Say it ain't so Shimano!

schreef ...

Why would it be such a bad thing if the price of a component was the
same to a consumer wherever they bought it? i.e., a 105 front
derailleur costs $29.95. You wouldn't have to waste time shopping and
could buy from a source that offered you other values.

OTOH, every customer wants a different value. Personally I wouldn't mind
getting your 105 derailleur in a plastic bag at $ 19.95. My neighbour
would probably prefer the one at 29.95 in a box with mounting
instructions. My other neighbour would be happy to pay 39.95 at a store
where they mount it on his bike.

Apart from that: fixed prices kill commercial "instincts".

--
Regards,
Marten

On Mon, 18 Aug 2003 16:01:12 +0200, Derk wrote:
By accident, I saw a bill from the importer that came when my LBS
ordered
saddles from them. It read 15 Euro's for a Flite Trans Am Genuine Gel.
Shop price is 85 Euro's. I think that's a high margin!

There's any number of possible, reasonable explanations.
Off the top of my head, I consider these concerns:
-- Saddles probably have a high return rate, and low
value after they've been returned
-- That price could be subsidizing something else that
the shop sells at low or no margin to more people

A few examples:

Your mail order vs. bricks & mortar examples are realistic.
They are also quite reasonable. They don't show the LBS
making any margin at all, though, after you factor
everything in.

Greets, Derk
--
Rick Onanian

Derk wrote:

Qui si parla Campagnolo wrote:

My point is that most biike shops screw nobody, charge a normal margin to
stay in biz, not to get rich. MO ensures that.
By accident, I saw a bill from the importer that came when my LBS ordered
saddles from them. It read 15 Euro's for a Flite Trans Am Genuine Gel. Shop
price is 85 Euro's. I think that's a high margin!

15 Euros sounds AWFULLY cheap for that saddle. I'm not tracking the
exchange rate lately, but here the wholesale would be 3-4 times that
much.

I suggest you must have misread the invoice - or it was a special
promotion or something... if they really WERE selling them for that, I
could use about 100... ;-)

Mark Hickey
Habanero Cycles
http://www.habcycles.com
Home of the $695 ti frame

In article ,
says...

You are assuming and wrongfully so, I think, that the bike shop and these MO
places pay the same for stuff, then the bike shop asking for a higher margin.
Generally not true, the MO places pay less, charge the same margin as a bike
shop..

The obvious question is why can't bike shops get their parts at the same price
as the mail order places? The bike shops should be asking the manufacturer
why thier prices are so much higher.
-----------------
Alex __O
_-\,_
(_)/ (_)

On Tue, 19 Aug 2003 11:30:06 -0400, Alex Rodriguez
wrote:

The obvious question is why can't bike shops get their parts at the same price
as the mail order places? The bike shops should be asking the manufacturer
why thier prices are so much higher.

An obvious answer is that the Local shop doesn't buy a container or
mixed container load of parts. Not even a pallet. Quantity 10 is a
big deal for a shop, particularly on slow moving items.

Qui si parla Campagnolo wrote:

You are assuming and wrongfully so, I think, that the bike shop and these
MO places pay the same for stuff, then the bike shop asking for a higher
margin. Generally not true, the MO places pay less, charge the same margin
as a bike shop..
My LBS is HUGE! THey control the whole area here, where there are many, many
serious cyclists and the shop is as big as an average supermarket, so my
guess is they pay lower prices than a small shop. I know for a fact, that
they order lots of "grey" import goods from Belgium themselves. My question
is: if they buy from the cheapest source, why should a customer pay the
same prices as if they would have bought from an expensive supplier?
This shop has 8 mechanics working full time and a few people in the shop.
Of these 8 persons, I'll allow only 1 mechanic to touch my bike, since he's
the only one who knows what he's doing. The rest are all 16-21 year old
kids that are "learning the trade" (read: inexpensive workers).

So why do I go there you'll ask me? Well, they are the only shop that has
all Shimano and many Campa parts in stock. They are Official Mavic, Shimano
and Campa service centre. They are Colnago , Pinarello, Cannondale etc etc
dealers. So where else should I go?

I'll tell you one thing, though. When I'm on vacation in France, I take my
bike to a small shop owned by 1 person who used to be a TdF mechanic and HE
know his business. I am willing to pay more there, since he knows what he's
doing. I understand he can't buy for the same price as a big shop, but I
don't mind paying extra, since he's an expert.

Greets, Derk

BTW: I just passed this years 10.000 km barrier on my bike earlier this
month: I just want to share this happy event with this group!

On Tue, 19 Aug 2003 11:30:06 -0400, Alex Rodriguez
wrote:
The obvious question is why can't bike shops get their parts at the same
price as the mail order places? The bike shops should be asking the
manufacturer why thier prices are so much higher.

That's the nature of retail. It's the same
for most or maybe even all industries/products.

Compare computer parts prices at pricewatch.com
to local computer shops.

----------------- Alex __O _-\,_
(_)/ (_)
--
Rick Onanian

On Tue, 19 Aug 2003 17:29:24 GMT, Paul Kopit wrote:
An obvious answer is that the Local shop doesn't buy a container or
mixed container load of parts. Not even a pallet. Quantity 10 is a
big deal for a shop, particularly on slow moving items.

....and the above quantities, for people who don't know:

Container: 20 or 40 feet long, 8 feet wide, 8 feet tall
(Not sure exactly on height, appears taller than wide)

Pallet: Generally 3 feet x 3 feet x however high you
want to pile it (usually about 4 feet).

A pallet of headsets, or even a pallet of mixed bike
parts, is a whole lot more than a LBS can typically
handle for a routine delivery. A container load may
fit in the store, if it's not necessary to have such
luxuries as customers, or air, in the store...but
only for larger stores.

--
Rick Onanian

Rick Onanian wrote:

On Tue, 19 Aug 2003 17:29:24 GMT, Paul Kopit wrote:

An obvious answer is that the Local shop doesn't buy a container or
mixed container load of parts. Not even a pallet. Quantity 10 is a
big deal for a shop, particularly on slow moving items.


...and the above quantities, for people who don't know:

Container: 20 or 40 feet long, 8 feet wide, 8 feet tall
(Not sure exactly on height, appears taller than wide)


think semi trailor here... that's alot of parts.

Pallet: Generally 3 feet x 3 feet x however high you
want to pile it (usually about 4 feet).

A pallet of headsets, or even a pallet of mixed bike
parts, is a whole lot more than a LBS can typically
handle for a routine delivery. A container load may
fit in the store, if it's not necessary to have such
luxuries as customers, or air, in the store...but
only for larger stores.

but how much fun to rummage through...

Rick Onanian wrote:

...and the above quantities, for people who don't know:

Container: 20 or 40 feet long, 8 feet wide, 8 feet tall
(Not sure exactly on height, appears taller than wide)

Pallet: Generally 3 feet x 3 feet x however high you
want to pile it (usually about 4 feet).

container heights are generally 8'6" (standard) there are high cubes which can be up to 9'6" thats not even concidering out of guage open tops ect...

--
ack

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