Specialized
made headlines in late January when it announced that it would begin selling directly to consumers, an announcement that had many speculating about the implications of that decision for local bike shops and for the industry as a whole – in which Specialized plays a massive part.
The direct-to-consumer move has industry experts and couch pundits alike tossing out everything from valid concerns (that life will now become harder for independent bike shops) to catastrophic accusations that Specialized is singlehandedly corrupting the bike industry. (It’s not that simple. It never is.)
Specialized’s decision to sell directly to consumers is another move in a series of interconnected bike industry happenings: a proxy turf war in which Specialized, Trek, and other players such Pon Holdings try to establish themselves geographically with strategic retail shop purchases; Specialized entering its next phase of life marked by a
new CEO after 48 years led by Mike Sinyard; and the Covid bike boom and resulting parts shortages as a backdrop to all of that, adding record-high levels of cash flow but even higher levels of uncertainty and stress to the bike industry.
The concerns are obviously grounded: one of the largest bike brands on the planet selling directly to consumers may leave retailers high and dry. In a time when bikes are in short supply, too, having Specialized increase its online sales makes stocking bikes even tougher than it already is, since an allotment of Specialized bikes is now being held for online sales only.
I wanted to hear some opinions directly from those affected, so I reached out to a scattering of Specialized dealers all across the US. For obvious reasons, the shop employees who are unhappy about the shift requested anonymity, but below are a selection of their comments.
| Every Specialized shop is concerned with their recent moves and overstep in their asks. How we each handle our relationship with Specialized is different. Whether we say it we are concerned and upset. That being said our shop philosophy is ‘wait and see’. We are going to do the best we can with what we have. They do make very good bikes. Arguably the best ebikes on the market. As a dealer there is no one brand that offers the breadth of products and categories that Specialized offers. We would be VERY challenged with trying to cobble together an ebike presentation. No one else can supply the quantity of bikes that Specialized does. As challenging as they've always been to partner with, they've never been so odious that I'd seriously consider ending the relationship.—An anonymous Specialized shop representative |
| Long term, Specialized is going down a path that will continue to erode dealers' trust. Specialized grew to where it is today by partnering with dealers, but now they are treating dealers like a necessary evil. The lack of trust is self-fulfilling. Treat dealers poorly & dealers will not be happy and will shift energy to other brands.—An anonymous Specialized shop representative |
| Specialized has done nothing new to make dealers feel good about their relationship. All brands have reduced margin, and other benefits, but it still hurts.—An anonymous Specialized shop representative |
| The consumer direct frankly sucks. Specialized already directs and reserves inventory for Specialized.com. It limits the available inventory for independent Specialized bike shops. Specialized owned shops are being built and will further reduce the available bikes. Since there is no transparency to how inventory is allocated it does generate suspicion and ill will. We have customers that are waiting months to a year for a bike that I can't give an expected delivery date for. Compounded by the fact that the bike might show up on Specialized.com many months before the projected delivery date to us.—An anonymous Specialized shop representative |
Trust was a common thread among the responses. More than one dealer said it felt as if the rug was pulled from under them - that they'd counted on Specialized to continue being a substantial part of their sales, and the shift in Specialized's business model made them very, very nervous. They don't feel as if they were considered in the move or given enough heads up to plan for a change in their Specialized sales (though, to be fair, there have been numerous changes in sales all across the bike industry without anyone's knowledge or consent in the last two years).
One shop said that to sidestep the awkwardness of having bikes become available online before they become available to shops, the shop recommends that its customers sign up to be notified when Specialized stock becomes available online because the shop itself can't get them. At least then, if a customer finds the bike they want online, they can order it for click-and-collect at the shop. Another shop owner said they believe some retailers are buying bikes online from Specialized to fulfill customer orders because it's better than keeping their customers waiting for months while their bikes appear available online. It’s embarrassing, a shop representative told me, to have customers come into the shop looking to purchase a bike they saw available online and have no means of getting it into the shop anytime soon.
Everyone I spoke with said it's too soon to know how Specialized's direct sales will affect the brick-and-mortar dealers.
Still, some shops that had strong relationships with Specialized prior to the move have maintained their positive relationships. Kyle McKendree, General Manager of Absolute Bikes in Flagstaff, AZ, said that the direct-to-consumer shift will be tougher for small shops than for large ones to weather. "In our industry, it seems the bigger you are, the easier it has been to adapt to supply issues and the changing demands of suppliers," he explained. "With Specialized having different dealer tiers, large dealers like us have benefited while my friend's smaller store has had to get really creative to survive. Different markets are also going to be affected differently."
For small shops, losing access to an amount of product could be devastating, though, interestingly, Ian Hughes of Vielo voiced an
almost opposite take in a chat with CyclingIndustry.News. The bottom line is that we don't really know how this will play out.
