COMMUNITY SPONSORED BY is keen to publish your
opinions, whether you send them via email, Facebook, Twitter,
BikeBiz.com or semaphore…
‘Give us a chance’
customer is key... They are owned by people with passion, who care about the products, enthusiasts not just entrepreneurs. As long as a pure e-commerce business can provide suitable credit history or meet with your order terms, and don’t put up bridges when it comes to delivery, a bricks and mortar outlet shouldn’t come into it. We welcome anyone to come and speak to us. We are
RESPONSE
TO STORY VIA EMAIL
WHY TURN DOWN PURE E-COMMERCE BUSINESSES FOR A TRADE ACCOUNT? I read the latest article in BikeBiz (Retail
Only – Issue 88, May 2013) whilst nodding in agreement and holloring out “here, here”
...this all sounds very familiar. We are “nx2mtb” and as the name suggests are a Mountain Bike specifically focused business, based in the Black Country region of the West Midlands. As it stands we are (you guessed it) purely online based and don’t have the ticked criteria that is boxed as ‘bricks and mortar’ to our name. This however, doesn’t mean that this is not our end goal. On the contrary – we will have a shop/unit of some kind in the near future, it just means that right now our main expenditure is focused on building a great website, whilst at the same time getting our brand out there. Our holding page is
www.nx2mtb.com, with a ‘go live’ date soon, hopefully. Thankfully some distributors at this early stage have given us the opportunity and backing to jump onboard and offer their products, of which we are very, very excited about. On the flip-side we are very disappointed at the refusals we have had from the bigger distributors. “Call us back when your site’s live”. “Drop us an email when you have premises”..... of which we will as we believe in our approach and we are very passionate about our brand and offering. Ecommerce hasn’t caused the decline of the bricks and
mortar retailer, their fate was sealed with the introduction of large out of town shopping centres and the buying power of the super-retailers. What local retail and in some cases what large multiple retailers have failed to do is concentrate on their unique selling points. As good as any website may be it isn’t going to replace bespoke upmarket shopping experiences coupled with the tactile pleasure a consumer takes in handling and viewing products in person. Over the last few years pure e-retailers have taken a
bigger market share, not purely based on price, but as people find that they can get a much greater choice, find exactly what they need and compare like-for-like products, delivered direct to their door. Good, pure ecommerce businesses are easy to spot, they
have invested thousands in a great website, sell at or around RRP, have proper Customer Service and recognise that the
friendly MTB enthusiasts and simply want to share what we have to offer with other like minded passionate riders. We ask for no credit, and will not be ‘price shagging’ anyone, all we are after is the opportunity. Nathan Smith, Director,
www.nx2mtb.com nathan@nx2mtb.com
STAR COMMENT This month the lucky winner will
receive a pack of OXFORD COMFY performance head and neck wear…
Excellent breathability Wind Resistant RRP £19.99
Available from all good wholesalers
RESPONSE
TO STORY VIA EMAIL
CYCLEWORLD NO MORE IN SALISBURY There is really no mystery as to why we no longer have a shop in Salisbury (Mystery
Shopper – Issue 88, May 2013). The only mystery is why the Salisbury planners saw fit to close us down as they refused to give us a retail planning use on a unit opposite Tesco, around the corner from Halfords and surrounded by a number of other retail outlets. This wasn’t the first unit we tried to get planning permission on. We fell at the first hurdle on several other occasions, and when we got turned down on this unit despite eight weeks of assurances, I decided to open up anyway, and wait for the Enforcement action to arrive which it finally did after two years trading. The unit is now empty and staff have been laid off – well done planners. I’m certain that if your Mystery Shopper did find the shop open then we would have got full marks for service and prices which we pride ourselves on in our other stores. Nigel Kernan Company Director
Cycleworld.co.uk
RIGHT TO REPLY The owner of Cycleworld approached us a few years ago and was advised his proposal would be unacceptable in planning terms. He went on to submit a planning application, which he had the right to do, but was subsequently refused. Despite this refusal the applicant chose to continue trading in the unit for some considerable time. Wiltshire Council spokesperson
“Just imagine – 66 UK cities each receiving half a billion to spend on cycling.” Boneshaker magazine (@boneshakermag) responds to Sustran’s proposal to spend HS2’s £33bn on improving cycle infrastructure instead.
“Bike companies create cycle-specific wind tunnels? That’s so 20th Century. You should see what we do.” Velocite Bikes (@Velocite_Bikes) pooh-poohs ‘old school’ wind tunnels.
“Cool, we want one! Can you pick up Pointless on it?” Hertford’s Highway Cycles (@highwaycycles) approves of Raleigh’s new TV POS.
“I wonder if my copy of It’s Not About The Bike will cover my toilet floor?” Newcastle bike shop and cafe The Cycle Hub’s novel use for Lance Armstrong books – using them as carpet – inspires Kinesis Bikes (@Kinesis_UK).
“Car journeys drop in 2013, so why is the Scottish Government wasting money building more roads?” Kim Harding (@kim_harding) raises an interesting point following the latest DfT stats.
“Bikeability on the National Curriculum, let’s get behind it!” Liz Clarke of BikeRight! (@BikeRightUK) backs bike training in schools.
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