kneemick wrote:Pissface - yep that is what i'm worried about (cutting off my nose to spite my face) but from what I have seen recently the attitude in the shop hasn't changed, a friend went in with a specfic request that was spelt out and agreed to then the shop assistant did it how he wanted to without consultation (the request was very specific for a very specific purpose).
Never got used to the Rockhopper - gave it away in the end.

sounds like the problem in this shop is the assistants, but that would be a result of management attitude probably if it has persisted thru the years.

ah, fuckem, shop elsewhere for serious stuff & plan trips to get a bunch of odds and sods at the same time (let's be real, you won't be buying bike stuff every week or even every month), and write a letter to the shop telling them why you won't be shopping there

[edit: nah I wouldnt write that letter. circumstances may change]

kneemick wrote:So my question is am I mad to avoid using/purchasing at that shop again when it means I have to travel about 50kms to get to an alternative

most aucklanderes have to drive 50km to go riding , so 50km is nothing.

philstar wrote:

kneemick wrote:So my question is am I mad to avoid using/purchasing at that shop again when it means I have to travel about 50kms to get to an alternative

most aucklanderes have to drive 50km to go riding , so 50km is nothing.

Or drive a little longer and get to Vegas

Oli wrote:By the way, it's not like the Rockhopper is a bad bike - how the fuck is the bike shop supposed to know it's the wrong bike for him if he doesn't say so? Is mindreading supposed to be a prerequisite for bike shop ownership now? "The right job". Good one.

The shop assistant obviously did not make the effort to understand the customer's needs. Sure, the customer in this case ( and in most!) probably didn't understand their needs / desires entirely either.

I guess in my sales vocation, a client's ignorance is no excuse to sell them products that do not fit the purpose. I could, but it would be a very short term sale and in all likelihood reduce my chances of gaining future revenue / repeat business.

I may be a fool in thinking it is a salesperson's job to also educate and understand the customer, but meh, what'd I know.

All boils down to retail sales being an underpaid, regretfully poorly respected vocation.

I agree entirely that the shop assistant could have worked harder, but if the guy said he wanted a Rockhopper and the shop droid made sure it fitted then at least he's done his job - not liking an otherwise perfectly sound bike is a LOT different than being sold a dud.

Not offering a test ride isn't great service, I agree, but Kneemick could have asked for one and refused to buy without it.

I'm also not saying the shop is good or bad - I don't know, I've never shopped there. The offer to take back the bike after the weekend is the real bad shit, but I'm not trying to excuse that and it appears to be the ex-staff member's fault anyway. The boss could have sorted it out more amicably perhaps, but my point is that there should be some personal responsibility in this. Shifting the blame entirely onto the shop just doesn't seem fair to me from what I've read.

Sounds to me like both parties were at fault in the beginning (the assistant for saying 'try it over the weekend' and the customer for thinking they'd take it back once used - I mean really?). But time has passed and untill reading about the more recent experience of the friend I was inclined to say maybe it's time to let bygones be bygones, but having read that it sounds like there are still a few issues with service that won't give you confidence to shop there. If that's your decision, that's what justifies it to me. Would hate to have to drive that far myself tho! (then again I'll sometimes do a 70/80km round trip).

T-Rex wrote:It sounds like the curse of Kiwi vagueness struck again:



‘yeah nah, take it for the weekend and we’ll sort you out if you don’t like it’



Buyer thinks: ‘Sweet, they’ll upgrade me to a [insert name of top Specialized here] for free if I don’t like mine. Might as well go do some wharf jumps’



LBS dude thinks: ‘Punter. I’ll give him a tube and a Maxxis sticker on Monday. That should sort him out.’

Mr_Bob wrote:

philstar wrote:

kneemick wrote:So my question is am I mad to avoid using/purchasing at that shop again when it means I have to travel about 50kms to get to an alternative

most aucklanderes have to drive 50km to go riding , so 50km is nothing.

Or drive a little longer and get to Vegas

Or build some tracks down the road and never drive to go riding again (apart from events of course). And for longer rides just HTFU and ride to Riverhead, ride the trails and ride home.

I hate driving my car to go riding.

I hate driving my car to go riding.

Me too.

LBS dude thinks: ‘Punter. I’ll give him a tube and a Maxxis sticker on Monday. That should sort him out.’

Cheers T-rex, that was a classic LOL. I can just picture the LBS dude when he is saying this!

'service' in most areas of retail in nz are pretty low atm imho

i have my own wee garage , and honestly - i wouldnt dream of treating my customers the way i am forced to endure modern retailers - I usually vote with my feet if it sucks and there isnt another option.

meh, maybe we did it to ourselves by accepting the trash?

Sad to say, but some retailers leave a lot to be desired. I dont have a LBS anymore. there is only one bike shop in town and I'll never set foot in it again. If I need anything bike related, I'll get it online or else wait till my next trip to tauranga or rotorua. I'm in whakatane btw.

For the thread author, I'd never buy a bike I cant test ride first.

Thank you all for your replies - has given me food for thought. Never even crossed my mind that maybe the guy that was leaving had a grudge, so will possiby go and get one of the bikes serviced there and see what happens. Even though I haven't worked in retail for about 25 years I know there is no such thing as a free lunch, hence my comment about realising I was going to take a hit in the wallet. I can't explain why the bike never felt right but I spent a long time in the shop with the assistant one day, then thought about it and did a bit of research prior to purchasing it a couple of days later. I guess thats why there are so many different brands around each with their supporters and detractors.
Once again thanks

You cant explain why it didnt feel right? there is a lot you can do with a bike to get a bike to fit/handle better? sure it wasnt just a case of buyers remorse? Ive seen that a bit in the industry!

Definatly wasn't buyers remorse - I spent about 6 months playing with all sorts of things including stem length, handlebar width and other bits and pieces and no matter what I did it always felt cramped, I didn't like the action of the forks and there was no way to change them other than stiffening the spring (which I did through putting a spacer in as there were no alternative springs available and I wasn't going to go to the expense of changing the forks entirely), changed the brakes, changed from Shimano to Sram shifters/gear train, tried differet tyres etc, so I don't know what more I could have done. I now own 5 different bikes that install more confidence right from the outset than the Rockhopper ever did so in the end I guess I did all I could do and realised it just wasn't for me so I got rid of it.

Without doing the slightest bit of actual research, I would have thought their wasn't much difference in geometry between a Hardrock and a Rockhopper? In that case it comes down to spec differences that made it feel so different, and I suspect it was price that made you choose it.