Should Bike Shops Be Selling Men's Underwear?

The world of bike retail is changing, and changing drastically. Is there anything off limits for a bike retailer?

Twenty years from now we will look back upon this decade and we'll have a name for it. Much like we named the Industrial Revolution. We will point to this time and say, "That's when it all changed." In the world of retail the way it is changing is from the merger of manufacturers and retailers. The traditional model of manufacturer to distributor to retailer to customer is dying and in many places is already dead. From now on it will be simply, manufacturer to customer.

Many would look at Target, Wal-Mart, or their neighborhood grocery store as the traditional definition of a retailer. They bring in products made by other people and sell them to consumers. Though when looking closer we realize that more than 50% of what Target and Wal-Mart sell, they manufacture. Every grocery store has their own brand of items. Even Amazon, the world's largest retailer, is a manufacturer of electronic goods, kitchen supplies, books, and much more.

What does this mean for the independent bicycle retailer? It means, more than ever, they should start looking to create products of their own. Controlling the entire value chain. Right now nearly every bike retailer is the owner (or manufacturer) of the services they sell. Going forward they will begin to own their apparel, the shoes, the nutrition, and possibly even the bikes. 

Some retailers will even expand beyond tradition and start selling items we never expected, but with a brilliant cycling twist. Look Mum No Hands in London sells their own band of men's underwear for example.

Underwear sold by Look Mum No Hands

What is the next product you really want to own?

Thanks for taking the time to read this far. If you found value in this piece would you please consider sharing it on social? Thanks again. Donny

Want To Be A Bike Mechanic? You Might Want To Avoid This State.

People don't usually work in bike shops for the money, but this is ridiculous. Here are the highest and lowest paying states for bike mechanics. 

According to Salary.com the median annual salary for a bike technician in the United States is $22,337 (The website refers to bike technicians as "bicycle repairers". I know, it’s horrible.) Compare the bike technicians’ salary to $24,274, the median salary for someone who repairs shoes, $25,188 for janitors, or $29,962 for a groundskeeper or gardener. While I do not intend to demean those other professions I do want to point out that a bike technician’s skill set is just as varied, if not more so.

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When breaking down the median salary by state, California was the leader, followed by New York and New Jersey. Alabama, West Virginia, and Mississippi take the last three spots respectively. 

1. California: $26,983 (San Francisco)
2. New York: $26,045 (New York)
3. New Jersey: $25,509 (Trenton)
4. Alaska: $25,285 (Anchorage)
5. Hawaii: $24,548 (Honolulu)
6. Delaware: $24,436 (Wilmington)
7. Massachusetts: $24,392 (Boston)
8. Washington: $24,101 (Seattle)
9. Connecticut: $23,856 (Hartford)
10. New Hampshire: $23,565 (Nashua)
11. Illinois: $23,431 (Chicago)
12. Michigan: $23,409 (Ann Arbor)
13. Rhode Island: $23,186 (Providence)
14. Maryland: $23,074 (Baltimore)
15. Pennsylvania: $23,007 (Philadelphia)
16. Oregon: $22,828 (Portland)
17. Maine: $22,806 (Portland)
18. Ohio: $22,694 (Cleveland)
19. Louisiana: $22,627 (New Orleans)
20. Colorado: $22,381 (Boulder)
21. Minnesota: $22,337 (Minneapolis-St. Paul)
22. Virginia: $22,314 (Richmond)
23. Georgia: $22,158 (Atlanta)
24. Arizona: $22,158 (Phoenix)
25. Florida: $21,912 (Miami)
26. Nevada: $21,912 (Las Vegas)
27. Indiana: $21,823 (Indianapolis)
28. Missouri: $21,756 (Kansas City)
29. Texas: $21,644 (Austin)
30. Idaho: $21,622 (Boise)
31. Kansas: $21,510 (Wichita)
32. Vermont: $21,399 (Burlington)
33. Utah: $21,332 (Salt Lake City)
34. Kentucky: $21,265 (Lexington)
35. Iowa: $21,198 (Des Moines)
36. Oklahoma: $21,153 (Tulsa)
37. Nebraska: $20,907 (Omaha)
38. North Carolina: $20,863 (Fayetteville)
39. New Mexico: $20,684 (Albuquerque)
40. Wisconsin: $20,550 (Madison)
41. South Carolina: $20,527 (Columbia)
42. North Dakota: $20,103 (Bismarck)
43. South Dakota: $20,014 (Rapid City)
44. Tennessee: $19,924 (Chattanooga)
45. Arkansas: $19,880 (Little Rock)
46. Montana: $19,768 (Billings)
47. Wyoming: $19,701 (Casper)
48. Alabama: $19,634 (Montgomery)
49. West Virginia: $19,433 (Charleston)
50. Mississippi: $18,450 (Jackson)

The sample city I researched is in parenthesis.

Where do you stand on the list? Do these numbers seem right or is Salary.com way off the mark? 

