Leicester called The Bike Park its in the middle of town which can be a pain but you can cycle to work take bike in there park it allday also use showers and lockers.

I have had my old mountain bike fixed there also go there for parts. Have given me a few bits for free and some stunt pegs for BMX for £5 as was off another bike or something. Recently got some stuff there mainly my new front light which they spoke to me about first and i am glad i got it.

Wish i could find a shop like that in Isle of Man where i live now

Vegeeta

I love my local bike shop... Evolution Cycles in Eastbourne. I don't go there much now because I work in Brighton which is basically a massive trek in the other direction, but it's still the best!

steedmaster

MILESE....

you are a local businesses nightmare, using this shop certini to test ride and find the size you need then buying elsewhere...... people like you make me sick we all like a deal but you sre the reason many small shops are going out of business, you miss them when theyre not there !!!!!

in terms of asking for price matching over the phone everyone knows thats a bad move, im in the trade myself and most shops dont like to quote discount over the phone (particularly on bike and especially on spesh) because they dont like dealers doing this and a few have been caught out.

always go into the shop in question get chatting to the guys and talk a deal face to face you will get much further than calling on the phone i garuntee

Vegeeta

And stop being so tight!

woodywmb

Check out www.walkerscycling.co.uk

The shop is run by cyclists who also head up our cycling club (MTB, cyclo-cross, road).
I hired a road bike to test for a day and brought it back to be told: 'no charge'. I spent the fee on buying gear. The shops offers everything a cyclist could need, even a van to get us to rides.

milese

steedmaster wrote:

MILESE....

you are a local businesses nightmare, using this shop certini to test ride and find the size you need then buying elsewhere...... people like you make me sick we all like a deal but you sre the reason many small shops are going out of business, you miss them when theyre not there !!!!!

in terms of asking for price matching over the phone everyone knows thats a bad move, im in the trade myself and most shops dont like to quote discount over the phone (particularly on bike and especially on spesh) because they dont like dealers doing this and a few have been caught out.

always go into the shop in question get chatting to the guys and talk a deal face to face you will get much further than calling on the phone i garuntee

You dont have to tell me, but money talks and I'm skint.

Certini aren't a small shop, and they'll definately make more money out of me from other things I buy than I cost them by taking 5 minutes of there time and riding their bike. If anything by going to see them, and seeing what an excellent service they offer, I'll go back and buy more stuff.

I would have gone there in person but it was a my misses birthday present, and I didn't have time. It was a Giant btw, but I've also heard that about Spesh being strict on discounts, doesn't stop people offering them though.

Father Faff

In general it would be hard for a LBS to march on-line prices and not really fair to ask them. People should recognise the extra value an LBS can offer such as letting you test ride bikes, giving you a free first service (or two), doing little fixes and jobs for nothing, lending you a bike/parts when you break something that needs ordering to keep you on the road, measuring you up for your bike, advising on setting up suspension etc, having a good natter, local knowledge and cycle rides, the list goes on. And here's a vote for my LBS too, JD Cycles of Ilkley.

GMARS70970

Definately Walkers cycling in Kilmaurs. Been using them for a few years now. Just recently bought a new full suss Cube stereo from them.
Always helpfull and always manage to fit your repair work in so your bikes ready when you need it!

allthegearnoidea

My local shop is Bikechain (or ricci.com), they are fantastic! havent needed a great deal of late so havent been in but will be again shortly (for a new helmet!!), only trouble with them is that you spend Far more than you intended but come out with a hell of a lot more!
when i bought the wife her new bike, bike was basic and simple as she doesnt ride a lot, got a nice deal that gave a saddle a helmet and a hydration pack and still paid less than the asking price!
got many a silly deal ofver the years of them! they come seriously recommended! first class service and advice and a lot of humour too!

Matteeboy

Hmmm - I really don't like Ricci. Found them very patronising and they really dissed Specialied stuff (they don't sell it but no need to bad mouth it).

Not quite sure why they were like that but I was looking to spend over a grand.

I use Clive Mitchell in Truro - I think they are pretty good overall. Certini sound even better but CM is right on our daily cycle route.

Good points:

Very good technically. Decent range of kit and brands. Always explain everything carefully. Often tweak stuff for free.

Bad points:

Sold us a Globe IG8 hub geared hybrid telling us "it has the same gear range as a 21 speed MTB" It doesn't. The gear range is dire and the lowest gear is way too high for any half decent hill. The brakes are also poor. Not useful for almost £500. I going to see if they will sort it though - I think they might. I get tempted into spending way too much there!

vtech1.5

Best bike shop around Chelmsford area, good advice and great service
and may not be as cheap as chainreaction etc but if you ask its never
that far off and less hassle !
Gave me a real good deal on my new bike :P wouldn't have got any cheaper
mail order

vtech1.5

Chelmer cycles that is ! oops

GHill

I've not been impressed with my LBS (I'm not going to name and shame, just in case it was a one off). I went in specifically to look at what they had as a trail bike between £1500-2000, wandered around for probably about 30 mins before someone came out from behind the computer to see if I needed any help.

I asked what price various models of a bike I liked (Orange 5) were and he didn't know. I asked if he could find out. He came back 5 mins later and said "Sorry, can't find the price list".

I asked if I could have some sort of demo ride and was replied that they didn't have any demo bikes, but that I could sit on the bike in the shop if I wanted.

At that point I made some excuses and left, they'll have to do better than that if they want my custom - £2000 is not a small chunk of change in my book and I'll be looking for other stockists in the area.

Sorry, mini-rant over.

Matteeboy

steedmaster wrote:

MILESE....

you are a local businesses nightmare, using this shop certini to test ride and find the size you need then buying elsewhere...... people like you make me sick we all like a deal but you sre the reason many small shops are going out of business, you miss them when theyre not there !!!!!

in terms of asking for price matching over the phone everyone knows thats a bad move, im in the trade myself and most shops dont like to quote discount over the phone (particularly on bike and especially on spesh) because they dont like dealers doing this and a few have been caught out.

always go into the shop in question get chatting to the guys and talk a deal face to face you will get much further than calling on the phone i garuntee

Have to agree with this although I don't like Certini and the owner had a 911 C4 so think he's just about surviving!

sam1234

My LBS are brilliant.

I get a 10% discount with out asking and they have matched
Wiggle and Chainreaction for me on things likes forks and wheels.
Should be getting a FS frame soon which I got 2nd hand and they will be were I go for all my parts. May cost a bit more as they can't always price match, but when I have I problem they will help me out.

I will always say if you've got a decent LBS use it.

Sam

shin0r

My LBS is brilliant - M & D Cycles in Abergavenny.

Not really local, it's an hour away, but Miles, the owner is a great guy and seems to be more interested in making sure you have the right kit as opposed to the most expensive.

I would never ask him to price match CRC and the like, the personal service more than outweighs saving a few quid.

steedmaster

the point if mateeboy, certini was started from scratch and has grown into what it is through hard work and good service, like most other good llbs's......... they wouldnt be succesfull if the service was rubbish and they ripped people off.

do you have a particular problem with a bike from there, or just jealous of the owners car ?

kegs

Second Clive Mitchell's, they are very good, IME, and can get in most bits and bobs if they haven't got them.

Their mechanics seem pretty good.

The fact that they are 5 minutes walk down the hill from me, now, is also definitely in their favour

I have found Ricci to be pretty good too, tbh, but god help you if you go in there and you like roadie exotica :P