| I was "in the business" for six years. If you're *lucky*, you get
35-45% on a bike -- more on parts. That's not taking into account the time
spent prepping the bike, or what the dealer pays for shipping (one of
the reasons why dealers sometimes drag their feet on "special orders"
-- shipping a single bike is much more expensive than shipping a bulk
order). So why doesn't a bike store go for the same margin as a car
dealer? Well, 15% of $10,000 is $1,500, and 15% of $299.00 is
roughly $45. Question answered?
Sorry if I sound a little abrasive, but most people who are in the
bike business are in it because they love it, not because they stand to
make a lot of money. It used to irk me when a customer who owned a big
house and an Audi 500 complained about the price I -- who squeeked by
with a two room apartment and a used Mercury cheapo -- was asking them.
As far as mail order goes -- you're pretty safe ordering parts, but
complete bikes are a risk. What if the wheels are out of true when
you receive the bike? They may have been true when shipped, but
shipping itself can cause wheels to go out of true (most "on the floor"
bikes come with machine-assembled wheels, which are much harder to
maintain -- but cheaper -- than handbuilt wheels). Also, you pay the
shipping, which I believe runs $30 to $45 for one or two bikes.
Hope this helps.
|
| 'Way back when I was in the biz, we sold everything for 20% over
wholesale. Overhead (salaries (ha!) for employees, rent, shipping, etc.)
ran to approx. 17-18%, according to the last figures I saw. We
distinctly did NOT offer discounts, as doing so would've meant we were
selling below cost! Our prices were typically 10% or so below the
competition, but that varied widely per item. Also, we ran a REAL low
overhead operation - instead of shipping special orders, we'd ask
friends to pick up bikes for us at our other shops if they were visiting
their folks for a weekend, etc.... So I'd expect that o.h. figures for
other shops would tend to be higher.
Bottom line is, I wouldn't expect much of a discount & I personally
wouldn't trust a shop that gave me much of one! :-)
ken
|
| Some bike stores offer discounts (typically 10%) to members of
nearby bike clubs. I was at Belmont Wheelworks (my favorite shop)
yesterday, and they said that to get the bike club discount you
have to pay cash. Fair enough, it saves them the several percent
that a credit card costs them.
After doing a lot of catalog buying it was really nice to be in a
shop that had a much larger selection than the catalogs, and had
people who could give good advice.
--David
|