never again!

[slappy]

Never again will I use a dealer again!
Went to Jordans bikes for some new spark plugs , (ngk cr9e), for my gen1 1000 and they charged me £33.96 for 4.I am going to fit them tomorrow so I bought them even though I could get them off ebay for £10 less. I know dealers have overheads that ebay sellers don`t have but unless they start to compete more on price there won`t be any dealers in business in a few years.

[Skullfire]

I went in to a dealer's the other week to purchase an emergency clutch cable kit and was told that they didn't stock them and maybe I should try ebay!!! didn't help much as I was 40 miles from home with a broken clutch cable... 2 other dealers had never heard of such a kit, but probably knew about ebay 

Needless to say in the end I managed to repair the exisiting cable so I could get home and bought an oem replacement clutch cable from.....




EBAY...



for a tenner 

[Major Rant]

Its worse (or better) than 'dealers going out of business' - it challenges the whole reason towns exist because no one in their right mind would buy anything bigger than a toaster from a shop . (And the toaster is pushing it!  )
 
Towns arose as places where you went to buy stuff that you couldn't make or grow yourself.
The "merchants" ran the towns and the 'town dwellers' all worked for the merchants or begged on the streets.
 
Then in the 1800s the factories appeared (owned by "Capitalists" , who made stuff) and most towneys worked for either "Merchants" or "Capitalists".
 
So - The factories have gone to China and the merchants have been killed by Ebay.
 
Where does that leave Mr Average town dweller ??
 
Answers on a postcard .....

[Raymy]

One of the many (smaller) reasons why the soprano's was and still is one of the best tv shows of all time

"It's over for the little guy"

[Ton13]

i know the feeling, i went on ebay to get a service kit, for my FZS600 '99 with oil etc  the cheapest price was £59.99 with delivery, bargain i thought.... then noticed its from the shop down the road from me so decided to pop in and collect it so i could get it a little sooner
 
when i got there they tried to charge me £69.99?
 
this was until i used my womanly charm of stamping me feet and threatening to call trading standards.
 
he tried to use excuses of its and Ebay off etc etc but i wasnt standing for it and in the end got it for the £59.99 as it stated on ebay....
 
in future i'll stick with online shopping as long as i know what i need... much easier, plus i dont have to do my make up to collect it!

[flesh]

I have to side with the small business here. Why does your local dealer charge more than the punter from Ebay. 3 probable reasons:
1. Overheads
2. Buying power
2. Profit margins
Your dealer charges more because most of the folks selling on Ebay are doing it from their front room/garage or are part of a large franchise who have a greater buying power. You go to an independant retailer (for any product) and you will invaribly pay more. Its not always their fault though.
Not happy with the price you local dealer is charging then go somewhere else but don't moan when you don't have a local dealer anymore as they have gone out of business.
Personally I always try and buy most of my "goods" from local sources and don't mind paying a "little extra" for the service.

[Ton13]

I do agree with you there as my Dad is a small buisness owner, but when they sell something online with delivery for one price then u go in to pick it up to save delivery and they're charging you more?! 

[griff86]

Its one of the main reasons I opened my own workshop doing service and repairs because I think they charge way to much.
 
Although I was at a local main dealers the other day and I was chatting about overheads,etc and he said its £1000 a day just to open the doors! So I can kind of see the why they do charge what they do.

[Just Anne]

What dealers should do is have a traditional shop front AND sell on ebay. That way they can buy in bulk so can stock more stuff and get best prices AS WELL AS please the locals and anyone passing who needs an emergency clutch kit. A potential job for an out of work foccer would be to pitch such a proposal to their local struggling dealer.
 
This is what lots of other businesses have done, there was a bloke on the radio from ebay saying that a high proportion of sellers who do regular business have both a physical shop and an on line business.
 
Anne 

[locksmith]

Ok heres my take on the dealer selling cheaper on ebay.
Firstly he is looking to do a bit more business so looks at ebay. He sees that he will have to sell a bit cheaper to be competitive on ebay. So he figures that as he hasn't got to stand in the shop all day taking shit from customers. He can deal with all the ebay orders at the same time and get them packed up and shipped out easy so he can lower his margin a bit to compensate.
It cost's a lot to keep a shop open so you have to  make enough profit on a daily basis to keep the door open.

[Gingernutz]

I'm happy to pay a reasonable price for labour if needs be but £33 for four sparkplugs is taking the piss. £17.50 posted is the going rate which means the dealer are making at least 100% markup if they were buying retail - which they clearly are not. I supply parts if I use a dealer these days and get a quote in time for a job before they start.

[Jacko]

I wouldn't piss on my local Yam dealer if it was burning down.

[flesh]

I wouldn't piss on my local Yam dealer if it was burning down.

I tend to agree with you on that which is why I use independant dealers.

[oldmotherfoccer]

Its a constant stuggle having a small bike repair business, our insurance alone is over 2.5k a year,(its the road risk and the fact that bike shops are renound for getting "visited") we know that tyres for us are a no no, as some companies selling tyres for £4 more than they bought them for, who can compete with that ?? and why would you want to.  the workshop is quiet between October and March, but the bills are not, overheads come in 24/7 

We sell some 3nd hand bits on ebay but normally again find that the sellers fees take a big chunk out of the sale.  We are constantly up against people who set up in their home garage, without full insurance, offering service and repair.

I would hate to have a bike dealers selling clothing and helmets, people coming in to try on models and sizes - and then going off to ebay to buy, you end up with stock that is 2nd hand before its even left the shelf.

There is a bit of a turn on the high street, more little shops bakers etc opening up, lets hope the trend continues.

[HarryHornby]

That's why they are known as STEALERS!