For all shops, small and large, the change represents the evolving role of bike shops in general. The employees at Absolute Bikes, which has a shop in not only Flagstaff but in the ultra-touristy Sedona, are used to helping customers they've never met and with whom they have no existing relationship. As sales shift online, increasing numbers of customers will rely on shops only when they need hands-on service, and shops will have to adapt to that new normal.
"It adds another level of complexity as we are expected to take care of every Specialized customer. Having shops in destination locations means this is not new to us. We are constantly helping customers that we have never met before. Sometimes it's easier and other times it's not," McKendree said. "But when we can make or break a customer's vacation we try our best to help. It will be no different with D2C customers. If we give them exceptional service it will grow our business one way or another."
It's tough to boil the complex problem down enough to say which sales channels are best for consumers, but some valuable pieces of that problem include availability of bikes (where direct-to-consumer sales shine thanks to geographic flexibility), access to service (yet another reason we need bike shops to stay around), price (self-explanatory - things will typically be less expensive online), and the overall experience of paying for bike-related goods and services (as some riders love to visit their shop friends while others may avoid the bike shop scene at all costs.) In some cases, the benefits for companies like Specialized of direct-to-consumer sales will be passed on to the consumers in the forms of stock availability and pricing, largely because the direct sales channels grant companies more accurate forecasting data and the ability to invest more specifically in what their customers will actually want.
Another reason it may be - no, definitely is - strategic for Specialized to go direct-to-consumer is the increasing scarcity of brick-and-mortar shops through which a bike brand can sell. Securing a business relationship with a shop isn't as simple as sending an email, becoming buddies, and selling some bikes, especially considering how much competition is out there among bike brands for retail dominance. It's a cutthroat world, baby. But actually. Selling online, directly to consumers, sidesteps the geographic dominance issues and creates an alternate channel to the retailer buyout battle.
Rick Vosper, in an
analysis piece on our sister site Bicycle Retailer, explained the situation as such:
| [Pon brands struggling to get enough retailers to carry their products] speaks to the business model I’ve long called Bike 3.0. The strategy of the top three bike companies - Trek, Specialized and Giant, but especially Trek and Specialized - has been to try to control the market by locking down floor space with top retailers, preventing competing bike brands from establishing a significant sales volume with those dealers.—Rick Vosper |
And while many retailers are rolling with the punches and sticking with Specialized, there have already been some notable instances of retailers cutting ties with the company - and some examples of it happening the other way around, with Specialized deciding to part ways with former shops.
Alpha Bikes, a major German retailer that has operated a Specialized Concept Store since 2008, recently announced that
it will switch to selling Giant products this July, spurred by Specialized's direct-to-consumer change.
Another case study of an interesting Specialized situation happened last fall with Mike's Bikes, a Northern Californian behemoth bike retail chain that
was definitively one of the
top 10 independent bike dealers in the US.
However, Mike's Bikes sold to Pon Holdings, the Dutch parent company of numerous bike, mobility, and auto brands including Santa Cruz, Cervelo, and - as of
last October's $810 million deal - the Dorel Group, which owns Cannondale, GT, Schwinn, and much more. Though it’s hard to know where to draw the boundaries around these company conglomerates, Pon may well be the largest bike group in the world, beyond even the scale of Specialized and Trek. Here's where the story becomes a little chaotic. In response to the Mike's Bikes sale, Specialized pulled its brand from Mike's Bikes stores, slashing its San Francisco Bay Area S-Works dealers by a full third. In an email sent to inform its customers of the change, Mike's Bikes wrote of Specialized, "They later notified us that they would also be canceling the orders of over 400 customers who had bought and paid for their bikes in advance. They further informed us that as of October 31, they will no longer provide manufacturer warranty support through Mike’s Bikes for the many thousands of Specialized bikes that we’ve sold."
Meanwhile, Pon said in a statement, "The acquisition of Mike's Bikes aligns with Pon's strategy to expand its retail operations in North America by acquiring premier specialty retail brands in top markets," which seems like quite the acknowledgment of the geographic competition with Specialized and Trek. (It's also
rumored, but unconfirmed, that Specialized tried to buy Mike's Bikes and was turned down.)
For a bit of context, Pon deals largely in the automotive industry and can claim more than 20% of the Dutch personal vehicle market share, according to
its website, and has long been a leading importer and exporter of vehicles including Volkswagen and Audi. In 2017, Pon bought a chain of 10 luxury car dealerships in the US that sell - you guessed it - Volkswagen and Audi, among other brands. History repeats itself once in a while, and if we're to learn to read the patterns, it wouldn't be a surprise to see Pon strategically buying out retail shops and, eventually, crowding out the other brands those shops carry as it instead encourages them to focus on Cannondale and Santa Cruz. Which brings us back to Mike's Bikes.
Soon after the split from Specialized, Mike's Bikes reached an agreement with Giant that it would carry Giant bikes going forward. But with Pon having acquired the Mike's Bikes
and Dorel Sports (Cannondale et al.), Giant, in Vosper's words, should be "very, very nervous." And Specialized has definitely lost some ground.
