An Amusement & Diversion for The Genteel Cyclist. Daily.

Thursday, May 24, 2007

What you need to know about your LBS employee: He needs a strong drink


Those prickly fellows at BikeHugger have finally lanced the festering boil of resentment: it's a pain in the ass working in a bike shop and dealing with a certain clientele. And while we totally feel their pain and agree in principal -- you have to actually be a bro to get the bro deal, there are responsibilities [see comments--Eds] -- there's just no eloquent way to say, "Dude, we don't want your business. Take your bike and stick it where the seatpost don't shine."


What’s that? Can you have a “bro deal”? Why yes, since you ask for it like that I would be more than happy to violate the trust of my employer and offer these items to you at a fee that entirely denies my employer of any benefit of the wages they pay me for the time I spent answering your tedious questions.


Sometimes customer service = tough love. Bike Hugger surely feels better now. But we don't see them unionizing anytime soon.

3 comments:

Pinchie said...

And one additional thought: You should NEVER ASK for the bro deal. That is UNBRO conduct, in my opinion, and automatically disqualifies you.

Trust your bikeshop dudes to recognize and reward bro status and behavior. Buy them beer. Pay full price, lots of times in a row. Compliment them on good work. Don't ask a lot of stupid noobie questions, the answers to which you can find on the internet. NEVER tell them you can get something cheaper online, unless its something they don't carry and will never carry-- you're jst making chit chat. (Although refer back to the rule about asking a lot of stupid questions.)

Anonymous said...

RIGHT-o. Because you're putting bikeshop dude in the uncomfortable position of having to say yes or no to the bro deal. Don't do that to him or her, unless s/he's REALLY a bro. Like you ride with 'em regularly.

cvo said...

no bro walks into any bike shop needing to speak with a wrench without at least a 6 pack to hand off...