> Even more recently, I walked into my neighborhood bike
> shop on a Sunday to buy my wife the brand new bicycle I'd
> been promising her forever. We're both really busy and
> this was the only time we could arrange to shop for
the
> bike together. Again, the money was in my pocket and there
> was no way we weren't buying a bike that day. Well, it was
> Sunday, and the owner, whom
I
> know very well and really wanted to give the business,
> decided to take the day off and leave two high school kids
> running the store. My wife and I walked in and started
> fumbling our way through the hundreds of bikes on display.
> I even pulled a few from the racks to size her up. In all
> the time we were shopping, the two kids at the counter
> never even looked up
from
> their conversation about "hot chicks." When I asked if one
> could help,
his
> response was "What are you looking for?" I told him "A
> bike for my wife." "What kind?" he replied. "Probably a
> hybrid." I said. "What size?" he asked. "I'm not
> sure...she needs to be sized up." He then brought my
wife
> to the closest female hybrid in the showroom, asked her to
> get on, then asked "Does THAT feel like the right size?"
> We bought my wife's bike somewhere else.
You really should bring this to the owner's attention. He
may have no idea what's going on when he's not there, and
how he might be creating a more negative impression by being
open (but not appropriately staffed) than if he were closed.
I think I'm going to start thinking of this as the
"nightmare thread." As in this is the type of nightmare I
sometimes have, and my own shop is not immune. No shop is.
But the defining difference between one shop and the next is
how they deal with it.
Talk to the owner. Please. Even if it's me (maybe ESPECIALLY
if it's me!).
--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
http://www.ChainReactionBicycles.com
"NYRides" <
[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Claire:
>
> While I understand and respect the opinions of others who
> have replied, I also understand exactly what you mean. It
> isn't just bike shops, though. If storeowners only knew
> how much business they lose by hiring unknowledgeable
> sales people who are afraid to approach customers, they
> would probably shape up pretty fast.
>
> I constantly walk out of stores with money burning a hole
> in my pocket.
One
> day recently, I had $3,000 to spend on a laptop computer
> that I absolutely needed the very next day. I walked into
> a well-known national mega
computer
> chain store and found three young salespeople gathered
> around a 23"
monitor
> playing a video game. I told them I needed to buy a
> laptop in a hurry and that it was my first time buying
> one. Without looking up from the screen, two of them
> pointed me to the aisle with the laptops and one said
> "The laptops are over there." Needless to say, I walked
> out after two minutes
of
> trying to sell myself a laptop.
>
> Even more recently, I walked into my neighborhood bike
> shop on a Sunday to buy my wife the brand new bicycle I'd
> been promising her forever. We're both really busy and
> this was the only time we could arrange to shop for
the
> bike together. Again, the money was in my pocket and there
> was no way we weren't buying a bike that day. Well, it was
> Sunday, and the owner, whom
I
> know very well and really wanted to give the business,
> decided to take the day off and leave two high school kids
> running the store. My wife and I walked in and started
> fumbling our way through the hundreds of bikes on display.
> I even pulled a few from the racks to size her up. In all
> the time we were shopping, the two kids at the counter
> never even looked up
from
> their conversation about "hot chicks." When I asked if one
> could help,
his
> response was "What are you looking for?" I told him "A
> bike for my wife." "What kind?" he replied. "Probably a
> hybrid." I said. "What size?" he asked. "I'm not
> sure...she needs to be sized up." He then brought my
wife
> to the closest female hybrid in the showroom, asked her to
> get on, then asked "Does THAT feel like the right size?"
> We bought my wife's bike somewhere else.
>
> This happens to me all the time, and I've made a habit of
> skipping out of stores that do this to me. I guess I'm
> just getting old. I used to like
to
> be left alone when I was shopping, but that was when I was
> young and
thought
> I knew more about everything than anybody. Now that I'm
> older and realize I'm not so smart, I need to be "sold" by
> salesperson before I'll buy anything. My final example is
> the $150,000 home renovation for which my
wife
> and I are trying to book contractors, designers, and
> architects. Highly-recommended tradespeople of all sorts
> have been escorted out our
door
> for making the same mistake: They ask us "what we want"
> and tell us "they'll do whatever we want." We've made it
> clear to all these people
that
> we need guidance, that we've never done this before and we
> need input from experienced professionals. Still, they
> come to the house and get
frustrated
> if we don't know whether we want flush beams or soffits in
> our kitchen.
The
> first kitchen designer who said to us "This is what you do
> and here's why" got a big gig out of us.
>
> I think store owners should take this as a warning. The
> biggest reason people still shop in retail stores, rather
> than buying things cheaper online, is for the interaction
> with knowledgeable salespeople who can
guide
> us through the selection and buying process. Once that
> benefit is eliminated, we might as well all buy blindly
> via the Internet.
>
> ."Claire Petersky" <
[email protected]> wrote
> in message
news:VuSuc.34729$n_6.5249@attbi_s53...
> > Yesterday, I went to my former bike shop. I bought my
> > first roadie shoes there, my first bicycle computer, and
> > my first SPD pedals, and they did
> lots
> > of work on my bike for a while. But the one decent guy
> > who worked there left, and I didn't see much reason to
> > remain as their customer.
> >
> > My reasons for not being their customer any more was
> > underscored when I
> went
> > in to the bike shop. The only reason why I was in there
> > was I had
business
> > at another store in the strip mall, and I thought I'd
> > stop by. So I
did --
> > why not?
> >
> > Three employees were sitting around (literally -- in
> > folding chairs, in
> the
> > center of the store) talking to each other. I came in,
> > and headed to
their
> > more expensive road bikes. I fingered the merchandise,
> > and talked to my daughter about what I'd be interested
> > in, in a new bike. I went over to
> the
> > clothing, and rummaged through the 30% off on all 2003
> > bike clothes
rack.
> I
> > peered into the case at the counter.
> >
> > Never once did anyone greet me, ask what I might be
> > interested in, try
to
> > sell me a bike, clothes, or accessories. For that
> > matter, considering
that
> > probably two of them were wrenches, were any of them
> > working on bikes.
> >
> > --
> > Warm Regards,
> >
> > Claire Petersky Please replace earthlink for mouse-
> > potato and .net for .com Home of the meditative cyclist:
> >
http://home.earthlink.net/~cpetersky/Welcome.htm See the
> > books I've set free at:
http://bookcrossing.com/referral/Cpetersky
> >
>
