Halfords again

[Brandane]

I always start off at the LBS but usually end up at Halfords for spare parts. I went in last week for a 10 speed chain. Now I would think a bike chain would be a stock item with quite a few in stock. I was told we can order you one in,be about 3 days. On the way home I call into Halfords and they have loads. Its not the first time I have done this when wanting other parts. It seems they are more interested in selling bikes and doing repairs and servicing.

Had this in quite a few LBSs. I realise it cannot be economical for them to hold a large amount of stock, but why would anyone with access to the internet want to order a part through their LBS and wait 3 days for it, at greater cost and less convenience than the likes of Wiggle or ChainReaction?

I discovered on Tuesday evening that my MTB needed a new bottom bracket. Looked on ChainReaction and found a Shimano replacement discounted from £20 to £17, postage free. Delivered through my door at 8am today . Had I gone to my LBS it would have been ordered by them yesterday, 3 days later takes us to Saturday if you're lucky, or more likely after the weekend; and at what cost? Plus I would have to go to the shop to collect it. No contest, I'm afraid.

Having said all that, I would hate to see LBSs disappear, but "some" need to get their act together.

 

[The Dwaff Family]

Sorry, but everyone I have dealt with in Halfords(MK) have been useless. When buying a bike rack in June I went up to a group of them and specifically asked to speak with the one with the knowledge on them. They all answered and they were all useless, I had more knowledge from spending a day researching in the internet and thank god I did!!

 

[Cardiac]

In my experience of Halfords the standard varies hugely from one employee to the next.Its luck of the draw wether you get served by someone knowledgeable or someone who couldnt tell you anything about bikes.

...or cars, come to think of it.

My experiences are similarly mixed. My current road bike (a Carrera Vanquish fitted with better bits than the current model) came from their Grantham store where the guy who served me was very helpful (and was a cyclist). My local branch (Huntingdon) seems rather hit and miss. Oh, and I only bought the bike from them - I assembled it out of the box myself.

 

[mightyquin]

I had excellent service from Halfords last week when I took my car battery into them, I thought it was u/s but they offered to try to recharge it for me (I'd already tried this) and phoned me a couple of days later to say it was fully charged and fine! Saved me £100.

As said, it really does depend on the individual member/s of staff, whether they actually know what they're talking about and can care to put themselves out a little for the customer.