mountain bike. Did the bike dealers of Newark-on-Trent provide a warming sales pitch?
IS IT better to have an imaginative shop name or one that simply does what it says on the sign? The Bike Shop is firmly in the latter camp and had bikes well spread out around the store, which, it has to be said, was in need of a lick of paint and carpet clean. Nevertheless, this was a store that made up for appearance with top service. After a brief walk around the shop the staffer offered assistance and after hearing my brief went into a detailed pitch. He pinpointed my intended usage for the MTB and even used the little heard phrase “we’ve got the perfect option”. The keen salesman directed me to a Dawes which had a ‘special deal’ whereby the bike came with mudguards and other associated goodies all for the price of the bike, with a free six month service for good measure. The friendly pitch also focused on the quality of the brand and components and concluded with an offer to answer any further questions over the phone. Yes, the slightly spartan store was in need of some
love, but it had a bike hitting the brief spot on and a salesman really making the effort to close the sale.
16 BIKEBIZ MARCH Marriotts Cycles
LOCATED ON A picturesque street in the town overlooking the Palace Theatre is Marriotts Cycles. Marriotts has a ‘Mom and Pop store’ vibe and after entering it was clear the shop wasn’t sticking to the usual rules of retailing. Mystery Shopper and his oversized bag could barely turn around in the store without bashing the haphazard bicycle display and I can only speculate as to how they negotiate the crammed shop floor. Maybe they’d just taken a delivery? Usually we’d be harsh on the shop at this point, but we’re reluctant to criticise this old school retailer who quickly offered help on our entrance – unusually the only retailer to do this on the day. My pitch saw the sales assistant hone in on a £250 mountain bike in the window, and while all my questions were answered, the sales patter was unconventional – Mystery Shopper ended up chatting more about the shop cat than bicycles. All-in-all, a slightly bizarre visit, this old school store embodying the diversity of the trade. Another point in its favour were the youth community rides advertised prominently in the window of the shop.