It's OFFICIAL! I'm going to be an LBS owner!

[onimity]

The vending machine idea is great!

And a couple of other things...

Ditto what the others said about bike parking...but I'll add that when I'm out on my road bike I almost never have a lock. My favorite LBS has a rack at the front of the store (inside) where I can put it & know it will be safe. Also, people often want to bring the bike in & have it with them when looking at things like bar tape, panniers, seats, etc., so make sure that you have wide aisles to accommodate that.

There is a new bike shop by my house & the people are really nice but I hardly ever go there because it is so cluttered with bikes/clothing racks/etc. that you can't bring a bike in. I was looking for a new saddle...they were wedged in a corner that took me 15 mins to get to with my bike, and I knocked a million things over in the process. Ugh. They are really nice but it seems a lot easier to ride the extra 5 miles to a shop that accommodates my bike...

Plus, having people's bikes in your shop is a good sales opportunity for you: hey, this bar tape would look great on your bike! Have you ever thought about trying clipless pedals? How do you like that saddle? Do you have a frame pump? etc.

My LBS offers a regular free maintenance class...a good way to make people confident with their bikes and sell basic maintenance gear. I was thinking too that a good idea might be to put together your own 'starter kit' for new cyclists & offer a discount on it with a bike purchase, tire levers, tubes, patch kits, multi-tool, frame or CO2 pump...and of course the bike socks/water bottle with your logo.

And, a simple rule, but learn names. Or remember something significant about your customers. How are you liking that new ____? How was your ride to ___ last weekend? When I walk into a store & am greeted by name I really appreciate that.

Anne

[HappyAnika]

Congrats!

Things I like to see stocked:

-Lots of cute socks
-Pretty water bottles
-Products for women that come in colors other than pink
-Cliff products- as many flavors of blocks as you can, I also like their electrolyte drink mixes which can be hard to find
-Variety of tubes. I like threaded long stems and it's frustrating to me that the shop 4 blocks from my house only carries short smooth ones.
-Decent selection of tires.
-Chamois butter


Other:
-Have a suggestion/comment box. If you really want to know what your customers want/think, give them an easy way to tell you. Some of us can be shy and don't like confrontation. Anonymous suggestion boxes can help elicit more feedback.
-Have a decent web site. Even if you don't want to do web sales, at least have good information like current hours, an overview of products you stock, and your philosophy/mission statement. A feedback section would be great too, and if you post an e-mail address, be prompt about responding! (not immediate, but in a reasonable time frame so as to be helpful).
-Make it easy to find consumables, like tubes, cleaner, and lube.
-Have a pump (or two) out for use. I thought this was a no brainer until I needed to top off my tire and the nearest bike shop wasn't sure if they had a pump .
-I agree about having a night or two open later to accomodate the working folk.

Good luck! I like the logo.

[Trekhawk]

Congratulations RM!!!

I think all the great tips have been given already so all I can say is don't forget to keep us updated on how it is all going.

[coyote]

Hi RM,
Congrats and good luck! Can't wait to here more.

Add one thing....don't make an awesome website and then neglect it. Don't make it so informative that you are having to update it all the time. But do update it at set intervals....maybe monthly or quarterly. IE Spring specials are not so special in the Fall.

[Deanna]

Congratulations!!

My little suggestion is to order water bottles (quality ones that you would use, in both sizes) with your store logo, address, phone, etc. In addition to selling them, they are useful when you think giving somebody something for free might seal the deal. They're also good to include with donations (and you will be asked).

[Tuckervill]

Hi RM,
Congrats and good luck! Can't wait to here more.

Add one thing....don't make an awesome website and then neglect it. Don't make it so informative that you are having to update it all the time. But do update it at set intervals....maybe monthly or quarterly. IE Spring specials are not so special in the Fall.

This is one of my pet peeves, too.

Also on websites--I use bike shop websites to find out about rides when I travel. It helps to have the actual name of the TOWN you are in on your website. I have run across too many that don't actually list the town name. If you are unfamiliar with an area, you're not going to know what the local mountain range is, necessarily.

Overwhelmed with suggestions, yet? lol.

Karen

[mtbdarby]

Congrats Denise!!!! What a big and exciting chapter for you

Add me to the list of follow up with your customers if you tell them you will. I went to two lbs looking for a conversion kit for my bike pump. One said he's order it and I'd get it in a couple days. Nope. Went to the other who said they'd check and call. Nope again. So I jimmy-rigged it and so far so good.

If it applies to your clientle, maybe a train table in a corner with a few toys and a small tv/dvd combo for the little ones so parents can shop. It's a Godsend in the lbs I do go to!

And what's all this crazy talk about bikes racks at a bike store??!! I have NEVER seen a bike rack at a bike store in this area. How sad is that....