Leftovers

Best Bike Shop Business Cards

I'm always pleased when I see bike retailers rethinking the ordinary. For example, Broke Bike Alley in Fernie, BC, Canada has a couple of great new takes on the business card. Both of these cards achieve my two rules of great marketing:

1. Make a personal connection
2. Be very, very helpful.

The first business card doubles as a multi-tool, the second is a tire patch.

Want more? Take a look at Leading Out Retail. This book is a creative look at bicycle retail and teaches retailers simple strategies on how to increase profit through service, what the most important question to ask every customer is, and how to manage the dreaded Timmy Factor.

The Science of Service Menus

A question I challenge many bike retailers to answer is how to get their star services to produce as much revenue as possible while at the same time giving customers more options to buy and a customized service.

The most successful answer I’ve seen executed is to offer four tune-up services instead of one. A menu of one means the customer has no choices. The customer has no way to buy more and the technician has no clear way to upsell the package. Having four tune-up services will appeal to the price conscious shopper, the lost shopper, and the price-is-no-object shopper. Here is an example of a four tier tune-up menu.

Tune-up Menu:

Level 1 Service: $230
Level 2 Service: $100
Level 3 Service: $70
Level 4 Service: $30

First I will explain the psychology of the pricing structure and then I will present ideas for what can be included in each service.

Retailers who are using this pricing structure have shown the most popular selling items on the menu will be Level 2 and Level 3. With the scale tipping just slightly toward the Level 3 Service. Level 1 takes roughly 10% of the orders and Level 4 takes only 5%. When compared to an $80 tune-up, we can break down the potential growth:

$80 x 100 sales = $8000

$230 x 10 sales = $2300
$100 x 40 sales = $4000
$70 x 45 sales = $3150
$30 x 5 sales = $150

The second scenario brings in $9600; a 20% growth. So why does this work?

First, Level 4 ($30) service will always be the worst seller. No one wants to purchase the worst option of anything. Level 4 Service is focused on serving the truly price conscious.

Level 1 ($230) will cater to those customers who have purchased high ticket items. If someone buys a $9000 bike they deserve the option to buy a more comparable service than someone who buys a $900 bike. Another way to think of it- when someone buys a Ferrari they understand that servicing the vehicle will cost more than the service on a Toyota. It is acceptable for many people that high ticket items equal high ticket service.

Level 2 and 3 ($100 and $70 respectively) are for customers who are not sure what they want. Notice the gap between these levels is the smallest price gap on the menu. The jump from Level 3 to Level 2 was $10 cheaper than the jump from Level 1 to Level 2. Since the majority of people buy in the middle, we want the middle to have options.

Below is a formula for creating a service menu using these pricing tactics. Start by taking the price of the most popular tune-up, usually between $50-$90 for US retailers, and replace that number with X in the formula below. From there multiply out each level and round out to the nearest 5 or 0.

Level 1: 3.25X
Level 2: 1.5X
Level 3: X
Level 4: 0.45X

Below is three example price structures using this formula.

In this example, if your most popular tune-up price is currently $70, your new menu would have a Level 1 service of $230.

Once the pricing structure is set, the next step is to define what is offered in each service. Here is a recommendation to start with.

Level 4 ($30)

Bike inspection
Bolt/torque check
Lube drivetrain
Inflate tires

In many ways Level 4 Service acts as a quote or estimate. The bike inspection is where the value of this purchase is. Many people who purchase this package will often walk away with an idea of what services need to be done the next time they return.

Level 3 ($70)

Everything in Level 4
Perfect braking
Perfect shifting
Wheel inspection and adjustment

The Level 3 Service is, as many bike retailers would define it, the standard tune-up. Notice that I stayed away from using technical terminology. Telling someone to purchase a “wheel true” can be confusing so I opted for “wheel inspection and adjustment”.

Level 2 ($100)

Everything in Level 3
Remove chain and cassette, clean with solvent
Complete wash, lust, and detailing

Since most people will be choosing between Level 2 and 3, the best carrot is kept in Level 2. Cleaning parts with solvent and offering a wash, lust, and detailing is a huge hook for people to make the jump. Many technicians have spent hours trying to get something to shift properly and when the customer saw the bike they were only excited by how clean it looked. A clean bike is something the customer can see, it makes sense to them. A perfect shifting bike is expected and can’t be enjoyed until after they leave the bike shop.

