Another reason NOT to buy a Wal Mart bike..

[Running Mommy]

So lastnight running hubby and I decided to take a field trip to the local Wal Mart to check out what our "big box competition" looks like.
I had about 5 people come by the store looking for bikes yesterday- despite the fact that I'm not even OPEN- and a couple of them mentioned having been to wal mart and target.
So I figured that to be able to counter the wal mart low price point I really needed to KNOW what they had.
HOLY MOLY do they have some poorly built bikes. First of all the wheels looked like they were about as strong as tin cans on the cruisers. And then Tony noticed that some of the brake cables were not installed correctly on some of the mtn bikes with disc brakes. But the kicker was the comfort bike that had it's suspension fork mounted BACKWARDS!!! Yes, completely backwards!!
That just shows you that the people putting those things together have NO CLUE what they are doing.
Tony's mechanic eye also noted some other potential safety issues. It was actually kinda scary. I mean people that don't know better are going to be purchasing these bikes- and often times for their kids- and they are putting themselves/children at risk. Part of me wanted to grab the manager and show him the glaring safety issues, but in the end I just walked out of there totally disgusted.
I already kind of had my spiel down to combat the "but wal mart is 200-300 cheaper", but now I REALLY have it down! And really, they aren't THAT much cheaper! Our low end Jamis mtn bike is only 100.00 more. I think the cruisers are the ones that are much cheaper. They were 89.00, ours are around 300.

But what I explained to the guy yesterday is this.
When you buy a bike from a big box retailer, once it's home- you are on your own. There is no one to take it to there when the cables stretch and it needs adjusting, or you have questions about it, or problems.
When you buy a bike from a bike shop you are not only getting a bike that's mechanically superior, but when you need to come in for adjustments, we take care of you. We offer free adjustments for life when you buy the bike from us. Yes you will have to pay for things such as new chains, or parts that wear out. But when you just need the brakes or derralliuers adjusted, we will take care of it for you. Yes, we will work on the wal mart bikes, but it will cost you. So in the end you may actually end up spending MORE than you would if you had bought from a bike shop.
Also a bike from a bike shop has been assembled by a professional mechanic. Most big box retailers hire people to build their bikes who have no prefessional bike mechanic experience. If they DID they would be working in a bike shop. So there can be big safety issues with the build of these bikes. I used to work for wal mart, and I remember our manager paying a few medical bills for folks who ended up in the emergency room because of the shoddy build on their bikes (yes this is a true story.).
And lastly, you really do get what you pay for price wise. These bikes shift better, are generally much lighter, and will be much more fun to ride. If I put you on a wal mart bike, and then on one of these Felts you would instantly know what I'm talking about.

So yeah, that was my spiel. And the guy agreed. In fact he was ready to buy a Felt Z100.... But I'm not OPEN yet because the landlord didn't do all the things the fire dept. asked him to do! Arrggghhhh!!

[Wahine]

Wow RM. That's a great spiel. And I hope the landlord gets things taken care of soon so you can open and start selling bikes!! Yipppeeeee

[smilingcat]

sounds like you already have eager customers wating in line.

Tis the problem with big box stores. Yes I've seen incorrectly assembled bike. Cheap cheap stammped out components. Like I don't know where they get the people to assemble the bikes. It's scary.

I used to get "Why does your mug cost $10-$20.00 when I can go to Von's (AP, Safeway, Albertson...) and get it for $2.00? you're over priced and out of your mind.". This at craft shows with emphesis on HAND MADE. I had my polite comeback "Its hand made and decorated by me. And each is diffrent". I gave up on pottery years ago. Still have have my "toys" and my supplies 1/2 ton of procelain. Another reason was, "can I get a discount?" sometimes I REALLY wanted to say something like, " Would you take a 50% paycut?"

Sorry for derailing but the best thing is to inform the customer on what they are getting from you versus big box stores.

smilingcat

[7rider]

But the kicker was the comfort bike that had it's suspension fork mounted BACKWARDS!!! Yes, completely backwards!!

Tony's mechanic eye also noted some other potential safety issues. It was actually kinda scary.

Yes, we will work on the wal mart bikes, but it will cost you. So in the end you may actually end up spending MORE than you would if you had bought from a bike shop.

You should take pix (on the sly?) of these shoddy bikes as photographic evidence for folks who come in and say "Why should I buy a $300 bike from you, when I can walk into Wal-mart and get one for $89?" Also, show the difference b/t junk components and plastic bits, vs. the better components of "real" bikes. Better yet, BUY one of them and display it in the shop with a sign on it: "Do you really want to RIDE this bike??? Ask me about it." And tell them point-for-point the difference b/t "their" bike and "your" bike.

Also, can you work on box store bikes? Our LBS recently said "no" because of the liability issues associated with those clunkers. They will sell you the parts, but they're not allowed to touch them.