Even if nothing happens to sour the business relationship between Specialized and a given shop, the battle for shop space and the ebb and flow of all the confounding variables mean that there's lots of flux, and nothing seems particularly secure.
One example of such business shifts is in the case of the shop formerly known as Roseville Cyclery, now Mike's Bikes of Roseville. Until this winter, Roseville Cyclery was a leading click-and-collect seller for Specialized in Northern California. The shop always had a positive relationship with Specialized that began when shop owner Oliver Bell bought his first mountain bike, a Specialized Hardrock, in 1987. "I've been a huge proponent of the brand for as long as I can remember," Bell said. He and his wife opened their shop in 2013 and thrived by carrying predominantly Specialized and Santa Cruz. Then, the pandemic hit. Although by many counts his shop flourished - business rose 86% from 2019 to 2020 - the constant stress of managing unprecedented demand became overwhelming and exhausting, and he began to consider selling the shop last summer.
He sold it to Mike's Bikes, which he said gives the shop access to more inventory and stronger infrastructure than ever before. "We're going to be the same but better," he said.
However, the shop’s business relationship with Specialized - which had nothing to do with the sale - was caught in the crossfire, and as soon as Bell notified Specialized of the sale, Specialized removed itself from the shop. It's only business, but still a loss, arguably, for all parties.
On a somewhat related note, Specialized recently
bought an office building in Auburn, CA, roughly a 20-minute drive from Mikes's Bikes of Roseville. It appears likely that there's a new Specialized branded store on the way.
Situations like the Mike's Bikes story - business relationships ending not only because of the bike shop turf war but because of widespread and omnipresent upheaval throughout the bike industry thanks to the pandemic and its influx of new riders - plus the intense growth of direct-sales brands like Canyon, which plans on even more growth if we're to judge from the fact that Canyon recently brought on a
former Nike executive as its new CEO, have meant that the writing's been on the wall about Specialized changing its sales model, some say. Throw in massive supply chain disruption and pressure to keep prices competitive with direct-sales brands… Specialized is a corporation, and god forbid, its singular reason for existence is to sell bikes. It’s doing what it takes to sell those bikes.
"Not a single manufacturer has been handling the supply and demand problems the same," McKendree said. "So at the IBD level we have had to adapt to each one of them. It’s easier with some than others, but all are challenging. So it makes sense that Specialized wants to be able to control how they get product to the consumer. This ensures that at least part of their business will continue under their control. Being diversified in any business venture makes sense."
Still, we’re unlikely to see many (or any) of the other establishment brands follow suit, at least right now.
Right after Specialized announced that it would start selling directly to consumers, Giant took a very different approach: the Giant Group USA
sent a pointed email to its retailers, according to CyclingIndustry.News, that opened with a statement of the importance of local bike shops and strongly denounced Specialized's decision.
"We believe strongly that no one understands a local cycling community more so than your local independent bicycle retailer," the email reads, before skewering direct-to-consumer brands as never having had their customers' backs and emphasizing that the customer service experiences and bike shop relationships will fall by the wayside for brands that go direct-to-consumer.
In response, along with possibly prioritizing brands like Giant that have pledged to stick with the retail model, we'll likely see retailers shift their focus onto their offerings that cannot be found online: namely, service. The role of bike shops is evolving, and the relationships between bike shops and customers will increasingly rely on mechanical work, trail advice, and community support - in fact, the same things that the Big S critics say Specialized is killing. The key is what Bell calls "de-Amazoning," or offering an in-store experience that far surpasses anything customers will find online.
I'm just speculating here, but with the increasing prevalence of e-bikes
and with mechanical service representing a proportionally larger part of what shops do, labor prices may rise. After all, car mechanics are paid at least double what bike mechanics make, even though the jobs aren't all that different. If we claim to value brick-and-mortar shops enough to spark this much outrage at Specialized going direct-to-consumer, maybe we should spare some money for where our mouths are and pay bike shop employees as we would pay any other luxury vehicle expert.
Perhaps paying bike mechanics real currency would serve them better than our paying lip service to our principles.
Buying from LBS not only supports their business, but has many benefits for the consumer. Deals on repairs, tuneups, warranty support, and more. On top of all that, some rad people work in those shops and most will be quick lend a hand or have a nice converasation. If there was substantial discount via direct online order, it might make the sting hurt less. But this is just salt in the wound!
I do support my local shops (2 in town, both decent) and the local Toyota dealer is a good/easy place to buy a car.
But-bad shops are too commonplace. Some people might only have one nearby shop-but the shop is dishonest/service dept does poor work etc. For customers in that situation, being able to buy direct is a godsend.
- Talk down to their customers
- Have terrible turnaround times
- Mansplain
- Service bikes poorly
As a customer it's F-ing stupid that I could look online and see a black XL Stumpy Evo Expert sitting on a sales floor in Florida or Pittsburgh but couldn't find the same one available in my state or any surrounding states to buy and the one I had on order from the local shop not showing up month after month after month. (and that started before the covid craziness got into full swing) It sucks that the shop can't help that. But as a customer I just want my bike, If there is a better and easier way for me to get it then...?
