A new low for a bike shop??

Wirral_paul
Wirral_paul Posts: 2,476
edited July 2011 in The bottom bracket
Morning everyone

Has anyone ever come across a bike shop that would stoop so low as to actually set up a Twitter account to take the pi$$ out of you?? I thought i'd seen it all but had a text earlier from a mate to tell me about it!!

This new shop (opened January 2011) and dealing in the mid to high range road bikes on the Wirral have gone so far as to set this twitter account up and in doing so declare open war on a now very ex-customer!! At times like this, with the economy not doing brilliantly and many people not having a vast amount of spare cash to spend on luxuries like high end bikes (ok ignore the fact that for most of us - our bikes are an essential - the same as food) - does it not seem logical that it wouldn't be the best time to start playing stupid games to annoy potential customers??

This all stems from the fact that they dont seem able to accept any criticism (which has been fairly private to date) over a £5k+ Orbea Orca that they built and frankly - messed up!! Its not the only basic error made on bike builds i've seen (at least 4 fundamental errors on the Orbea - chain length way to short etc). The owner of the bike has kept comments quiet also so far but he's about to "go public" after the twitter stunt himself.

So do you think this stupid stunt played by this bike shop has earned them a "name and shame"??

mini-rant over (unless you want to get me going and then we'll let rip on **** Cycles) ;-)
«1345

Comments

  • EKE_38BPM
    EKE_38BPM Posts: 5,821
    Interesting first post.

    Its never good form for a company to belittle their customers (think Ratners), its downright stupid to do so in the public domain and its really dumb if any mistakes made were their fault.

    Well done for not naming them (from a 'legal' stand point) but I shall be seeing how strong my google-fu is by trying to find the shop on Twitter and online.

    Is there any opportunity for you to blame Wiggle?
    FCN 3: Raleigh Record Ace fixie-to be resurrected sometime in the future
    FCN 4: Planet X Schmaffenschmack 2- workhorse
    FCN 9: B Twin Vitamin - winter commuter/loan bike for trainees

    I'm hungry. I'm always hungry!
  • Wirral_paul
    Wirral_paul Posts: 2,476
    No opportunity to blame Wiggle i'm afraid (apart from the KMC chain needed to replace the 4 links too short one wasn't as cheap as at Merlin - does that count??)

    From a legal standpoint - my company's clients include about half the lawyers in Liverpool area so i may speak to one of their associates later this week if the shop's attempts at harassment continue to escalate. I've never read anything so childish though so would be embarrassed to actually take this to a law firm.

    I did have to laugh at their comment about me living in a 1 bedroom bedsit though - its actually a 3 bed cottage with garage beside the river but never mind - thats how childish they are being!
  • nferrar
    nferrar Posts: 2,511
    Either make it public or ignore it, the chance you have a case for legal action (presumably based on libel) is slim to none (assuming you want to be successful)
  • Wirral_paul
    Wirral_paul Posts: 2,476
    Well it would be based on the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 from my knowledge of the law, and i feel the war they just started has only just begun on that matter. I've blocked them on Facebook and reported the Twitter Harassment account already before posting here but unless Twitter removes the account - cant stop their posts.
  • redddraggon
    redddraggon Posts: 10,862
    Well it would be based on the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 from my knowledge of the law, and i feel the war they just started has only just begun on that matter. I've blocked them on Facebook and reported the Twitter Harassment account already before posting here but unless Twitter removes the account - cant stop their posts.

    My Google-Fu is failing me, can you link to the twitter account :p
    I like bikes...

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  • MattC59
    MattC59 Posts: 5,408
    Name and Shame !!!!!!!
    Science adjusts it’s beliefs based on what’s observed.
    Faith is the denial of observation so that Belief can be preserved
  • EKE_38BPM
    EKE_38BPM Posts: 5,821
    My google-fu failled too.
    FCN 3: Raleigh Record Ace fixie-to be resurrected sometime in the future
    FCN 4: Planet X Schmaffenschmack 2- workhorse
    FCN 9: B Twin Vitamin - winter commuter/loan bike for trainees

    I'm hungry. I'm always hungry!
  • shm_uk
    shm_uk Posts: 683
    Located on Wirral?

    Orbea dealer?

