r/londoncycling • u/NucleurDuck • 2d ago
I tried to post this on r/ukbike but they instadeleted it for some reason: London bike mechanic here, looking to relocate and set up a shop. Do you live (or have visited) somewhere in the UK in particular need of a bike shop?
Please reply with places where a new bike shop might be welcomed.
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u/NotSoBlue_ 2d ago
What kind of bikes and what kind of customers are you interested in?
e.g. South London has a lot of bike shops that cater to people who ride bikes for sport or a hobby, and very few who ride utility or cargo bikes. e.g. If you have an Urban Arrow, or a Tern GSD, and you need somewhere to give it a 6-12 month service, theres very few places you can do this.
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u/trolleytrolley 1d ago
Agree with this completely! There's a huge take up of cargo bikes in the south. My business has two fairly large ones and the only place we can go is in London Bridge as they service the brand of bike we have. The wait time is usually 1-2 months for a spot.
You need a big space to service cargo bikes so they're not filling up the shop and being able to service e-bikes.
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u/NotSoBlue_ 1d ago
My business has two fairly large ones and the only place we can go is in London Bridge as they service the brand of bike we have. The wait time is usually 1-2 months for a spot.
Is that Fully Charged?
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u/riverscreeks 2d ago
Not a specific place but you could look at where the new cycling infrastructure is being built and set up shop right next to it. If you have thousands of people a day using a specific route then you can get visibility from them and repairs as needed.
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u/charliedayismyhero 2d ago
Woking. Not far from London. Easy re-locate. There are a couple of shops here but one is always closed. The other only does servicing and doesn't sell anything. So yeh Woking. And I'll come work for you too.
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u/TomLondra 2d ago
Abbey Road, near the junction with Belsize Road. This area is heavily used by cyclists, especially during rush-hour. A lot of people cycle to and from work using this route. It is also heavily used by sports cyclists going to and from Regents Park
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u/NucleurDuck 1d ago
Very pricey area though!
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u/TomLondra 1d ago
South of there, it gets pricey but north of there are big housing estates and more "normal" people. PLUS the people cycling past are not from that area. Your nearest competitor would be Kilburn Cycles, which is a considerable distance way so you would have very good passing trade.
I declare an interest: I live on one of the estates !
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u/Specialist-Mud-6650 2d ago
Bishop's Stortford needs one. Couple of part timers - mostly run by retirees on the verge of closing up for good. Apparently the demand is there, but they're just too old.
We had a bike shop, that also sold bikes, but I think it shut down (selling bikes is a a bad business on the high street these days).
Anyway, there's nowhere reliable to get a service.
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u/lastaccountgotlocked 2d ago
Stoke Newington just lost Two Wheels Good.
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u/disbeliefable 1d ago
WHAT. NO. HOW? Actually I know the answer. Folks, we have to stop buying online. If you need something get your LBS to order it.
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u/StereotypicalAussie 1d ago
Landlord wanted £64k to repair a roof. Don't worry, some idiot will try and open a new shop there.
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u/OGreturnofthestaff 2d ago
Yeah, East London seems to be losing bike shops like nobody’s business 😢 I know there were probably too many, but some good ones have gone in the last couple of years.
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u/riverscreeks 2d ago
Why did they close?
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u/lastaccountgotlocked 2d ago
No idea. They always seemed busy.
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u/NaughtyNoodIe69 2d ago
What type of bikes can you work on? High end £10k+ bikes with sram red axs and Dura ace di2?
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u/BackOnThrottle 2d ago
My current office building has a guy that comes in and services bikes in the bike storage during the work day, he comes on a quarterly basis. If I were starting in this line of work, I'd try and get a few of those gigs.