IMO there will always be a place for shops, I'd rather try before I buy or better yet demo for a few days. BUT "IF" I have to order something anyway, then I don't see the point of having to go through someone else to do that??
Buddy bought a bike from Specialized, on top of the purchase price it was $50 to ship the bike from Specialized to the local Specialized dealer who put it together and got it ready to go for him. This implies to me there would be some kind of fixed fee arrangement to handle receiving and set up.
If the shop is getting their receiving costs covered, and still bringing folks in that will likely buy "other stuff" (with higher margins) when picking up, it seems like a win. Sure the dealer isn't getting the margin on the bike itself, but it also means they aren't having to front the capital to stock (as much) and aren't taking the hit on last years models that haven't moved.
Businesses are seeing online sales increase (Amazon just surpassed Walmart in sales), and foot traffic drop in retail stores. This is the future, embrace or lose. I don't go to many to stores in person except for food.
www.caranddriver.com/news/a37187201/ford-build-to-order-online-ordering-changes
…...now send me that new Demo please and I’ll take it from there.
I’m happy to not pay them a penny.
60% huh. Really? Where did you come up with that number?
Tell ya what, the next time you’re feeling “talked down” to or “mansplained” to, why not stand up for yourself and explain your side of the conversation?
I imagine most of that is a sales-person just trying to do their job and perhaps they’re just not that great at it (yet). Maybe that sales-person has Zero idea of your level of competence, and tada, tries to sell you on something and you’re feeling get hurt for some reason.
Instead of Allowing your victim-panties to get twisted, stop taking everything so damn personal.
Poor service or repairs? Tell them. Help them grow and learn as an employee and become a better business.
Poor turn-around times? Perhaps ask why. You might learn this world doesn’t revolve around you.
Conversations > wanting to be the King Comment bitcher.
The dealer gets half the margin that they would if they sold the bike themselves.
The bike is decently pre-assembled, but there's still plenty that can get messed up by the consumer. Specialized does throw in a torque wrench with the bike, whether sent to the home or to the shop, when purchased from their site.
Personally, I would love to pick up Specialized and stock none of their bikes. They make great parts and accessories. The shops sitting on 5000sqft of floor space are going to be the ones hurting.
Its not 60%. Its 100%.
I recently decided to get something new. Every single shop I went to in my region was arrogant and treated me like some total muppet.
I have been riding decades and worked in a shop as not just the mechanic but the manager. There is no way I would support my lbs’s. I do not need them. Their absence is of no consequence to me. They are responsible for their own demise. Such a shame.
For the 3rd time now, I bought on line from one of the many small UK brands that make amazing bikes and deliver amazing customer service.
Dilemma is: most LBS just barely get enough margin to make a living.
I think most start passionate and all but quickly realize that there is just not enough money to be made and watch their investment gets burnt down.
So here it begins:
Mood deteriorates, employee motivation sinks, some compensation by passionate (and unterpaid) mechanics, price increases for little drive-by services which annoys customers, plus 1000 other reasons which put stress factors in daily business.
Not just common to bike shops btw.
It's just too easy to lug around virtually everything around the country or globe. Kills local economies/stores. Allows the big dogs to outgrow the smaller ones. And it will continue to go down that path.
- tell them the facts
- don't drop the 30 bikes waiting to be repaired to fix yours immediately.
- tell you what's actually the problem rather than what you would like it to be.
- don't do a full strip and rebuild of your bike when all you have asked and paid for is a new innertube.
the problem comes when a bike has an issue and the customer that had their bike direct expects the dealer to do any remedial work for free.
contrary to what you may think the manufacturers don't compensate shops for labour.
I do like my local small Specialized shop and have a bought a bike there. I hope they stick around.
If the dude has a Ukrainian flag next to his name, it is a list a possibility that he has experience in a different culture than what you're used to (snobbery in places you might not expect). And then, why try to mask your being a total c*nt with a pretentious "Cheers?"
Have the consumer bike prices gone down after launching the direct to consumer model?
Nope (actually many are up).
Without having to include a dealer margin does the profit for Specialized now go up by quite a bit?
Yep!
Speshy has a long and storied history of screwing over dealers (and coffee shops, suspension companies, and anyone else they can possibly sue).
I for one look forward to the culling of shitty LBS and their attitudes.
What's interesting for me is a "great bike shop" becomes a "terrible bike shop" when they have one employee who acts like a jerk. When I ask to talk to the head mech - who is the only person more skilled than I - some idiot that can't convert imperial torque specs insists he can tell me what's up. Ugh.
For consumers, it’ll mean easier access to bikes. Considering Giant dealers can’t order bikes and are pushing their customers to order the bikes online for local pickup, just ordering direct will be easier.
With any brand at this point, being a stocking dealer is a joke. Shops are putting in orders over a year in advance for products they won’t see or will get out of season (Rock Mountain didn’t ship their winter fat bikes orders this year until winter was over).
