The Condor experience
Rich158
Posts: 2,348
What a joy it is buying a bike from Condor 
I've heard people rave about them, but haven't experienced such good service for years
I popped along this morning with the intention of having a look at some frames and their sale bikes, and seeing what they would be willing to do on the Cyclescheme. The salesman couldn't have been more helpful, talking me through the various frames, their respective geometries, and their strengths. Once the grouset etc had been choosen it was then on to the sizing jig to check the size, seatpost length, stem bar width and any of the many other variables.
Compare this to buying my Madone last year where I pretty much selected the size myself, and if the bars stem etc needed changing then it was a case of buying a new component at full price to see if it felt right. And this in my LBS where I have spent thousands over the years.
Guess where my custom is going in the future
I've heard people rave about them, but haven't experienced such good service for yearsI popped along this morning with the intention of having a look at some frames and their sale bikes, and seeing what they would be willing to do on the Cyclescheme. The salesman couldn't have been more helpful, talking me through the various frames, their respective geometries, and their strengths. Once the grouset etc had been choosen it was then on to the sizing jig to check the size, seatpost length, stem bar width and any of the many other variables.
Compare this to buying my Madone last year where I pretty much selected the size myself, and if the bars stem etc needed changing then it was a case of buying a new component at full price to see if it felt right. And this in my LBS where I have spent thousands over the years.
Guess where my custom is going in the future
pain is temporary, the glory of beating your mates to the top of the hill lasts forever.....................
Revised FCN - 2
Revised FCN - 2
Condor, good or bad? 0 votes
I think Condor are fantastic, I've had great service
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0 votes
Condor are a bunch of bike snobs, I'd never use them
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0 votes
For racer types only, general public beware!!!!
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0 votes
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Good show, I had a similar experience when buying my Trek, they even let me leave the store with almost flat tyres and gears not set up :evil:
Condor is a great shop, I'm in there once or twice a week :oops:
Rule #9 // If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period.
Rule #12 // The correct number of bikes to own is n+1.
Rule #42 // A bike race shall never be preceded with a swim and/or followed by a run.
They're also obscenely overpriced for just about everything, have a very superior attitude, and really don't seem to give a monkey's about women's cycling.
I won't be back.
Viner Maxima, Tifosi CK7, Giant Bowery, Old commuter.
I was in this morning to pick up some spokes for another wheel I'm building. Apart from being cheaper than most online stores for the same spokes, the whole experience was very positive (as usual). Plus, always good fun to browse at the kit on offer.
p.s. Rich, what build are you looking at?
Engineered Bicycles
I agree with lit, they are basically muppets.
When they see someone coming in about to drop several K - then sure they act nice. But let me tell ya, I've eaten lunch in the local cafes and overheard the management's conversations and these are some cynical people. Not very nice.
They do have good gear though and I have and continue to buy from them just don't really trust them...
I got a brompton from them on the scheme.. two bills; one for 1k and a seperate one for me for the difference.. noice.
I've always been very pleased with the service there and that's probably why I've got 2 of their bikes
Very Hairy Roadie - FCN 4
Fixed Pista- FCN 5
Beared Bromptonite - FCN 14
Care to elighten us, what sort of things have you heard?
@Rich - congrats, what you get?
2020 Canyon Ultimate CF SLX
2020 Canyon Inflite SL 7
On the Strand
Crown Stables
but isn't that managment everywhere for nearly any walk of life???... "Customers are know nothing fu<kwits"
Very Hairy Roadie - FCN 4
Fixed Pista- FCN 5
Beared Bromptonite - FCN 14
Wheel building you say, very interesting! I was only just looking at my lovely hand built open pro front wheel and thinking wouldn't it be nice to have a matching rear, even better to build my own :shock:
Rule #9 // If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period.
Rule #12 // The correct number of bikes to own is n+1.
Rule #42 // A bike race shall never be preceded with a swim and/or followed by a run.
I got the Accaciaio with an 08 Centaur carbon groupset and Khamsin wheels. Maybe not the newest kit on the market but all nicely reduced and more than adequate for what will be a second bike
LiT, it sounds like you had a similar experience to many I've had at the hands of Evans. I guess every shop has good and bad salesman, I know some people rave about my LBS but I've always found them extremely unhelpful, even when I've had a valid warranty claim!