[Trek420]

You could post some articles on your window while waiting to open ie: why you should wait to buy your bike here rather than Big Box Store

[Fredwina]

I'll agree with Regina - some type of presentation that show the differnce could come in handy

[alpinerabbit]

I second (third) the undercover report plus pictures. Just don't mention names I guess.

[mimitabby]

I wish you luck combatting the walmart shoppers. For christmas at my office we buy gifts for children. Someone bought a kid's bike from walmart. It sat next to my desk for a week and all the bike guys came around and looked at it.
The most disturbing thing about it was that the brakes didn't work. They couldn't. they were mounted crooked so the pads were just floating in air.
Then my neighbor's kid got a walmart bike too. It broke the first day. He brought it over to my husband to fix. What could he do? it was a piece of junk.

I am sure you will carve a nice niche with people that like customer service and want bikes that last for more than a week.

[Bad JuJu]

If you have time, you might even work up a little cost-comparison chart: your bike vs. Wally bike
cost of adjustments after 30 days and so on
cost of repairs
cost of new parts
cost of medical bills when crummy brakes fail to work

OK, that might be overdoing it a bit, but people seem to like comparison charts with info in small, easily digestible bites.

[Wahine]

Here's an interesting article meant as a guide for buying bikes:

http://www.abbysguide.com/bike/guide/where-to-buy.html

You could quote it. I don't know if I would want to include the bit about how it's OK to buy a big box bike if the child will grow out of it quickly.

I also really like Juju's suggestion.

As for purchasing a bike for display or taking photos, it's a good idea but I'd be really careful about stepping on toes. The last thing you want is a corporation like Wally World breathing down your neck.

[Mr. SR500]

Let the WM crowd buy cheap crappy bikes, while you'll convince a few, many are too cheap to care or will drive you crazy thinking they need to get that extra $200 in service.

For the most part many big box bikes seems ok for the intended purpose. Kids bikes, cruisers, etc... If someone gets serious about riding or wants a quality bike they will come see you. I doubt many box store bikes see many miles.

We by kids bikes from bike stores, because I ride and look for certain things in all bikes. Not many people will buy a kids size road bike, but I'll likely buy one in a couple years.

It's good to have your facts, but don't invest to much time on that demographic, you'll be fair better off selling hybirds, road, and mountain bikes to people who are looking for a quality experience from product, sales, and service.

[Mr. SR500]

One more comment. My cousin and his wife each received $200 for a bike from his parents. They have 2 kids, and while she stays home, he owns a successful business in a larger city. They have a very nice house, daughter goes to private school, and have new cars.

So I said a Trek 7100 (entry level hybrid) would be a good bike to look at. We gave one to my sister for Christmas. Comfortable to ride, well built, overall a very good value for your money. Anyway they run $325 - $350. My cousins said that was too much, they wouldn't be able to spend more then the $200 they had been given.

So for $200 they can buy a WM bike, helmet, and pair of short. But the bike will likely be a POS, and perform poorly, so how much will they really ride it.

But for another $200, they could have a nice quality bike from a shop that would take good care of them, and my guess is really enjoy biking.

These are people that could easily afford it, but I doubt they will ever get it. That is fine, but shows the mine set of some customers.

They were asking about what I got for Christmas. I just said some wheels, if I explained a new set of Bontrager Aero wheels with a PowerTap hub, they would die Mrs. spent that much on anything bike related. Better to just say some new wheels

[sundial]

Let the WM crowd buy cheap crappy bikes, while you'll convince a few.....

Around here families work in factories, many of which have closed or will close to go overseas. Many do not have the resources or knowledge to buy a proper bike, so for our town, Wal-Mart has a good market.

[Mr. SR500]

Around here families work in factories, many of which have closed or will close to go overseas. Many do not have the resources or knowledge to buy a proper bike, so for our town, Wal-Mart has a good market.

Same here, but used bikes are often very reasonable. If someone takes time, they can often find a quality used bike for a fraction of the new cost. Just another option for some people.

[7rider]

So I said a Trek 7100 (entry level hybrid) would be a good bike to look at. We gave one to my sister for Christmas. Comfortable to ride, well built, overall a very good value for your money. Anyway they run $325 - $350. My cousins said that was too much, they wouldn't be able to spend more then the $200 they had been given.

So for $200 they can buy a WM bike, helmet, and pair of short. But the bike will likely be a POS, and perform poorly, so how much will they really ride it.

So, instead of putting in an extra $200 for a bike they might enjoy and continue riding, the piss away the $200 on a POS that will sit in the garage and gather dust. Wise use of their gift money!

RunningMommy will likely only ever see in her store those who are "on the fence" with respect to real vs. box bikes.