Much as I dislike the business practices of the red S, the whole market is shifting away from people going to their local shop to get a bike. That’s not changing.
I suspect shops with good customer service will weather these changes and stay profitable-bikes aren’t a loss leader but the margins aren’t great. All those folks who just bought a new Stumpy Evo will still need their bike serviced.
I bought a Specialized last year, and used their "Buy online, ship to the store" process. Why? Because of course bike shortage, but I called several Specialized dealers asking if they had my size (XL, or whatever the S* equivalent is) in stock and got negative responses. Of 4 shops I called, only 1 offered to place an order from Specialized, and they couldn't give me any indication of how long it would take, citing the supply chain issues we're all aware of.
However Specialized's website showed the bike was available in stock in my size. I was able to order it and it arrived within a week to one of the dealers I hadn't called. I went to pick it up and the salesman mentioned that they already had it in stock. My bad, but I'm not going to call all 12 dealers in Portland after hearing about supply chain issues from the first 4. The ordering and delivery process was super easy and smooth.
I like my LBS. I like supporting local businesses even though I am an evil capitalist at heart. But, for me at least, the LBS is just inconvenient and expensive. I needed a bolt (a single bolt) and my LBS wanted to charge me $20 + $10 special order fee. Plus I have to go back to the LBS (again, 45 minute drive..) to pick it up. Or, for $4.95, I order it from JensonUSA or BikeTiresDirect (which, humorously, is technically an LBS for me).
I don't have a solution. I'm not a particularly big fan of ordering a $5000 item online without a local shop backing it. But then again, I have *never* been blown away by the service I've gotten at *any* of the LBS in Portland. And from what I understand we tend to have pretty good shops. Like the time I paid $800 for a complete overhaul of my MTB and got it back with a leaky dropper post and my fork's setup having been completely changed.
This is to say, There will be more incentive for the shops to service and fix these bikes, Highlighting how when the owner would otherwise need to ship the bike or part, or go through a lengthy shipping and warranty process, they could simply bring it to a shop and get it fixed right away.
On that note, I'll give a shout out to Pedal House and All Terrain Sports in Laramie-both shops are honest, do good work, and support community events. I've bought bikes from both and will continue to do so when they can get what I need!!
But... last year my family bought five bikes and only one was from the LBS... they simply didn't have the size/model/color I needed. Size and model being essential choices with this sort of investment. Plus, anything you buy there is full retail. I have even been to good bike shops before that gouged prices on parts, I don't know why they would do that.
So between doing almost all repairs and upgrades myself, and always shopping online for convenience, lower prices and selection, I feel for bike shops, I really do. I hope they stick around because they are awesome but it must be a real challenge. I think there is so much pressure for LBSs to compete with large online retailers. I would like to support my LBS exclusively, but the costs in time and money are really high compared to online, especially if you are a competent home mechanic.
there are some success stories and people who have found a healthy niche. making a really impressive go at it. from what I observe, you need to have the control - product/service and culture. of course, you need to be wily enough to find that market, cater to it and keep it. no small task.
IMO if you care about bike culture, you should come to dig days, support your trail systems/associations, ride your local bike park, and help out newcomers you see struggling.
www.transitionbikes.com/OurCommitment.cfm
- 2017 - Buy direct to consumer bike for $4k. wrench myself - kind of fun, but not worth the time. wait for 3 weeks for a response from DTC company to take care of anything - replacing defective shock it shipped with, send spare hangers I ordered, etc.
- 2019 - Buy sweet $7.5k bike from LBS. Awesome staff, awesome service - I'm stoked.
- 2020 - Return to LBS for service, whole staff has turned over. New staff has total condescending ahole vibe, work on my bike is 1/2 complete when I go to pick it up, suspect they didn't do some requested suspension work, etc. Very unhappy.
The benefits of a LBS bike depends on the service you get from them, which depends on the people. I paid extra for a LBS bike so that I had knowledgeable ppl who could work on my bike and would be cool about it. But when you feel like the LBS is full of untrustworthy, arrogant people that are ripping you off, it's really hard to advocate going the LBS route vs. saving money and wrenching for yourself on a DTC bike. These small businesses really need to teach their staffs how to add value to and appropriately interact with customers or else the DTC is going to smoke them.
I think as these large brands go this direction the smaller brands will get more shop love. Guess we'll see.
I don't know why Canyon gets so much hype. Nobody under 40 rides Canyon. Polygon and YT are way way more popular for kids, teens and young adults, at least from what I see in my area.
Specialized has been good for shops because you know they'll sell. Similar to Santa Cruz or even Trek in some regions. They have stock and they sell. It's my understanding that you have to shell out quite a bit of cash to get started with the big S.
I think with all these direct to consumer companies one of the other things you'll start to see is LESS bike shops full of bikes. I think you'll end up with boutique shops and service shops. You'll have big building ships with huge selections of brands and a high end presentation. And then you'll have shops that pivot away from that and have smaller scale shops focusing on service and repair.... and building those direct to consumer bikes for people. Think.... dream builds in your LBS format.