Level 1 ($230)

Everything in Level 2
New brake pads
New cables
New bar tape or grips
Remove brakes, crankset, and derailleurs- clean with solvent

In order to justify higher prices in the service area begin tying parts to the costs of service. New brake pads, cables, and bar tape or grips are key elements to making the bike work as if it were new off the floor. Someone buying in at this level expects a perfect machine in every way, and these are just the services that will achieve it. It is worth noting that the Level 1 buyer is also the buyer who is most susceptible to additional sales like a new saddle, new tires, or even a new wheelset. If a technician sees the opportunity, they should never be afraid to ask.

In The Way-Back Machine: Bike Retail in 1890s

Arguably the first person to ever combine bicycle sales with shrewd retail savvy was John Wanamaker. Wanamaker was a merchant who lived from 1838 to 1922. Along with being a retailer he was a religious leader, political figure, a pioneer in marketing, and considered by some to be the father of modern advertising. He was born and for most of his life lived in Philadelphia. He has been credited as the first person to ever take out a half and full page ad in a newspaper and the first retail merchant to hire a full time copywriter. While he sold nearly everything such as furniture, clothing, and tools he was also one of the largest bike retailers in the United States at the time.

An advertisement for bicycles from The Wanamaker Store in 1898. Retail experience and education of the sport were just as important to Wanamaker as price.

One of his more notable achievements was being the first major merchant to offer a return policy and establishing the common use of the price tag. Before Wanamaker, prices were constantly changing depending on a number of factors. If the product was in high demand, the price went up. If the store was busy, the price went up. If you were not a regular customer, the price went up. If you were only buying one instead of two, the price went up. If the store owner was having a rough day or just didn’t like you, the price went up. Many customers saw this as an unfair system while the retailers saw it as smart business. In the mind of the retailer, if demand or costs go up then price should go up as well.

Wanamaker had a vision that all shoppers get treated equally and fairly. To do this Wanamaker introduced the price tag. He believed that there should be one price, all the time, no matter who they were or how often they shopped there. This simple strategy won over customers by the thousands and further established Wanamaker as one of the nation’s best retailers.

Another Wanamaker ad from the 1890s, this one focused on price, quality, and selection.

While the price tag is still alive and healthy today, we have never let go of the idea of a marketplace where price tags don’t exist. Customers feel they deserve both a fair price and better pricing if they have demonstrated their willingness to dedicate themselves in some way to the IBR. Wanamaker’s price tag, as it turns out, is a facade. The bike industry has never let go of negotiable or moving pricing structures. Manufacturers offer better terms and pricing based on the volume and inventory purchased. Thousands of retailers will offer different pricing to their customers depending on their amount of purchase, frequency of purchase, or loyalty to the store. Peter Fader may have said it best, "Charging everyone the same thing and treating everyone the same way, as retailers do today, is 'Six Sigma' thinking which is great for producing widgets on a production line, but it makes no sense in a world where customers are inherently different.”

IBRs have built dozens of systems that allow us moveable price tag. Frequent buyer programs, club memberships, buy two get one free, discounted tune-ups in the winter, or buy a bike and get 10% off of accessories. All of these are strategies to relive the glory days of the early 1800s when price tags did not exist.

Some Numbers Comparing Running Retail to Bike Retail

As the bike industry is just beginning to move their catalog of goods online, practically the entire floor of a running store is filled with items that can be purchased from the manufacturer websites- and in many cases it can be found cheaper. In many ways, how a running store is operated today could be a blueprint for how bike retailers may have to operate in the future. So how do running stores stay afloat when everything they sell can be purchased from a phone?

When I ask IBR owners and managers this question, a popular response is that running stores can survive because there are more people running than cycling. They believe the customer base of runners is so much larger that they can work on massive volume. This thinking may be incorrect. Running participation in the US is nearly identical to cycling. In a 2013 study done by the National Sporting Goods Association the number of people participating in cycling or running activities was very similar, with 39.3 million people cycling and 40 million people running. The NSGA classifies participants as those who ride or run at least six times during a calendar year. The NSGA then takes the total number of participants and breaks it up into three categories: frequent, occasional, and infrequent.

Total participants (in millions):
39.3 cycling, 40.03 running

Frequent, more than 110 days per year:
5.35 cycling, 9.22 running

Occasional, 25-109 days per year:
18.55 cycling, 18.56 running

Infrequent, 6-24 days per year:
15.41 cycling, 12.23 running

While the number of runners and number of cyclists may be similar, there is one reason many bike retailers will call out when they are compared to a thriving running stores. There just are not as many running retailers as bike retailers and therefore the running stores command a larger portion of the market. In this instance, they are correct.

