Opening a shop, which brands are the best??

[CaptainCol]

Hi folks,

I'm new here, I am looking to start selling bikes from my family car dealership on the west coast of Scotland and was looking to see what the general consensus was on brands.

We were planning on splitting our property up and I was going to open a bike shop but the cost and hassle of dividing the business is quite daunting. So the old man has suggested starting small, stocking some bikes and growing it from there.

Mountain biking has been a passion of mine since the 90s so I have some experience of cycling. I'm not a scrupulous car dealer looking to jump on the back of the ebike boom.

I was hoping to open the shop last year but the planning has taken forever then the lock-down kicked in and the couple of suppliers Ive been in contact with have sold out of bikes. I last spoke to them in march and they said to get back in touch in August!

I'm aware of all the traditional bike brands and have been in contact with quite a few but I don't really know much about the dedicated ebike brands. There's seems to be loads and I was wondering if you guys had a top 5 brands you would stick too or anything like that??

Many thanks,

Colin

 

[vfr400]

Do you have the electrical knowledge, equipment and wherewithal to deal with the problems that arise? Selling electric bikes is not the same as selling ordinary bikes. I hope you don't think I'm being negative, but your story didn't even mention riding electric bikes, let alone messing about with the electrics to figure out how they work.

 

[CaptainCol]

Do you have the electrical knowledge, equipment and wherewithal to deal with the problems that arise? Selling electric bikes is not the same as selling ordinary bikes. I hope you don't think I'm being negative, but your story didn't even mention riding electric bikes, let alone messing about with the electrics to figure out how they work.

I don't have much experience with ebikes but shimano and bosch do courses so I'd be going on them and I plan on going on the cytec maintenance course too. And I'd be hiring a bike mechanic also. I'm fully aware of the implications of working on electrical products without the correct qualifications. I'd be sued in no time..

 

[Jonah]

From their contributions/engagement on here I would suggest you talk with Wisper and Juicy Bike. Other UK based ebike specialists include Volt, Batribike and Oxygen who get mentioned from time to time but are not actively engaged on this forum. I would recommend Woosh but they do not sell through dealerships.

 

[sjpt]

What Bosch allow their dealers to do is very limited, often motors have to be shipped back to Germany and returned. Especially given where you are it might be better to have ebikes with more standard parts for which you can give a lot of direct local support. Exactly as Jonah says: Wisper and Juicy, and Woosh if could could find any appropriate way to work with them.

 

[CaptainCol]

What Bosch allow their dealers to do is very limited, often motors have to be shipped back to Germany and returned. Especially given where you are it might be better to have ebikes with more standard parts for which you can give a lot of direct local support. Exactly as Jonah says: Wisper and Juicy, and Woosh if could could find any appropriate way to work with them.

Well I had never hear of any of those brands so thanks a lot I'll look into them.

 

[flecc]

Well I had never hear of any of those brands so thanks a lot I'll look into them.

I'd also strongly recommend Wisper Bikes. Established early in the previous decade by principal David Miall, he and the company have built up an excellent reputation for the support and spares backup they give to dealers and consumers. Unlike many of the longer established companies they are also innovators.

David Miall was also a founder member of BEBA (British Electric Bike Association), an organisation now merged with the Bicycle Association.

david@wisperbikes.com

Wisper Electric Bikes
Email me Wisper Bikes Facebook
Bicycle Association and ACT member
All Party Parliamentary Group for Cycling member
.

 

[Briggs]

Well I had never hear of any of those brands so thanks a lot I'll look into them.

CaptainCol, I have a Wisper bike and I`m on the West Coast of Scotland. It`s not always the `big` brands that get interest, sometimes the smaller brands and retailers have better customer relationships and back up service. A bit like small family owned car dealers!

 

[Wisper Bikes]

Thanks everyone! Hi Col, please drop me a line, we would be very happy to talk to you.

david@wisperbikes.com

All the best, David

 

[sjpt]

For general interest, where on the west coast are you?

 

[Lucylettuce]

For general interest, where on the west coast are you?

I was just going to ask the same. I'm near Ayr and would love to support a local retailer.

 

[mountaindweller]

From my own experience and preferred E-bike for long distance touring their is nothing on sale in the UK that can touch Riese & Muller for their engineering and future innovation given they have produced excellent award winning bikes with their new Bosch 4 gen motors, the new 625 watt tube batteries , Rohloff e-14 gear hubs and Gates Carbon drive belt

 

[CaptainCol]

I was just going to ask the same. I'm near Ayr and would love to support a local retailer.
[/QUOT

Im in North Ayrshire, don't want to say too much at this point!

