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.

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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.

The True Definition of Bike Shop Marketing

Merriam-Webster defines marketing as “The activities that are involved in making people aware of a company’s products, making sure that the products are available to be bought, etc.” I would confidently say that this is the most boring definition of marketing I have ever read. Instead I believe that effective marketing- unlike advertising or branding -means only doing two things.

1. Maintain a positive connection with customers.

2. Be extremely helpful.

How do you maintain a positive connection? How are you being extremely helpful?

Thanks for reading. If you found this valuable, it would be great if you shared it. Thanks- Donny

Getting Paid Hourly? 5 Ways You Can Get Screwed!

If you’re working for a bike shop and getting paid hourly there are some things you should be aware of.

1. Minimum wage in the US as of 2009 is $7.25 an hour. Anything less is illegal.

2. Your boss is not required to pay overtime for Saturdays, Sundays or holidays unless you went over the forty hour mark on those days.

3. If you’re under 20 years old it is legal to pay you $4.25 per hour for the first 90 days of employment. Luckily it is illegal to terminate someone making $7.25 or more and replace them with an employee making $4.25.

4. Many states do not require breaks or meal periods for hourly employees.

5. While the laws are very clear that overtime happens after 40 hours in a seven day period, it is not so clear on how many hours per day before overtime is required. Working 11 hours in one day may not equal 3 hours of overtime.

If you’re an owner or manager- don’t be a jerk, don’t do these things.

In the US, you can learn more about the labor rights by visiting the Department of Labor. 

Thanks for reading. If you found this article valuable I would appreciate it if you shared it on your social channels. Thanks- Donny