So what do we expect from a mail order company? Have we actually decided yet?
Do we want cheaper parts or do we want better service?
By all means use the local bike shop when you need a job doing, but surely they would willingly fit parts to your bike weather you had bought them from them or not?
On the other hand, I can't imagine that a good mail order company would just forget you once your money was theirs. I'm sure if you actually looked for it, there are ways to get in touch with them for help.
With the changing market place for our products, surly both shops have equal standards they are working too, just the same way that they are equally different in the products they can provide.
Just a thought!

Put it this way -

Scenario 1

Your a bike shop owner, in strolls Mr Grom with his umpteenth MO purchase. Never buys anything but you know he comes in to try stuff on that he's shopping for online. He asks for MO purchase to be fitted. Do you:

A) Fit on the house hoping that he appreciates this kind gesture and brings some business your way.

or

B) Charge the appropriate fee accounting for your hourly labour charges and send him on his way with product properly fitted.

Scenario 2

Your a bike shop owner, in strolls Mr Regular who orders Product X from you. He waits a week until it's delivered and comes to collect bringing his bike and asks for it to be fitted. Do you:

A) Fit on the house because after all he is a regular customer and you appreciate him bringing his business to you and it's a slow day anyway.

or

B) Charge the appropriate fee accounting for your hourly labour charges and send him on his way with product properly fitted.


I would hope the answers would be B and A respectively, thats what sets out a successful business from a failure (either through stupid charity or tight fistedness). I know it works both ways but thats what all the good bike shops I have ever used have been like. And remember this: though mail order may be quicker to replace part, what happens if you stuff up the fitting or need help fitting an inexpensive or not much cheaper part? Bike shop charges, postal charges or even all out replacement. It's often a false economy and it would do folk well to remember that....

I think its always best to support your local bike shop, because if we're all being honest we've probably seen the product cheaper elsewhere but keeping your lbs afloat for when you really need it, e.g.just about to go on holiday riding and you snap your bars, you need new ones pretty quickly. I don't mean to be harsh on crc but, the amount of people on this site that seem to think that they are the only bike shop, i've heard stupid things like "but crc don't stock that item", so go somewhere else. The amount of times i have heard of people receiving sh**e through the post from crc, not in boxes, without manuals and scratched to hell just because it was cheap. If your lbs sold you this cr@p you'd be angry but they dont, why? because most of the time there is a person to greet you with a smile a and a helping hand to talk you through the product. I my honest opinion i see my lbs much more trustworth than someone you can't see and that tells you that they will dispatch another because of the state that it arrived in. price or reliability, and the sad thing is that most people will choose price!

and this could mean farewell to the lbs!

Thats certainly true depending what your talking about, if it's a fairly common or popular part then yes, they should keep it in stock. Otherwise they can order it in which usually takes a week or so at most. Not exactly light speed but how often do you reeeeally absolutely need that part the next day? Not often huh? (diregard if you like to run your bike into the ground). People really need to stop rushing about more, it's leading to a nationwide heart attack. Man... 

As a shop we will always endeavour to have the right products in at the right prices but at the end of the day i only have a small yet humble shop, not a warehouse that i can fill with

1. Both.
2. LBS can't always get what i need.
3. Nope
4. LBS True/build my wheels, can do everyhting else myself.
5. I buy from my LBS because it's better service, good aftersales, mail order cos i need it quicker, or its something my LBS cant source.