The cost of saving

I have a love/hate relationship with online retailers. I love their pricing but more often than not, hate their service.

That’s why I try as much as possible to shop locally and keep the local wheels of economy turning.

I’m fortunate enough that Geoffrey Butler cycles are my local bike shop (http://www.gbcycles.co.uk/)
I've always found their staff to be really helpful and whenever I’ve had any warranty issues, they’ve gone beyond their usual duty and really looked after me. Their January sales are legendary too. I recently picked up a pair of Fulcrum Racing 3 wheels at a genuine 20% off.

Sometimes though, it’s necessary to go elsewhere, often where pricing dictate or your local bike shop don’t stock a particular brand or item. In this situation, I’ve found that I’ve been pretty happy with my purchases and occasionally make a substantial saving that warrants an online order. Regardless of the saving though, there’s one thing that often lacks - Customer Service.

I’m going to give you a few examples of differing service so you can see what I mean.

Geoffrey Butler – the STI Shimano 105 shifter on my 16 month old bike stopped working. I took it into Geoffrey Butler on the Saturday and by the following week, they’ve removed the shifter, sent it to Shimano and refitted a whole new set. The cost? £20 for some new bar tape, end caps and a token labour gesture.

Fudge Cycles (bike shop that also do mail order and online retail) – The powerlink on my SRAM chain breaks after 3 months use. Quick email to them and I receive a replacement link, free of charge in the post within a couple of days.

Wiggle (online retailer) – based on recommendation, I bought a pair of DHB glasses with interchangeable lenses which broke where the frame meets the nose section. This frame is designed to flex when the lenses are interchanged. All DHB items carry a lifetime warranty so I emailed Wiggle but received no response. I was surprised to find a replacement pair arrive in the post within a couple of days. It would have been nice to have a reply to my email but I appreciated the replacement.

Four months on, the same thing has happened on the replacement pair – a break in exactly the same spot. So, I email Wiggle. No response. I email on two more occasions. Still no response. It’s been two weeks now and I’m still without a replacement pair or a reply to any of my correspondence.

This whole incident has raised a few questions. Will an initial saving on a purchase outweigh the final cost?

When magazines recommend items, are they driven by actual real life experience or on behalf of the advertising team?

Will I ever receive a replacement set of specs?

Tune in again to find out. Guess where I’ll be shopping from now on………