Do they sell good products? Absolutely.
Do they sell the best products? Nope.
Do they sell any products that are a better value than other brands' products? Nope.
Specialized's only real benefit is that someone could walk into a shop with little to no knowledge or market research, buy Specialized branded bikes and kit and gear and parts, and know they are getting something good. Not the best, not the best deal, but good. Without the LBS support Specialized is just another generic brand.
You really just compared an Auto Mechanic to a Kid at the bike store?
Not saying the two jobs are the same, obviously one requires some vocational training and a more significant time investment than the other, but a good mechanic is a good mechanic in a lot of cases. Most of the time it comes down to understanding how things work (we call that "experience") and being able to interpret instructions in a technical manner if it's something you haven't done before. Not to mention a feel for when to STOP and try something else.
As a customer I prefer no spesh because they carry a wider variety of brands now.
www.reddit.com/r/BAbike/comments/pjaycs/mikes_bikes_bought_by_pon_group_no_more
"...They've been a great partner, but our relationship with them has ended as they undergo new ownership by a European cycling company."
When reading it just seemed odd to reference they were a "European" cycling company. I doubt they would have said "American cycling company" if it had been another American owned company, so just struck me as an odd thing to include. Perhaps I read too much into it.
Every single bike shop in my city has either ripped me off, treated me like crap, or talked down to me and made me feel like an idiot before it inevitably transpired that they were the ones who didn't know what they were talking about. Higher prices AND crap customer service?? No chance pal.
If you open a shop of any sort you're buying into capitalism as a system - and that means you take the ups and the downs. The market decides who succeeds, we owe you nothing. If you want my business then offer something to earn it. If I can get the same product online for less and faster and with better service why on earth wouldn't I? If you don't like that upgrade what you can offer or accept that your business can't keep up, stop winging about it. You bought into the whims of the market when you opened your shop so stop complaining just because it might not be going your way right now. Do something about it or accept there's no place for your business model anymore.
Well done specialized for updating their business model to move with the times.
If you've got an awesome LBS near you then that's great, maybe you feel like you owe them and you want to keep them going, that's ace, lucky you. A lot of us don't, a lot of us are served by charlatans and I'm sick of the story that they're heroes who deserve to exist. They're rude, obnoxious con artists and they can F off. Direct to consumer is a god send.
If I were an LBS principal, I'd be looking to get an offer from a manufacturer for a buyout ASAP. Like it or not (mostly not), this is how it will be.
The well-run, professional shops will get offers first, and then the others will either eventually, or just close up.
It's A Strategy (TM), as the kids say.
I don't love it but I get it.
I will happily keep taking my bike to one of the several LBS around me, as long as they continue to perform services I don't have time or tools for. Unfortunately I couldn't find anyone to service fox suspension (2021 uppers and air can, nothing boutique) a month ago. Of the 4 shops I spoke with, they all said it would be 5 weeks+ because they would have to send it directly to fox. I can do that myself...
Preposterous. That would never happen.
If I was a shop carrying Specialized or other brands that are scaling up direct to consumer sales, I would look to scale back what I have on my floor from those companies. Shops that have a great guided sales process will win over those who don't (I can think of two local shops that fall into these categories).
As others have stated, the money is in service and other goods anyways.
I think some of the mid-market brands will adopt this strategy in order to keep up with the big guys. They don't want to now, but when we return to the days of bike brands having yearly inventory at all times, it only makes sense. If a brand has a qualified network of approved smaller shops why wouldn't they want EVERY one of them to be a potential destination for the inventory to land. Pivot, Niner, Revel, etc. seem like brands that could/should do this eventually.
Cut out the middle man & spoke to spesh directly & its sorted a few days later. IMO the local dealers didn't really show any value, was easier to just go direct.
But i have lived for a long period of my life in a town in which when someone wanted to buy a specialized he should visit the local shop, then the local shop contact the central dealer e.t.c
both shops are official specialized dealers but it looked that everything ran through the main dealer.Who is mainly the one who imports the bikes in the country.
Many times people used to contact the local shops in other big towns in order to get things run faster.
And sometimes buyers went even a trip to the neighbour country because the dealer there seemed to have better access on specialized bikes.
Can you imagine what the customers are going through in situations like e.g Warranty claims ?
That is why i find this move better for the end consumer.
Last price i was given was 250€...When the materials cost almost 30€ ....
Or maybe another example: what is the profit when you are selling one liter of bike shampoo 14€ , when online you can get it fo 8-9 € ?
Most of bikeshops here do not have a place to keep your bike for service as well..
I would love to hear a number regarding the profit of selling a bike. Is it 5%-10% or more? just an example since the percents can vary for many reasons.
That said, all companies and shops are in this business to make money - some are greedier than others (Specialized), but maybe this will open some doors for other companies to move in and find more of a footprint via shop relationships where Specialized leaves a void? Optimism is hard.