Revised FCN - 2
Shocking. Lets all slag them off.
ITB: You should give it a bash, not all that difficult. My first wheel was quite bad, but the few I've built since seem much better.
Engineered Bicycles
Back when I worked at PC World our trainer said that whenever he wanted to buy something expensive and electrical he'd normally not shave for a couple of days and put on his scruffiest clothes. That way if/when a salesman did approach him he knew it was because they wanted to help him rather then just assuming he isn't going to spend a load f money.
I also once did have a customer ask me where something simple (I wouldn't say cheap as this is PC World!) such as a USB cable could be found. After I'd taken him over to the cable section on the other side of the store he then wanted help to buy some more expensive items :-)
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Player of THE GAME
Giant SCR 3.0 - FCN 5
But but but but I WAS the customer looking to spend a fair whack of cash on a bike and they were still mean to me!
Viner Maxima, Tifosi CK7, Giant Bowery, Old commuter.
Evans, however, whatever everyone says about them, are always uber-helpful and friendly to me.
Should I buy a new suit and start shaving on a daily basis? :P
Viner Maxima, Tifosi CK7, Giant Bowery, Old commuter.
I think some Evanseseseses are good and some bad. The one just north of Oxford street near the BT tower is a bad one, super-dismissive hipster dudes who actually work with one jeans leg rolled up. The one at victoria is a good one, friendly, helpful, chatty staff. Same for the one at fulham, even if the guy who sorted out my old fixie did sellotape his number to the underside of my saddle.
Viner Maxima, Tifosi CK7, Giant Bowery, Old commuter.
There is another view. Someone buys a gear cable or other small part, wants a niggle sorted.... Gets good & helpful service. Thinks 'I'll get my next service done there'....and so on. Just because you don't want to buy the uberbike today, doesn't mean you won't a few weeks/months/years down the line. I haven't bought anything major from Velocity, but they've had £1k+ business from me in the last year on servicing and small parts because of their friendly, quality service. If/when I get a Maxima or equivalent (OK, when....) they're going to be first choice.
Viner Magnifica '08 ; Condor Squadra
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You've got to admire initiative.
'twas v funny. Took me a couple of weeks to notice it was there though.
Viner Maxima, Tifosi CK7, Giant Bowery, Old commuter.
man-slag-tastic !!!
--Jens Voight
Very Hairy Roadie - FCN 4
Fixed Pista- FCN 5
Beared Bromptonite - FCN 14
Oh, undoubtedly, but that would mean every one of them is a tool - I've been in there more than half a dozen times and my experience has been the same each time.
That level of service, combined with what I (as a inexperienced bike kit buying person, admittedly) see on the shelves does make me wonder why they have this mythical status as the best bike shop in London, if not the world. If someone could explain it to me, I'd be grateful.
Is it a classic case of, oh what's the phrase I'm looking for, it's on the tip of my tongue, where someone says something and others, not wanting to seem a fool, agree with him even though they know he's wrong and so the myth grows. A bit like thos photos of Sarah Ferguson having her 'toes sucked'. If you look at the photos the guy is quite clearly kissing the sole of her foot, which is a whole different thing, but nobody ever points that out.
Ah, I remember why I read the Independent in the 1980's.
No royal stories.
I love the idea of a Hipster working at Evans - Hipster Fail?
2020 Canyon Ultimate CF SLX
2020 Canyon Inflite SL 7
On the Strand
Crown Stables
They make the team Rapha condor domestics work in the store sometimes, those guys look totally pissed off
Rule #9 // If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period.
Rule #12 // The correct number of bikes to own is n+1.
Rule #42 // A bike race shall never be preceded with a swim and/or followed by a run.
Another thing I have learned from my esteemed lady boss. It seems that if you wear outdoor gear like a goretex jacket and/or a fleece in a shop, security follow you around.
Can't say I ever noticed, but I am learning so much in this job about what posh people think.
I wouldn't even think of going there when Cavendish is just up the road.
Joelle (Focus Expert SRAM)