Troul 

I've found a new bicycle that's at another bicycle shop in another state & am not sure how it would be possible for that shop to transfer it to my lbs to complete the sale.
I'd rather it be bought thru my lbs for future service support & any warranty claims if it's ever needed.
Has anyone had experience with this? Is it something that a lbs would support doing?

Koyote

You might try asking your bike shop.

Troul 

I have left a message for them to get back to me, but I would like to have other's with knowledge to chime in.

rumrunn6

are the 2 bike shops part of a retail chain? is there any relationship between them?

cxwrench

How can anyone answer your question when you've completely failed to provide any useful information? As rumrunn asked are they part of a chain? This can make all the difference as they can probably transfer between stores. If not...you're out of luck. Hopefully this makes sense to you.

Steve B.

It's not like transferring an automobile. Generally, any inventory at the LBS is owned by the LBS. You would probably need to purchase on-line, if they allow that, and have it shipped. I am assuming the local LBS doesn't have this bike in inventory and cannot get it ?. Have they checked with the manufacturer ?. My last 2 bikes purchased as complete bikes, were ordered thru the manufacturer and shipped (pre-pandemic, when the manufacturers had inventory). If the local LBS cannot get what you need from the manufacturer, looks like you are driving out of state to purchase.

_ForceD_

I have never heard of a LBS doing this. Unless the LBS is part of a chain, as questioned above, they don’t have anymore knowledge about the bike being sold than you do. It kinda sounds like you’re essentially asking your LBS to buy the bike from the afar LBS, check it out and make sure it’s suitable for sale, and then sell it to you. If…IF…they do it…I’m sure it’s a service you’d have to pay extra for. Or…if the afar LBS is shipping it as part of the sale…just have them ship it to you, and then you take it to your LBS for the checkup.

Dan

njkayaker

"Transfer", huh?

You mean pay to have it shipped and lose out on making any money on it (in a hot market).

Why would they do that?

(Things might be different if it was a chain,.)

gpburdell

Maybe, if the two stores are owned by the same entity. If independent of one another, likely not.

Only way to know is ask them.

Just go buy the bike before someone else does. Your LBS will still work on it, and if they're a dealer for the brand they'll be able to handle warranty stuff. Given current stock and lead time situation, IMHO no LBS has a justifiable gripe with someone buying an in-stock bike elsewhere if the LBS doesn't have or can't get it in a reasonable time.

biker128pedal

I know from experience that Trek will tell a dealers do a transfer if it’s a warranty claim. But I was told for a buy it’s between the shops. Like mentioned above and you tried. Go into the your shop and ask. Also the dealer who has the bike may let you buy the bike and ship it to you or your dealer for assembly.

As for warranties claims. Those are by brand. I’ve had other shops who I did not purchase from help.

Over 4,000 post. Come on. More info would help and satisfy our curiosity. We all want to know what your planning to buy. We are here to help you spend your hard earned cash. You must do the same here.

70sSanO

Sounds like the ride of a lifetime.

John

blacknbluebikes 

One of my best friends did this about 2 years ago. His dealer, who carries TREK, found that a dealer in a distant state (NJ, TN) had the bike my buddy wanted. Local dealer did a deal with distant dealer and got the bike. I'm sure there was a bit of horse-trading in that, nobody works for free. My friend got his bike, surely no discount. I've since heard that TREK frowns upon this, but, hey, you never know. I think key is "does everyone get their due?"

livedarklions

They may do it. They may not. They may return your call. They may not.

You're welcome.

Troul 

I'll have to check to see if the other shop is an authorized dealer & open a line of communication with them. I'm not looking to get a deal, but I'm not going to pay beyond what TREK would see right
my authorized TREK dealer lbs cannot get my order in for 6+ months from the last time I talked to them.

Troul 

If it were just a state over, I'd go pick it up pending TREK would be supportive of making the lbs carry out future needs.

rumrunn6

buy directly from who has it. have it shipped. the authorized dealer would honor any manufacturer warranties (ask them to confirm)

get it before someone else does!

indyfabz

I'd be surprised if one authorized dealer would not honor the warranty on a bike purchased from a different authorized dealer. Decades ago I bought a Schwinn 754 from an authorized dealer in Pittsburgh then moved back to Philly. When it had warranty problems, I had them taken care on at an authorized Schwinn dealer in Philly. Car warranties work the same way. I (stupidly) bought my Subaru from a dealer that is a PITA to drive to from my home. Its warranty claims have been taken care of by another Subaru dealer much closer to my house.

Steve B.

Many manufacturers call this "mail order" and prohibit their dealers from shipping. Cannondale, Trek, Specialized all come to mind.

Steve B.

Nothing lost in trying, if your local dealer knows what the out of state dealer purchased from the manufacturer for, and is willing to put out the cash (or credit card) pay them for it, they might do this. You would likely have to maybe put a down payment as well as pay for shipping, which might be $150 or so. That begs the question how far away and would it be cheaper to pay gas and tolls to go and get it ?.

Troul 

it'd incur an overnight stay at a hotel, some vacation time taken, plus fuel/tolls, food & vehicle costs (typical mileage use at minimum) .

pdlamb

Would getting this bike now instead of 6-12 months from now be worth all that?

I've never done more than a day trip to get a bike, but it was sometimes a long day...

mstateglfr 

Its a warranty from Trek. The warranty isnt thru your local shop. Buy the bike and the warranty will be honored by Trek regardless of if you submit a warranty claim thru the original dealer or not. When shops close, do you think all the bikes they sold are suddenly no longer under warranty?

There is a common theme in all your threads over the last few months- you are very worried about the warranty coverage. Are you planning on beating the junk out of this new bike or what? Thinking thru everyone I have known that owns bikes, bikes that have had warranty claims are just such a small % that it is almost not worth considering to me. I certainly havent considered it for any frame or component I have purchased.

Just drive and buy it. If you can afford the type of bike you plan on buying, then expenses like a hotel room or 'food and vehicle costs' are just not things to really get worked up over. I hear you have to pay for food even if you go nowhere.

Russ Roth

Call up the shop that has it and ask if they'll ship, they might not since contractually they probably shouldn't with a lot of brands. But I had a friend who did this and the shop agreed to sell and send to another shop for assembly. They just called the other shop and sent it direct to them without having to build it first. The shop by them didn't care since they didn't have to outlay any money to make a sale but still got an assembly fee. Not certain why so many are negative about this.

indyfabz

The mileage reimbursement rate includes the cost of fuel. And if you stay home you are not going to eat? And you would avoid the shipping cost, which would likely include insurance. If the bike is already assembled I would bet the shop would charge you for breaking it down and boxing it. In my neck of the woods, boxing a bike for shipping is around $100 these days, if not more. That does not include the cost of shipping.

Live a little.

shelbyfv

I agree. If you want it, call the shop, give them your credit card to hold it and go pick it up.