According to Leisure Trends Group there are more than 1038 specialty running stores in the US, compared to just over 4000 independent bike retailers. Though it should be noted that Leisure Trend’s numbers only reflect specialty stores, they do not include everyone who is selling running shoes. Those 1038 stores represent approximately 22% percent of all running shoes sold, the remaining 78% is split amongst online retailers, general sporting goods stores, and discount stores. In a similar fashion 74% of bicycles sold in the US are sold by department stores and discount stores.

Do you think bike retail and running retail are similar? Are they the same customer base? Do they have the same challenges ad opportunities?

Please remember to comment and share. Thanks- Donny

Check out my book. Leading Out Retail is a creative look at bicycle retail and teaches retailers simple strategies on how to increase profit through service, what the most important question to ask every customer is, and how to manage the dreaded Timmy Factor.

It's Crazy The Hours That Some Bike Retailers Keep

Should a retailer open their doors earlier or later? Open or closed on Sunday? Retailers are always testing their hours of operations but this may help end the trial and error.

Choosing hours of operations is based on a number of factors including the shopping preferences of customers, potential sales, and fixed costs of staying open. Managers also have to consider the willingness of their staff to work certain hours. Since cost of labor can range up to 20% of an IBR’s total revenue it is crucial that every hour a store is open, it is open for a reason. Either to manage customer purchases or provide a customer service which creates profit later.

To help bike retailers make a more informed decision, in May of 2012 I conducted a study that took a closer look at hours of operations for IBRs in the United States. I sampled hours from a hundred bike retailers from 17 cities in the continental United States and compared them to a hundred other sporting goods retailers in the same cities.

Cities sampled in hours of operation study: Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Salt Lake City, Tucson, Denver, Minneapolis, Des Moines, Kansas City, Oklahoma City, Austin, Chicago, Philadelphia, New York, Asheville, Atlanta, and Miami

Sporting goods retailers open earlier and close later than bike retailers in nearly all cases studied. The most common hours for a bike shop are 10-7 on weekdays, 10-6 on Saturday, and closed on Sunday. For sporting goods retailers the hours were longer in every instance: 10-9 on weekdays, 9-9 on Saturday, and 10-7 on Sunday. This begs the question, are sporting goods retailers providing a better service or taking potential customers from bike retailers?

With these results we learn that bike retailers are open 53 hours per week on average while sporting goods retailers are open 76 hours each week.

Opening earlier or closing later can prove fruitful though. Being the only bike retailer open in a city at 9pm might mean, over time, they will acquire new customers who would usually go to other stores but can’t. If an IBR has a ride that leaves from their store every Saturday at 7am, earlier hours on Saturday would allow them to provide pre-ride services and sell products needed for the ride. These small gestures of good will go a long way. Mellow Johnny’s in Austin, Texas opens their doors at 7am every day except Sunday when it opens at 8am. In a discussion with their manager I learned that business is generally slow in the morning. The customers that do stop by are generally dropping off their bike for repair before their workday begins and they are always grateful.

The study showed that Sunday was the most popular day for bike retailers to be closed with 32% locking the doors, compared to 11% of sporting goods retailers. If an IBR is choosing to close for moral or religious reasons, then by all means, I encourage them to do so. For other, smaller retailers closing down for one day a week may be helpful when attempting to save money. However, closing one day a week means being closed for 52 days a year, almost two months. Any retailer choosing to close one day each week will want to be absolutely sure they are making a smart financial decision.

According to the study the most effective, and possibly lucrative, hours of operation for bike retailers would be 11-8 on weekdays and 8-6 on the weekends. Of course this can vary from one location to another and whatever the hours of operation are retailers would be wise to prove the effectiveness by measuring traffic flow and sales.

Thank you for reading this far. If you found this content valuable, please share. Thanks - Donny

You can find more studies like this in my book! Leading Out Retail is a creative look at bicycle retail and teaches retailers simple strategies on how to increase profit through service, what the most important question to ask every customer is, and how to manage the dreaded Timmy Factor.

Bike Retail in Colombia

I've been in Manizales, Colombia for the past week working with staff from Specialized and retailers from all over the country. In our first session I led management training for SBCU, marketing, and sales leaders in Colombia, Brazil, Mexico, Uruguay, and Chile. The following week the same course was offered in Spanish to 10 retailers from Colombia.

During my stay I've seen a number of bike shops and have had some amazing discussions about the business in this market. It has been very, very interesting.

In Colombia, you will see everything from gorgeous concept stores to small cinder block rooms, no bigger than a couple of bathroom stalls. While I may be biased, I believe the Specialized Concept Stores in Colombia are the best shopping experience for riders. Each store is called Welcome, here are some images of the Welcome Specialized Concept stores.

