Over 4 weeks waiting on a tire I ordered.  They still haven’t ordered it.  Said they couldn’t find it from their suppliers.

* No phone call to tell me…
* This was after ordering the wrong one and needign to return it…

I’ll support LBS’s as often as possible.  But this type of thing is exactly why I prefer to do most of my business with online companies.  I have never had a problem and never the poor customer service encountered from the folks at K&G;Bike Shop, Xenia.  I’ve spent approx. $250 in there this summer.  Just a poor experience.

I can order this tire from any number of online stores, including Hostel Shoppe, a great recumbent shop which does a nice online business.

Rant mode off…

I have had issues with K&G;in Centerville also.  When I bought my road bike, I specifically excluded them after less than enthusiastic customer service when I was doing test rides.  They acted like a middle-aged, overweight female couldn’t possibly be serious about wanting a road bike.  Surprise!  I spent my money at a different shop.

I use K&G;in Kettering and have always gotten great service.  Ask for Justin and he’ll take care of you.

I am sure we all have our share of poor service. We all would like to have good service from any vendor. I would say you need to know your shops to deal with them in a beneficial manner.
Now I know what shop you can trust with what component or adjustments or what shops are open at any given time. For me there is no one stop shopping here. My wife and it can tell you some amazing scenarios that can only be said in person.
I deal with all the local shops. I can’t afford to be loyal just to one. The bike shop I trust, you may have experienced poor service from at one time.
a list of good service
1. One shop stripped a crank and said that I did it when they are the ones that put it on in the first place. The other bike shop looked for used cranks and sold me them at a fraction of the cost just to get me going that day.
2. Same shop was going to charge me for some nuts, washers, bolts. The other shop let me take what I needed to get my task done.
3. It nice to have a component thrown in for free when you purchase a new bike. One did just that.
4. The best is that when I first got here from California I went to check out the local bikes and what the bike shops had to offer. One bike shop simply had me try each one out. I explained that I just moved from LA and that my wife is still there so I can only put so much down and I told him that I would like to start my commute from Kettering to downtown Dayton. He then said if I have my van there and I did so he had someone get the bike and told me that I can take the bike and pay him when my wife comes from LA.  That is the second time I was trusted to take a bike home before I paid it off. You know I can go on and on but I would say each LBS has a unique skill and it is up to you fallow up on any service just don’t assmue anything. 

I feel one of the important things Pedalopolis members can do for each other is to relay experiences with local bike shops.  Karen’s experience when testing bikes for a purchase my be important when other women are in a situation of where to go and where not.  Park Bear following up and listing a specific person to ask for can be helpful to others looking in.

I know Oldshacker is being diplomatic by not naming names , but I would rather know the names of shops that others feel give good service and those they feel don’t.  That way, I can use the information when I’m searching for a particular service.  (Oldshacker, you are a tremendous resource so don’t take this as a criticism of you!!)

I’m not advocating a forum to just gripe about everything.  Instead, providing an open discussion.  If a LBS employee happens to wander in and see that some here have had bad experiences, or good ones, hopefully they will take that info back to the store and use it to improve what they do.

Example:  We bought Mary’s new bike at SurfNCycle in Xenia.  Steve adjusted the front derailleur and, when it still was not functioning properly, analyzed a problem with the cable and replaced it free of charge.  This is good service in my book.

All of us should realize that there are probably 6 to 7 times the number of readers of Pedalopolis than there are posters.  Being open about our experiences can be very helpful.

~Randy