Thanks for taking the time to read this far. If you found value in this piece would you please consider sharing it on social? Thanks again. Donny

Bike Shop's Customer Care Can Be Measured In Floor Pumps

I often find that the simplest metrics will tell me more about a bike retailer’s business than any profit and loss statement. Total sales and margins can provide an estimate of the overall health of a business, individual sales will tell me who the top performers are, and measuring turns will show which products are moving. Conversion rate will show the proportion of customers that purchase. However, none of these metrics will tell me if the retailer is doing right by their customer. Most people believe that the only way to do this is by conducting customer review surveys or by measuring impressions on social channels.  However, I can get a clear understand of how a bike retail business treats their customers simply by looking at some simple metrics.

I will preface that these metrics are based on some foundational assumptions, and where the true data geeks in the world may scoff at this, I have still found these metrics to be helpful and telling.

The Floor Pump Metric. The number of new bikes sold compared to the number of floor pumps sold. There is a collection of bike models that are almost always sold to people who are buying their first bike in a very long time. Some of the bikes in this category are kids bikes, adult bikes under $1000, flat bar road bikes, base model mountain bikes, and comfort or hybrid bikes. For these new bike buyers chances are very good they need some basic instruction on the maintenance and operation of the bike. They will have to be taught how to shift, how to lube their chain, and how to inflate their tires. If the person working on the retail floor didn't take the time to show them how to use a floor pump to inflate their tires, then chances are really good that 3-5 days later this person will be riding on tires that are near flat. Control will be compromised and they will be susceptible to a pinch flat.

How many of these bikes were sold? Compare that to the number of floor pumps sold. If there a discrepancy it is likely the customers were set up for a horrible cycling experience.

Tune Ups To Bike Sales. How many bikes sold in a year compared to the number of bikes return for a tune-up in the next year.  Many will agree that a bicycle should have at least one tune up every year. This tune-up will help keep the bike shifting and braking properly plus will give the technician the chance to replace a tire before it becomes too worn to ride safely. If we can agree that a bike should have a minimum of one tune up a year then comparing bike sales to tune up sales will be a sign of how often people who buy from the store and return for service.

If a retailer sold one thousand bikes in 2011, we should see one thousand tune ups in 2012. Ideally more because they’re capturing some new market from competitors. If they sold another thousand bike in 2012, then they should see 2000 tune ups in 2013. Since a tune up is a recurring service it is easy to see how a bike retailer that has been open for 5-10 years should be doing far more services than the number of bikes they are selling.

In 2012 I tested this assumption with 25 retailers in the US and asked them to give me the number of bikes they sold and the number of services that they would classify to have needed annual service. The result was a dismal 4/10. For every bike sold they were seeing only 40% of them return for a tune-up.

Thanks for taking the time to read this far. If you found value in this piece would you please consider sharing it on social? Thanks again. Donny

Can Brick & Mortar Beat Online Retail? IBM Thinks So

In a series of recent studies IBM predicted the future of retail saying that in five years physical retail will beat online. With a bike shop as the example they also said:

"In five years local stores will merge digital with the instant gratification of physical retail to offer a more immersive and personalized shopping experience and make same day delivery a snap."

"Local stores will bring the web right to where shoppers can physically touch it, by enhancing the immediacy of physical retail with a magnified digital experience."

"Cloud based technologies will give both sales associates and shoppers rich product information and reviews and help buyers tailor store inventory to customer demand."

Their prediction is clearly biased as IBM makes several of the solutions they are predicting will be used, but that doesn't make it untrue.  The difference I see is that these solutions are primarily built for manufacturers who are also retailers not for independent retailers. I see two ways these solutions are going to be useful for the neighborhood bike retailer:

1. The independent retailer becomes a manufacturer of something, owning the value chain (manufacturing, distribution, and presentation)
2. The independent retailer partners entirely with a brand. Meaning that they open up the POS, inventory, and all sales data to a specific brand. Essentially becoming a distribution center for the brand they carry.

Thanks for taking the time to read this far. If you found value in this piece would you please consider sharing it on social? Thanks again. Donny

This Isn't For Professional Cyclists Anymore

I am still looking the bike retailers that are willing to take a risk and purchase the paper and printer to do pro-level name stickers for their customers' bikes. Retailers who did this could surprise each customer by labeling every new bike and tune-up with a name sticker. Complete with the customer's name, flag of choice or your logo.

Thanks for taking the time to read this. If you found value in this piece would you please consider sharing it on social? Thanks again. Donny

Uncommon Service, 2012 (Audio)

In 2012, during the Specialized Dealer Event in Colorado, I presented idea on process, scheduling, sponsorship and more to over 400 independent bicycle retailers. It's 45 minutes long.

Bicycle Retailer and Industry News covered the presentation as well and in full disclosure I borrowed the "brevity, levity, and repetition" from Daniel Pink. 

Topics covered:

• David Lee Roth and brown M&Ms
• Being anecdotal vs being analytic
• Data on the cycling industry
• How much is your tune-up?
• Job design and checklists 
• Scheduling staff
• On the fly repairs vs check-in repairs

Thanks for taking the time to read this far. If you found value in this piece would you please consider sharing it on social? Thanks again. Donny