You may have noticed that over the last three weeks or so we’ve been adding to the Cyclorama Retailers’ section. Eventually, this section will have features on what we consider to be the best 10% of bike shops in the world.
What are our criteria? After all, there’s no shortage of good bike shops out there – what is it that makes a shop extra special?
In some cases, it might be the level of service offered by the staff – we think that the single most important thing about a bike shop is that they treat all customers equally. There is quite some variation in the way that shop staff interact with people dipping their toes into the murky cycling water, and we’re keen to feature only those shops that happily cater for all visitors, regardless of their experience. We’re passionate about getting more people into cycling, and so we’re welcoming aboard anyone else who thinks alike.
It might sound a cliché, but sometimes shops really do go beyond just being shops. Their staff might organise cycle rides for local cyclists, for both beginners and experts. Some retailers run courses teaching the essentials of cycle maintenance. This ties in with our first criterion – any retailer that does something extra to get more people into cycling is a big tick in our book.
Another consideration we make are the cycles stocked by each retailer. We don’t only go for shops that stock Cyclorama products, although this is clearly a bonus! So long as the bikes stocked by each shop fall into the Cyclorama ethos (brilliant, great value for money etc.), we’re happy. We’re also interested in shops with unusual specialisations – we already have tandem, recumbent, cargo bike and vintage bike specialists mixed in with more traditional shops!
Finally, all the retailers listed are independent – if you want to go to a chain store, it’s easy enough to find one, and we think that independent shops are much more interesting anyway. So do keep checking the Retailers’ section out – we hope to have the UK covered by the end of the year. Any dealer listed will be well worth a visit – support your local bike shops!
Tags: bike rides, customer service, cycle maintenance, cycling, products, retailers
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