    Vita Cycles fits the above criteria ...
  • Pseudonym
    Pseudonym Posts: 1,032
    this shop looks interesting...they also have a twitter feed...

    http://www.vitacycles.co.uk/

    (edit - beaten to it..)
  • shm_uk
    shm_uk Posts: 683
    ... and appears to have been open since January 2011

    interesting coincidence

    or is it
  • MountainMonster
    MountainMonster Posts: 7,423
    Or the OP is exagerating. You get alot of this, pissed off customers who arn't happy they didn't get work done for free or something, then start nit-picking at every detail. Yes it's a 5k bike, but there are always 2 sides to a story. Maybe the OP harassed the shop for a long time and caused alot of problems for them with his behaviour, ya never know.
  • shm_uk
    shm_uk Posts: 683
    Or the OP is exagerating. You get alot of this, pissed off customers who arn't happy they didn't get work done for free or something, then start nit-picking at every detail. Yes it's a 5k bike, but there are always 2 sides to a story. Maybe the OP harassed the shop for a long time and caused alot of problems for them with his behaviour, ya never know.

    Maybe, but even so,
    EKE_38BPM wrote:
    Its never good form for a company to belittle their customers (think Ratners), its downright stupid to do so in the public domain and its really dumb if any mistakes made were their fault.
  • Pseudonym
    Pseudonym Posts: 1,032
    EKE_38BPM wrote:
    Its never good form for a company to belittle their customers (think Ratners), its downright stupid to do so in the public domain

    there doesn't seem to be any actual evidence that they have done so.....
  • daviesee
    daviesee Posts: 6,386
    It's either not Vita or there is nothing to see here............
    None of the above should be taken seriously, and certainly not personally.
  • MountainMonster
    MountainMonster Posts: 7,423
    shm_uk wrote:
    Or the OP is exagerating. You get alot of this, pissed off customers who arn't happy they didn't get work done for free or something, then start nit-picking at every detail. Yes it's a 5k bike, but there are always 2 sides to a story. Maybe the OP harassed the shop for a long time and caused alot of problems for them with his behaviour, ya never know.

    Maybe, but even so,
    EKE_38BPM wrote:
    Its never good form for a company to belittle their customers (think Ratners), its downright stupid to do so in the public domain and its really dumb if any mistakes made were their fault.

    The second part is true, but if it is Vita Cycles, I had a browse through their twitter, and they have either deleted the post, or it never existed. Either way I have a feeling this guy maybe didn't get a discount he "felt he deserved" or something else, and is now trying to get them back for not bowing to his knees.
  • -spider-
    -spider- Posts: 2,548
    No real clarity from either side. BE WARNED.

    -Spider-
  • Cleat Eastwood
    Cleat Eastwood Posts: 7,508
    Vita are organising a sportive in august with the endorsement of Steve Cummings. I cant see a shop getting embroiled in an internet spat with the potential embarrassment/withdrawal of a pro rider.

    All seems a bit fishy to me.
    The dissenter is every human being at those moments of his life when he resigns
    momentarily from the herd and thinks for himself.
  • Slow Downcp
    Slow Downcp Posts: 3,041
    Looking at the OP, the complaint isn;t actually about HIS bike, but someone elses?

    Possibly another Wirral bikeshop not happy with the competition?
    Carlsberg don't make cycle clothing, but if they did it would probably still not be as good as Assos
  • Dog Breath
    Dog Breath Posts: 314
    I'm also Paul and from the Wirral - but not the same Paul as the OP. From his description in his first post, my immediate thought was of this shop in Irby Village as it is on one of my local runs and have gone past it many times, but never had any dealings with them.

    It does seem strange for a newly established shop to start publicly disenfranchising it's current and potential future customers no matter what the issue was. Was thinking of putting my bike in for a hub service, but not sure now.

    DB
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  • mouth
    mouth Posts: 1,195
    Two sides to every story IMO. If you're not happy with the build quality of the purchase either contact the manufacturer directly or find another local-ish brand dealer and have them inspect the bike over. This will tell you if it is their fault or not, or whether you're just another grumpy bugger who thinks you should have got more for your money.

    As for going public, I'd be very careful with naming them before finding out where the mistakes lie with them or not. If there are underlying problems with the bike then contact Trading Standards, who I am sure would be interested to hear from you if the build is unsafe.
    The only disability in life is a poor attitude.
  • Wirral_paul
    Wirral_paul Posts: 2,476
    Pseudonym wrote:
    EKE_38BPM wrote:
    Its never good form for a company to belittle their customers (think Ratners), its downright stupid to do so in the public domain

    there doesn't seem to be any actual evidence that they have done so.....

    Not any more - Twitter it seems (or the bike shop that I haven't named - or more likely one of the partners) has removed the account as it was reported at 8am as per my earlier post. If anyone wants to PM me their email address - i'll forward the link from Twitter for the account that was set up last night and then removed - it shows the profile at least - and an example of the snide remarks they started making.

