One of the nicest run shops in Denver is exactly this. Salvagetti<http://www.salvagetti.com/>has such a great thing going and the owner Scott is a huge asset to cycling in the mile high. He is super positive and has been a Surly advocate for a long time. I visit there quite a bit and they always have multiple models ready to go and build to suit happily. It's one of the best shops in the state if you ask me. When I close my eyes and envision a shop I would want to shop in, work at, live in, and own...it's a pretty exact match.
On Sunday, May 19, 2013 11:46:24 AM UTC-6, cyclot...@gmail.com wrote: > > I would love to see a shop selling only Surly products. Having Pacers, > LHTs and Cross Checks along with the occasional Big Dummy and Pug. The CCs > and LHTs could be built up w/ fenders and racks, or aggressive knobbies for > trail riding. Pacers are good road bikes that fit wider tires or fenders. I > think that's kind of what Hiawatha is set up like? But the point is, that's > a model that seems like it could/should be replicated elsewhere. > > Cheers, > David > > > > On Sun, May 19, 2013 at 10:18 AM, jinxed <hbc...@yahoo.com > <javascript:>>wrote: > >> Hugh, >> >> Im in Colorado so there is certainly no shortage of bike shops here. >> There ARE a couple shops around town that do embrace a more universal usage >> point of view as opposed to the "racing" ends of the spectrum. They have >> basically evolved out of the fixie messenger scene and transitioned into >> the utility/cross/townie/gravel/fat bike market. Which sort of nails my >> point on the head...if you want the fringe product, you generally have to >> go to the fringe shops. That's not a complaint mind you, quite the >> contrary. Our shops business is middle of the road, mom and pop sales with >> some high end club rider and aggressive mtb sales thrown in. We strive to >> be the best in serving that broad market but would fail trying to also be >> superlative in every niche. Sure, MY thinking is that the majority of our >> customers who just ride for fun would be better suited on a Rivendell, or >> even the Surly offerings, but when your customer has 500-700 to work with >> the reality is a much different picture. And in defense of the big brands >> we sell, they have some fantastic bikes. The Cannondale Quick line up is is >> awesome. Flat bar 700c with fat tires and an upright position. They are >> super functional and surprisingly affordable. I have no issues with what we >> sell. I havent worked the floor for over 6 years and primarily work behind >> the scenes in an admin position. But when I was in sales, my approach was >> to always discuss what they wanted to do with the bike and where/how they >> wanted to ride. Luckily my service manager and I were very agreeable to >> going outside the box and had no issues building or altering bikes. You >> want slick tires and a drop bar on a mountain bike...hell yes we can. Campy >> derailleurs and Suntour shifters...lets try it. But then we were building >> frankenmonster bikes out of the take off piles for grins. I think my story >> is a carbon copy of many who are in the industry for more than a summer >> job. >> >> As for my co-workers, I dont get any negative feedback in seriousness, >> but more a general razzing. Pretty standard "How old is that?" and "OMG >> that's heavy". They do all appreciate the Rivendell and IndyFab, but become >> incredulous as to why I would forgo my pro-deal pricing on brands we sell >> to get a Riv at retail. It's a valid argument too. I can get a REALLY >> "nice" complete bike for less than an Atlantis frame. But then "nice" is in >> the saddle of the rider so to speak and the value extends past the money. >> My priorities changed drastically after manufacturing titanium and steel >> frames for 2 years. From then on I have made a point to support small >> manufacturers preferably in the US. Luckily once we all get out for a shop >> ride, no one really cares what bikes we're on and just enjoy the roll. Any >> good natured ribbing becomes appreciation when I jet off the paved trail to >> hit some single track shortcut and come back on the trail with a bigger >> smile. >> >> >> On Sunday, May 19, 2013 7:35:55 AM UTC-6, hsmitham wrote: >>> >>> Brad, >>> >>> Just curious what part of the country are you located? And as the "Black >>> Sheep" of your company what if any feedback do you receive from >>> your colleagues egarding your steel-centric viewpoint? >>> >>> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "RBW Owners Bunch" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to rbw-owners-bun...@googlegroups.com <javascript:>. >> To post to this group, send email to >> rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com<javascript:> >> . >> Visit this group at >> http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en-US. >> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. >> >> >> > > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en-US. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
