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We’re sure that you understand how inconvenient working can be, the pain of spending forty hours a week slacking, er, slaving over a computer screen when all you really want to do is go and play with your bike. Unfortunately we also know the truth of the equation “no work = no money = no spangly new bike kit”. If only there was another way…
Well maybe there is. Have you ever thought of starting up your own bike shop?
If the answer’s yes, you’re not on your own. We spoke to three people who’d gone beyond thinking about it and had actually done it. Between them they own or manage three very different shops around the country. So what’s life like as your own boss in a shop full of shiny new bikes?
The franchise
Barry Huggett, 58, owns one of the Action Bikes franchises in Colchester, Essex. He’s been in business since 1997.
“I wasn’t happy in the job I was doing – I was an ‘In-Store Bakery Area Manager’. The people I worked for didn’t appreciate me, even doing 80 hours per week. It was never enough. I’d always been into bikes and I knew I could raise enough capital to open the shop.”
Having no previous experience in the bike industry, Barry decided that a franchise would be a good step up onto the ladder.
“When I started up I visited all the other Action Bikes and they were all making money. Our first year was good but it’s gone down since then. Being part of a franchise can get difficult because they cream off a lot of your money even when you’re not doing well.”
Barry agrees that being a franchisee does make some things easier, though.
“I’ve heard stories of people who found they couldn’t set up accounts with distributors as an independent because they have no experience in the trade. We’ve had brands like Scott and Sunn since we opened.”
The indie start-up
Taking the independent route is Moonglu in Ripon. Co-owners Mark Swindells, 42, and Jody Hamilton, 26, opened the shop in August 2002. Mark had originally owned a shop on the site of Moonglu 12 years ago, but the first time around his dream turned sour.
“For five years it went well but then I had to go into partnership with someone else. That was the wrong decision and I ended up leaving. Jody had started working weekends here when he was about 14. When I left he decided to leave as well.”
The remaining owner couldn’t make the shop work and sold the business, which was when Mark and Jody started thinking about opening their own shop on the site.
“I knew the business could work here – it had been great for the first five years – so Jody and I went into partnership together. When we got the shop it had been completely gutted. It was a daunting time but we realised how good it was as it meant we had a blank canvas to play with. We knew the business was there, it was just a case of getting it back and it came back thick and fast.”
Mark stresses the importance of getting a big brand on board before you open a shop.
“Fortunately I had had a good relationship with Marin before and they knew what we could sell here. I don’t think I’d have done it without them. We got them straight away and now we’re doing 150% of the sales targets they set us. The best things you can do before you set up a shop is check out your competition, find out what they’re doing, and approach a top end manufacturer.”
The family business
Some people are lucky enough to be born into a life of bike shop ownership. Such was Paul Thomas’s destiny – he’s 25 and manages one of the Thomas’s Cycles shops in East Anglia.
“I’ve been working in the industry since I was 16. It’s a family business so I was tied in that way. Now I’m my own boss which is good as I know the harder I work the better off I’ll be in the future. The best thing about being in the bike trade is being able to get across your enthusiasm to the customers. Obviously, dealing with the general public can be stressful at times – it’s difficult explaining to people why a £300 bike from us is actually better value than the £90 full suspension bike they’ve seen in the paper.”
“The big advantage of being an established family business is that I’ve never had to worry too much about cash flow. Also suppliers know us so they’re happy to give us credit on £15k worth of stock. New businesses need to spend money on all the fixtures and fittings, which is expensive and really eats in to what you can spend on stock to start with. To start a new shop you need to be a real enthusiast but you also need to a head for business. Too many people run bike shops as a hobby. The way I see it, if I’m only making £20k per year at this I may as well go and work for Marks and Spencer.”
The bottom line
There you have it – if you do your research, get a big player on board, don’t scrimp on fixtures and fittings and work bloody hard, you too could be the proud owner of a successful bike shop. Just don’t expect to get all that much riding in for the first few years…
If you’re interested in starting up your own shop, information is available from the Association of Cycle Traders. It’s well worth checking out UK trade mag BikeBiz too.
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