recumbenttoad

I've been wanting to get a different ride to commute on that is more, shall we say, robust. So, I've been keeping my eye on a Salsa El Mariachi 29er at the LBS that is last years model. This weekend they are having their annual Spring sale and their clearance bikes are up to 50% off. I peeped in their window last night to see if the bike was still there, and it was, so, I went in today to see what the price was going to be Friday and Saturday. Lo and behold the bike isn't there. I ask about it and was told that they have it set back for a guy that will pick it up tomorrow. Price - $750, down from $1,500. But here's the rub. This sale is supposed to be a first come, first served sale. If you get there early enough, you get the deals. If you don't, you lose out. Hard to swallow a deal I missed without even having the chance to get it.

bengreen79

That doesn't seem unusual for a clearance sale. I bet Black Friday is a tremendous series of disappointments for you.

recumbenttoad

What doesn't seem unusual? The fact that stated in their ad is the fact that the sale is on a first come first served basis and no sale will be conducted prior to the Friday opening or the fact that they didn't follow their stated rules?

Black Friday doesn't disappoint me at all because I don't participate in the madness. Snarky responses, however, tend to make me roll my eyes a bit.

David Bierbaum

Sorry for your loss. Sometimes you just need a place where you can wave your fists and stamp your feet in frustration. At least if the situation ever pops up again, you'll know that layaway is one of the services offered to those who come first.

imi

That is a really crappy bike anyway. I'd rather take the bus... You lucked out!

alan s 

Sounds like you got there second. I had my eye on a suspension fork once, and when the sale started, someone else beat me to it. That's the way it goes, my friend. Better luck next time.

CB HI

The OP did not even get the chance to beat the other guy to it. The sale had not started yet and the LBS put the bike away for the other guy ahead of the sale so he could cheat anyone else from going in at the start of the sale to get the bike at the sale price.

LBS was stupid for admitting the did such a thing.

chriskmurray

There is a very real chance that they would have set the bike aside for you had you asked before the guy who beat you to it. I am guessing the other guy is raving about how accommodating this shop is.

Big Lebowski

Is this a locally owned LBS or part of a chain? If it's local, maybe talk to the owner and let him/her know about your disappointment. Maybe they'd cut you a deal on a '13.

ratdog

It is first come first serve for what is on the floor labeled as "on sale". It doesn't mean the owner couldn't pre-sell some items to his favored customers. I see it as the LBS owner's perogative. Why all the anger?

SpookyReverb

Man, come on. You know it is super disappointing when something like that happens. Why act like this guy is throwing a fit for nothing?

OP, keep your eye out for more good deals! Try for a discount on the new ones. I have a Salsa as well and it is the best thing that has ever happened to me (well, third after wife and daughter of course.) and I even bought it full price.

modernjess

My bike addiction has handed me many mighty disappointments over the years. My coping strategy is to remember that there are millions of bikes out there, if the deal was meant to be it would have happened. It wasn't meant to be, so what, there will be others. I have a garage full to prove it.

Erwin8r

Nah, I have a problem with with the LBS did. It is unethical. If they truly advertise it as a "first come, first serve," it sucks that they did that. Sometimes employees will do that for buddies, etc. Not much you can do, though, except to talk to the owner/manager and see if they'd be willing to cut you a deal on a new one; I'd almost bet if you asked nicely and expressed your disappointment that you;d be accommodated. If not, maybe find another LBS.

DVC45

They broke their set schedule for the sale. ' wonder why they bothered advertising the sale in the first place?
I would be very disappointed too if I was in the OP's situation.

jfan

The OP's got every right to be ticked, and should demand some sort of restitution. The LBS violated a rule that they themselves created, and it resulted in the OP losing out on hundreds of dollars in savings. That's not pocket change, and he shouldn't just say, "oh well, stuff happens, I guess I'll bend over and take it" as some of you are suggesting.

ratdog

Just put yourself in the sucessful buyers shoes. If you knew the LBS owner well enough to score a great deal on the bike before anyone else, I highly doubt any of you would give it back. All this griping just sounds like sour grapes to me.

To the OP, sorry you got sleazed out by another buyer, but it is not the LBS's fault. If you wanted this bike bad enough, just go out and do what you need to to get it. Remember, there is nothing fair in life and nothing is handed to you. You need to grab the moment instead and not just gripe about the outcome.