In general the bike shops operate as they would anywhere else in the world. The biggest difference would be the value placed on service in bike shops. Culturally, service is seen as an evil needed to sell a bike, not a profit center for the business. For example take a look at how much of the total revenue comes from service when compared to the US.

Overall, the trip has been very enlightening. I hope to return soon.

Just Because You Count It, Doesn't Mean It Counts

The greatest trick the internet ever pulled was convincing the world it would be easy to do.

If you want to know the ROI on your Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter feed, if you want to know the value of an impression, or if you want to constantly recreate your social campaigns, I hate to tell you that you're in for a lot of work There is a fallacy that says the internet is easy. That once you start tweeting fans, admiration, and money start rolling in.

It' all a lie. There is no easy button. No one-size-fits-all aggregation tool. There is only hard work combined with a clear vision.

There is an ROI on social, but first you have to understand your marketing strategy for the entire business. You show me the marketing strategy for the company, I will show you the ROI.

Social is not fast. It takes time, dedication, and a continued effort to connect to people you don't know. If you can't add value to someone's life then you're time on social is going to e painful (Hint: adding value is not selling you product. Not yet anyway.)

If you liked this, please consider sharing. Thanks- Donny

Building Staffs' Identity

In retail if you can increase engagement between staff and customers the owners will have two ideal results. First, improved customer service and second, an improved connection between the business and the employee. In bike retail, when this is done well, the person working in the store will be come known as the bike shop guy/gal, people will know where they can find them, they will seek them out to ask questions, and any thought they have that relates to bikes will default to them and, by association, to your business. If your staff known for where they works, if their role becomes part of their identity, they are motivated to stay and to do right by customers.

Here are some steps to take with staff to increase their relationship with customers and the cycling community.

Put them in charge of the local cycling club or team
Have them to attend or lead group rides, races, and other events.
Ask them to lead clinics on coaching, bike repair, or skills training.
Have them to donate their time for trail maintenance.
Ask them to speak about cycling at a nearby school.
Have them manage the sponsorship relationship for a local triathlon.
Set up a coffee station during Bike To Work Week and ask that they run it.

As a manager you want to support anything outside of the bike shop that will support the growth of the cycling community. This is how you will develop social wealth in your staff and earn their dedication and hard work.

Can Bike Mechanic's Afford Anything?

From the outside looking in, being a bike mechanic seems like a pretty plush job. Loose uniform standards, get to work on cool bikes, no one is judging that neck tattoo, and you've got a discount on all the best stuff.

This all assumes thought that you have enough money to live comfortably outside of the bike shop. If not, then it can seem to be a thankless job. I have written about bike technician salaries before- but recently converted some of the research into a quick slide deck. Check it out.

Bike Mechanic Salaries from Donny Perry

If you share this slide deck with your favorite bike mechanic they will love you and think you're cool. No, really, they will. Better share it now! Thanks - Donny

How to Lose Half Your Business in One Easy Step

Walk into a Lululemon and you'll see 10-20% of their floor dedicated to menswear. I know Lululemon wants more men buying their clothing, as of January 2013 only 12% of their sales were to men. So what should Lululemon's first step be? My thought: they should be dedicating more of the store to men.

Retailers get caught in an anti-growth cycle. If the sales of last year don't show opportunity then big investment becomes too risky (especially in the case of a public company like Lululemon). Lulu sales to men are only 12%, so they dedicate 12% of the order and floor space to men, and surprise-surprise that year's sales to men don't top 12% for some reason. If Lululemon wants to attract more men, they're going to have to take a risk and dedicate more of their floor space and marketing toward men.

The reverse is true for many bike retailers. Dedicate 12% of the product mix and retail floor to women then don't be surprised when women's product sales don't break 12%. Sometimes, customers reflect the inventory- not the other way around.

To grow a women's market in bike retail we can;t be afraid to make some serious investments. In product mix, in floor space, in advertising, and in marketing. Women are 51% of the US population and control a large majority of household spending. In some major cities like Los Angeles, New York, and Miami the Gender Gap has flipped and women are earning as much as 19% more than men.

If a retailer is under-serving women, they are under-serving 51% of their potential market.

The first bike retailer that jumps on this, that dedicates 50% or more of their store to women (or even opens a women's only store) will win their local market. At the very least, every female cyclist in the city would visit once. For the right retailer, one visit is all they will need to win them over.

If you found this insightful, it would mean a lot if you shared it. Thank you - Donny