    No its not my bike - belongs to a mate (a Police Inspector who is livid over the Twitter posts and is now considering legal action against the shop) who took it back in 6 times to have the gears set up. He got so fed up he was talking to the mechanics in the Bike Factory, Chester about having the whole bike rebuilt after purchasing in Feb or March of this year. In hindsight, Trading Standards should have been involved a long time ago. Before paying the bill to have Bike Factory rebuild it, he let me start from scratch with a new chain and now it works perfectly (using SRAM Red, i use SRAM Force myself so know how to set SRAM up). I didnt mention the loose spoke, headset , saddle, rear mech on his 2nd bike etc but will now - i kept it to faults I myself found.

    As for the issue over the internet spat - thats really what baffles me. Its crazy from a business point of view to start something like this so i agree - why do it??

    To clarify, I have no connection with any bike shop and generally buy from the internet. I do all my own mechanicing and have done so for 20 years.
  • Wirral_paul
    Wirral_paul Posts: 2,476
    Mouth wrote:
    Two sides to every story IMO. If you're not happy with the build quality of the purchase either contact the manufacturer directly or find another local-ish brand dealer and have them inspect the bike over. This will tell you if it is their fault or not, or whether you're just another grumpy bugger who thinks you should have got more for your money.

    As for going public, I'd be very careful with naming them before finding out where the mistakes lie with them or not. If there are underlying problems with the bike then contact Trading Standards, who I am sure would be interested to hear from you if the build is unsafe.

    It was a custom build so Orbea wouldnt get involved as the frame is superb and isnt an issue. It wasnt my money and isn't my bike so i've got no more connection than trying to repair the faults for a mate who knows he should have involved Trading Standards earlier. The bike now runs seemlessly so its too late to involve them and to be honest - he's got all he wanted in the first place - a bike that actually works and he can trust.

    This isnt about the bike build at all (although the owner may now post his story later) - this is about the pathetic nature of what seems to be one individual connected with this bike shop setting up a Twitter account just to attack me personally. Not big and not clever of that person. Word is already spreading via Twitter from numerous others with fromer dealings with that shop
  • Yossie
    Yossie Posts: 2,600
    This isnt about the bike build at all (although the owner may now post his story later) - this is about the pathetic nature of what seems to be one individual connected with this bike shop setting up a Twitter account just to attack me personally. Not big and not clever of that person.


    Ah - the truth at the end of teh thread.

    So nothing to do with the bike at all - just trying to get your own back.

    Cheerio!
  • cougie
    cougie Posts: 22,512
    And you set up a bikeradar account to complain about something that none of us can see ?

    Good luck with your legal case - I cant see you'll get anywhere. Move along and if you dont like a shop - then just dont give them any business.
  • did I misread or does the OP first say that it's an issue a friend had.....

    then in a later post say that they said HE lives in a bed-sit?

    sorry, but my bullsh*t-o-meter is hovering at about a 9.5 out of 10 on this one..

    ************************edit**********
    hadn't read the 2nd page of posts....
    ........................
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  • Wirral_paul
    Wirral_paul Posts: 2,476
    Yossie wrote:
    This isnt about the bike build at all (although the owner may now post his story later) - this is about the pathetic nature of what seems to be one individual connected with this bike shop setting up a Twitter account just to attack me personally. Not big and not clever of that person.


    Ah - the truth at the end of teh thread.

    So nothing to do with the bike at all - just trying to get your own back.

    Cheerio!

    Did you read the first post before posting this?? Its pretty clear from paragraphs 1, 2 and 4 that its about the dumb stunt pulled in setting up the fake twitter account is it not??
  • cougie
    cougie Posts: 22,512
    All thats happened here now is that you seem to have slandered the bike shop. Maybe ask for this thread to get pulled ?
  • dodgy
    dodgy Posts: 2,890
    I come back from holiday and all hell has broken lose with my LBS!

    Nothing to do with me any of this, just hope it all gets sorted amicably, there was (probaby still is, not been in since getting home late last night) a real good vibe in the local shop with the riders who frequented it. They even formed a club and the shop had shirts printed.

    Come on chaps, or I'll bang your heads together :lol:
  • Allez Mark
    Allez Mark Posts: 364
    If its not your bike. Why is this person on twitter having a go at you.
  • MrChuck
    MrChuck Posts: 1,663
    what seems to be one individual connected with this bike shop setting up a Twitter account just to attack me personally. Not big and not clever of that person. Word is already spreading via Twitter from numerous others with fromer dealings with that shop

    So is it the shop, or someone connected with the shop somehow that's on Twitter?