Altair 4

I disagree. The LBS advertised the rules of the sale then conveniently circumvented them for the other customer. Why have any rules on the sale if they're not going to follow them?

modernjess

+1 - I am one of those guys that gets the deal that you missed out on. Why? Because I've spent years developing a friendship and a relationship with the owners of my favorite LBS. I gladly pay them to do work for me. I bring them presents (mostly booze, which they like) when they do. I go to their events and they have become my friends. When I walk in the door and I need an emergency fix they do it for me on the spot. I let them know what I'm looking for and when deals come up they let me know and I refer a lot of business to them. A loyal customer is worth a lot, and so is a friend. So good business owners take care of them. They aren't out to screw you. You make your own luck.

I-Like-To-Bike

"Demand some sort of restitution"? "Violated a rule"? "The OP losing out on hundreds of dollars" Good Lord!

Conversely, the OP should make "restitution" to the LBS for not only saving him from spending $750, but for the $1500 the OP should have spent when he first saw the bike at the LBS.

ratdog

First come first serve sales are there to encourage you to part with your money quicker instead of coming back another day to think about it.

Since everyone is so hell bent on slamming the LBS, let me ask a question.

If you were the owner of the LBS & someone offered you an extra money to buy a bike one day before it goes on sale are you going to turn that down knowing that your overhead & operating expenses are the same regardless of what you sell the bike for?


And if you say yes, please open a bike shop so that I can shop there.

Leebo

Have them contact the main Salsa office for other bikes.

ratdog

Whatcha smoking dude? I want some.....

you do realize that the intent of 50% off sale is to get rid of old stock and that there is no benefit for the shop to order you the latest to sell at their cost don't you?

treebound 

Re: black friday sales: I was at a store once where something was supposed to go on sale at a specific location in the store at a published time. Turns out all the claim tickets for that item were handed out one hour earlier in a different aisle. Life isn't fair sometimes.

Re: bike shop favors and karma: I worked part-time seasonally at one of the local shops and saw several times where a customer (special or not, sometimes just someone who knew how to work the staff or owner) would put something on hold, then several potential buyers came in who would probably have bought the bike but were then either put off or sent away or sold something else in the mean time, only then to have to original person back out of the deal. Often the bike would go back on the floor and quite often sit there unsold for weeks or for the rest of the year. Karma has it's own rules.

To the OP, talk to the shop owner calmly, state your case of wanting to have bought that specific bike, and see what happens. Worst case is you get told too bad so sorry = lost customer. Best case is the guy backed out of the deal and the owner will now throw in some extras to offset your frustration = placated customer. Neutral case is the shop owner is made aware of the situation and you end up shopping elsewhere in the future = lost customer.

DerekMcC

+ 1 on this. I have been a regular at a shop where I always get good (not great) deals because I have spent time and money there. I am also a regular on the monthly "dinner rides" where we all just ride around and then find somewhere to eat. I have purchased my my wife's and kids' bikes there and let them order stuff for me (that they can get . . . otherwise, I buy online). My current commuter and all associated parts were also purchased there.

The shop owner was disappointed once that I bought a bike from a competitor, but it was a brand that he couldn't get.

Anyway, here's my point:
I have been wanting a touring bike and had settled on a Raleigh Sojourn but I needed to wait until the end of the year. I really liked this years color and since it has been the same for two years, it is time for Raleigh to change. On his own, the owner called the Raleigh rep and my size was gone for the year. Oh well, you snooze you lose. The next day the rep called back and found one in the warehouse that was designated for another shop but they had more than they wanted so he ordered it.

Yesterday, I walked in . . . there it was (Que the Hallelujah Chorus) . He said he got it for me but I was not committed. He was willing to put it on layaway for the remainder of the year if I wanted it. It is now in the back waiting for me. That is LBS service.

In my brief 44 years I have found that personally, professionally and in business' "Life is about relationships".

DJ Shaun

I can see both sides of this. I've gotten special deals from my usual LBS and I've also lost out to someone getting an item before me.

In your position, if I really wanted that make/model, I would have expressed my disappointment (without getting mad) and would have tried to get some kind of discount on the newer model. If they don't go for that then I'd just walk away from the sale.

I've never paid full retail on a new bike and I usually make up the difference in upgrades/accessories.