 

[Nealh]

I would say you need to cater for the low to medium price sector as a buyer won't always be high user, too many dealers only offer mid drive as if they are the best thing since sliced bread which may not always be the suitable drive for every one other wise hub bikes wouldn't need to exist. For the local townie/ pleasure rider a hub may be more suitable then a mid drive.

With mid drive there is not a lot a dealer can do, they can carry out software upgrades but otherwise as box sellers you have to go back to the manufacturer for electronic repairs.
But not only sell bikes offer a repair service for hub bike brands, as we find with hub bikes getting parts can be very difficult so an option is to offer a kit upgrade and simply replace stuff using the well liked Kunteng controllers and peripherals.


Not only Wisper the other brands like Juicy, Volt and even speaking to Woosh one could arrange to be an agent to sell/service the brands in the North.

Not every one will have deep pockets to find £1200 - £3k on a ebikes, plenty may go with 1k as tops.

 

[Jonah]

We used to live in Dunlop, East Ayrshire.

 

[CaptainCol]

I would say you need to cater for the low to medium price sector as a buyer won't always be high user, too many dealers only offer mid drive as if they are the best thing since sliced bread which may not always be the suitable drive for every one other wise hub bikes wouldn't need to exist. For the local townie/ pleasure rider a hub may be more suitable then a mid drive.

With mid drive there is not a lot a dealer can do, they can carry out software upgrades but otherwise as box sellers you have to go back to the manufacturer for electronic repairs.
But not only sell bikes offer a repair service for hub bike brands, as we find with hub bikes getting parts can be very difficult so an option is to offer a kit upgrade and simply replace stuff using the well liked Kunteng controllers and peripherals.


Not only Wisper the other brands like Juicy, Volt and even speaking to Woosh one could arrange to be an agent to sell/service the brands in the North.

Not every one will have deep pockets to find £1200 - £3k on a ebikes, plenty may go with 1k as tops.

Yes I would be offering a repair service. And yes the market I'll be aiming is probably up to 2k. The mounting biking scene isn't that big on this side of the country, I think the leisure market would make more sense from a commercial point of view. From a sales point of view the more stock I have the greater the chance of a sale, however I don't want to be selling cheap Chinese junk. And yes its come to my attention that there seems to be 2 camps, the hub lovers and the mid motor lovers!! I will reserve judgement and try and learn about both before I pick a side!

 

[Nealh]

The money or turnover for repairs is in the hub market as these are repairable by the knowledgeable unlike the box sold mid drive bikes. I wouldn't put China hub bikes down as cheap junk reliability wise they are better then mid drive imv. The bloke or girl at home can repair a hub bike if they have the information to do so whereas the mid drive no chance.

 

[Lucylettuce]

I've been looking for a bike now for a couple of months. I'd have liked to try Wisper,Juicy and Woosh. Shops in Ayr only stock a couple of brands. Budget range for one shop is raleigh, other shop is ezego, Raleigh is out of my budget,and no stock of ezego until September or October. Both shops have much more expensive ranges. Kilmarnock and Irvine both have expensive bikes, starting from around two thousand. Have a look at powerbikes in Dumfries. They have a great range starting from around a thousand. I've thought about buying from them,but I want the service of a fairly local shop. I'm surprised at what you say about mountain bikes. I've been e bike spotting since Christmas,and see far more mountain bikes than Dutch style bikes,apart from along the sea front. Have a look on gumtree and eBay too,as most of the bikes for sale locally seem to be mountain bikes. Let me know when you plan to open . Also remember the Scottish government loan scheme for four years interest free credit on e bikes. Good luck

 

[Wisper Bikes]

Yes I would be offering a repair service. And yes the market I'll be aiming is probably up to 2k. The mounting biking scene isn't that big on this side of the country, I think the leisure market would make more sense from a commercial point of view. From a sales point of view the more stock I have the greater the chance of a sale, however I don't want to be selling cheap Chinese junk. And yes its come to my attention that there seems to be 2 camps, the hub lovers and the mid motor lovers!! I will reserve judgement and try and learn about both before I pick a side!

The Wisper Wayfarer Range offers both (uniquely I believe), rear hub drive or mid drive. I am of the opinion that both systems are of equal value., one is not better or worse than the other. It purely depends on the style the rider requires to cope with their individual needs and circumstances.



All the best, David

 

[Nealh]

Mtb's are common place because that is what vendors tend to push folks to, your average Joe/Jane doesn't venture off road much if at all.