Try something as simple as removing your exhaust system mate and you'll change your mind
Almost wasted his time and spacealized.
Why do you think they double up their sales programs and go this way.?
I certainly don't want my hobby to become similarly expensive as owning a damn car. Instead, I truly hope that prices are gonna come down again, and that bikes and its components have a focus on easy servicing, that could also be done by a layman.
Biking should be accessible to anyone, no matter your income!
Service is a huge asset to shops being successful. It’s how we really make money. Selling bikes and accessories is great, and can be profitable, but the bikes themselves are never great margins anymore. If you can invest in brands that keep it real and want to sell thru shops, great. Also selling accessories that follow MAP pricing guidelines is key so someone doesn’t usually find it for cheaper online. But at the end of the day, service and a good attitude is what will keep shops around. That, and investing in your communities so they invest back in you. If someone walks in with something they bought online and wants you to assemble or service it, be polite and make money off your intellectual property and time, and always charge something for service.
Definitely not defending the idea of cutting out the middle man, but it’s not a new concept, and shops unfortunately just have to find ways to stay relevant.
www.specialized.com/us/en/suspension-calculator/app
Sounds like an opinion of someone that is not educated in automotive technology or service practices. More moving hard parts and electronic modules in a single door panel. Lol
Just sayin.
I also feel that although the pandemic revealed the ugly truth about the worlds interdependent and fragile supply chain--this was an anomaly, along with the unprecedented demand for bikes. As we go into the current market of high inflation and after the supply chain has caught up to the lingering post pandemic demand we may see a nice glut of most goods which was the norm to in the bike industry. Hello year end discount sales, demo bikes, and more good deals.
Bike shop A: “our service department is first come first serve… You need to drop your bike off and right now we are about two weeks behind before we can work on it. We will call you when it’s done.”
Bike shop B: “We are three and a half weeks out”
Bike shop C: Online SL purchase went to LBS…LBS concealed delivery/tracking… LBS finished the build two weeks after delivery”
Summary: Customer service in local bike shops has gone the way of the dodo… Specialized recognized this and is now giving consumers the option of dealing with them direct. WIN WIN for consumers.
Its a shame when you have great bike shops that are fun to go to and chat with the team. My last bike came mail order (from a bike shop across the country). Thing is with so much info available online its easy for people to research and decide what they want, then order online.
Tough times ahead for dealerships/bike shops
But hey maybe I’m wrong and specialized is trying to just make their top dogs the next Jeff bezos
It’s a direct to consumer model now. The winners will be the best customer service company/logistics
Especially since she regularly hits 20 foot gaps and monster trucks basketball rock gardens on the ews circuit. (Sarcasm here)
"It fits you perfect!" As she is pedaling around the parking lot with sag set for a 250lb guy.
We left, bought a great trail bike same brand, right size on jensen and saved 1000 bucks on a 3000 bike from his price. Same fricken bike. Came with a shock pump and delivered in under 7 days.
My local mechanic moonlights in his yard with full park tools and does all our work so good and so cheap I tip him an extra hundred. We both come out better.
I know the work is done right. I wont set foot in the shop he works at. It is full of ebike rentals for screaming down the bikepath at mach schnell.
"The Galactic Empire is doomed and will fall within five hundred years. Following that event, a period of thirty thousand years of war and barbarism will follow."
H.S.
For those that argue "that's how business works in America" you're right, and it sucks, and that's why you can't treat these companies with any degree of sentimentality. It feels like a garbage bully situation where brands say "this is how it's going to be, so you either say yes or you don't get bikes" and shops have very little choice. As part of a generation that has emphasized and educated people on the importance of consent, it really feels like Specialized is f***ing you without you agreeing to any of it and it's just gross capitalism.
Look at what these companies DO, not what they SAY. The dollar is the SINGULAR FOCUS once a company gets to a certain size, so don't let any amount of marketing bullshit or sentimental statements try to convince you otherwise. Get your bike, ride it for what it is, but remember those f***ers will do anything to continue growth and increase profits. They do not care about you or your shop.
Clearly we're not the only shop that has had this happen to them: bikes that had already been promised to us and thus our customers being pulled out of distribution for specialized's direct sales inventory.
The salt in the wound then is that just about every week for the last several months we've gotten a story in the retailer newsletter about another shop being bought outright by speci, painted as some feel-good nonsense about "another shop joining the family", when I know what that will really means: another shop getting eaten to be one of specialized's factory stores that I'm sure the company will prioritize for distribution over their traditional B2B retailers.
Needless to say I'm pissed at the big S these days
It's probably unreasonable to expect visionary industry leadership to emerge whereby standards are competently set or technology evolves much past finely tuned, but century old claptrap. Yeah, it's depressing, but there are individuals with the right stuff. Typically, though, they are not in the right places with the right resources. If you think of the Athertons' team or the work Rob Metz is doing, there are rays of hope. But rays of hope can't fix rear axle standards, approximate tire sizing, misleading component weights.
Am I exaggerating? Where else can you find such a leaderless mess of imperial mixed with metric, bizarre standards, and nearly inscrutable paradoxes like "clip in with clipless"? Any industry that would actually sell and promote press fit bottom brackets or unified rear triangles should be expected to be "completely, perfectly, and incandescently" incompetent.
So just sit back and laugh while the clown show continues to put front derailleurs on thousand dollar bikes and sources LCC components that actually don't work. (You know who I'm talking about Kona/Alhonga)
The good news? Calvin at Park Tools should be getting huge company bonuses for years to come as folks turn away from the mess and take care of their own problems.
I assume most bike shops don't require licensed mechanics ....do they?
But overall I guess the statement is true. Apples and oranges aren't that different after all.
The LBS might see things from a different perspective. Customers won't blackmail them anymore while they will still be screwed by the big S.
LBS must rethink the business model and adopt. After all, running a LBS is a business - neither big S nor the consumers are your friends.
Nothing bad about it, but it's all about money. If you stop leaving your hard earned $ at your LBS, the relationship will chill, at least on their side ;-) and they'll look for new "friends" aka customers with $ in their pockets.
I doubt I have a better chance at getting a deal on a Specialized bike when bought through the website, then I would if I deal with my LBS. Actually, I know this from experience. I started buying bikes from my current LBS 10 years ago. Every....single....bike I have bought I didn't pay MRSP. Parts? I always get standard 20% off. Want some service, I always walk in and drop my bike off and get it at the end of the day. Yes, i spend a bucket load of money at my LBS, but I am going to spend a bucket load anywhere, because I love this sport. If I am going to spend, I spend where I get the deal. How did I get the deal? By building that relationship. Not every customer, that goes to my LBS, gets the same kind of treatment as I do because a) I am spend the time to build the relationship and b) They appreciate I chose to do my business with them as opposed to elsewhere. Do I care if I stop getting deals because I stopped shopping there? Well, no. I probably stopped shopping there for a reason. But, at the end of the day, I stand by my point. You have hell of a better chance getting deals at your LBS than from some website. But you do you, my man.
For example:
Give us $XXX bucks and we will give you access to a pro level video that teaches you how to do a 50hr service on your front fork and send you the parts kit and any specialized tools you'll need for your fork's manufacturer.
Want to true your wheel? Here is a package that includes a video teaching you how to true wheels and the package comes with the tools you'll need. $XXX bucks
Want to bleed your brakes? Here is a package that includes a video teaching you how to do it and comes with any specialized tools you'll need based on your manufacturer. $XXX bucks
Want to press in a new headset?....Here is a video show you how to face your frame and press in the headset, and comes with any specialized tools you'll need to do the job base on your manufacturer.
Your making money on videos, your making money selling tools...I don't understand how anyone isn't wealthy in today's world. Its just easy to make money, if you'll do the work.
Your only competition is mediocre videos on youtube. Heck, use the existing youtube ecosystem of repair vids to make your vids better.
Evolve with the market.
LBS will only die due to lack of innovation.
Always a way to make money...but its much easier for LBS to play victim than to evolve and do the work.
If you're willing to do the work & evolve, its easy to build a business and be wealthy.
Thanks Leggo.
I agree with you that the Status is a good deal ($3k for a complete bike, $1.4k for frame + shock). I looked at the Ripmo AF, but it just got a price hike and they're hard to find or they come with G2 brakes instead of Codes.
As an aside, the shop told me they can order any bike that's in stock on Specialized website, except for the Status.
The average LBS provides way too little value for the huge price differences vs. buying online.
Do you think that the consumer will do what is best for their money and the seller will adapt to sell or die?
Are people so used to being told what to do and being jerked around by narcissistic authoritarians this statement goes without notice?
“If you Keep buying your car parts from Amazon, there won’t be any mechanics to install them!”
Good job!
I'm not saying it's a great move, but it's also not that simple.
At least it's better than YT/Canyon in that consumers will still have dealer support pretty much anywhere in the world. Dealers receive a labour credit for carrying out warranty repairs on Specialized bikes, so there's no reason to ever turn a customer away, regardless of where they bought their bike. Smart. There aren't many brands doing that.
Support your local LBS.
Are all bike shops shitty? Probably like restaurants most are .
I support local business that gives me outstanding service .
BTW if your a prick when you enter the store . They are more than happy to give you shitty service . I know a few bike shops that carry old parts I will never find on the internet. You own a headset facing tool? Build your own wheels ? Want to take on replacing all your frame bearings ? Got all the tools ?
Another tip. If the bike shop is always very busy. Probably a good shop.
Dealing with warranties on line must be so much fun . If I had an online buisness I would laugh at warranties and ignore them. It's easy . Counterfeit parts? Who cares! profits baby profits .
Your username is the name of an assault rifle manufacturer so there really isn't a question of who feels powerless and under-endowed, is there?