BIKEPGH MESSAGE BOARD ARCHIVE

i was thinking about applying for a job there but decided to wait for the second round of hiring to see what the store was like, haven't stopped in yet.

97% sure Performance owns Nashbar.

I'm 99% sure they don't own Nashbar, but I believe Nashbar buys out excess Performance private label stuff.

Performance owns Nashbar.

Yep, I was wrong.

97?

the odds in this thread are staggering.

I was (overly) confident, but I have no problem admitting when I'm wrong.

I actually looked around and it seems the relationship between Performance and Nashbar is quite complicated. Though that may be because I'm not a business law attorney or really familiar with OH and NC business law.

I heard somewhere that 65% percent of all statistics that are quoted are completely made up.

I stopped in today, I like it. Good prices, it seems like if you really need some knowlegeable help you kind of have to work your way up the personnel, if you know what I mean, but I can't hold that against them.

It seems like they did some significant local hiring, very commendable.

In the 90's Nashbar world headquarters were 1:15

away in Ohio. Anything that was returned sat in

a sale bin for like 80% off.

They also had GIANT bins full of shoes and you

could mix and match them for like 5 dollars a shoe

or something crazy.

Then once we drove there in like 2000 and it was gone

So my question is, has bike-pgh given them a pile of maps and commuter guides to give away?

steevo that's awesome... i wonder where it went, that would be a fun bike trip if its kinda close (doubt it!)

I heard somewhere that 65% percent of all statistics that are quoted are completely made up.

About two years ago I got a letter from Performance saying that the credit card processor for their Nashbar subsidiary had been hacked and that I should request a new card from my bank. So at that point I was 100% sure. The 3% fudge factor was in case they'd been sold and I hadn't heard about it.

I had a card that I rarely used for anything, but somehow used with Nashbar many years back. Got a call one day that said there were a bunch of charges on this card (that I hadn't used for a year+). I have no way of knowing, but Nashbar never did send me any notification. I had to read about it afterwards.

Fortunately the CC company was more proactive than Performance/Nashbar, and they stopped all the charges before they went through.

Last year I got a call and letter from Nashbar telling me their serve had been hacked and five card numbers I had used in the past we all stolen. In return they gave me a 30% coupon.

Although it took me 2 months to sort it all out, I still shop with them occasionally.

ask the original question again in a few months. Just had the softy opening this friday, grand opening next friday 6/11.....

I just checked out the store. Basically most everything in the catalog is in the store. A nice variety of bikes (in style and price).

I think the $300 single speeds will be popular with newbies.

I stopped by the store trying to find the Friday Night Lights group ride (that I didn't realize was as new as the store - which I also didn't realize was new). The guys that work there were all very cool, I hung out for like an hour and a half talking to them and Bruce from the Major Taylor club. While I ended up having to call for a ride home (the headlight I was 90% convinced to buy wasn't charged and the display model didn't have a cord), it was a very good evening anyway, and I look forward to more (though with more riding).

I do prefer going to little local shops rather than a chain, but that's me on the Buy Local bandwagon. They don't sell used bikes, either (another personal quirk of mine).

I went there looking for panniers today, and the guy working there actually just flat out told me all theirs are sh!t and to go to REI....

At least they are honest.

ya the people there are were really helpful, and immediately asking if i needed any help when i walked in the door... on "clearance" the tubes were 2.99, 4.99 regular... ouch

So, if they have no interest in used bikes, I wonder if there's any chance they could actively direct people with old/unused bikes to FreeRide as they sell them new ones?

Lenk, it sounds like you work there?

Got my flyer for the grand opening in the mail yesterday. 15% off any one item, including bikes. Hmmm, I may have to check it out after all.

I checked it out. I was unimpressed overall with the selection, particularly of bikes. There's a lot of empty space in the store, though, that they try to conceal by widening aisles and distributing displays. I wonder if they have not yet fully stocked.

They only have had their soft opening. soft openings are usually to help employees get first hand experience before advertising that the store is, in fact, open. I wouldn't be surprised if you see a huge difference in inventory levels and type of inventory between this week and the next month or two.

In the past year or so, chain retailers have significantly dropped the amount of inventory they have on hand. Partially because it is sitting on money, but also because they get scheduled deliveries so regularly, that the company can stock a larger variety of items in a centralized warehouse and ship them out to stores on a need basis. This keeps the company from holding certain inventory at certain stores that don't move that type of inventory.

However, with a lot of companies like this, management also has a say in what their specific store carries (besides core product), so they may be trying to feel out the market.

I also got my "grand opening" flyer in the mail. This weekend they'll give you a $5 gift card for recycling an inner tube, up to three tubes. I don't know if there is a set number or not but it's only Friday-(I think) Sunday.

I hope I get one of those in the mail to all three addresses that they send me catalogs to... I have a pile of tubes that are way past the point of being of any use.

There's a number of Performance shops in DC where I used to lived and liked them a lot. Not sure what the Pittsburgh one will be like but they seem to focus a lot more on cycling gear vs. actual bikes. That's ok with me since most shops don't tend to carry much inventory of gear.

Example of the sort of service you can expect from a place like performance:

I stopped by there today to grab some cliff bars and some cheap tires/tubes for my beater bike. By chance, I grabbed two different tires, one with and one without a kevlar band, two different prices and two different model numbers. If I had gone to a LBS, I can just about guarantee that the person checking me out would have said something. The dude at performance was more than happy to ignore it and take my money.

I'm not upset by any means because it doesn't make a difference to me, but I see this as a pretty good example what you can expect from performance. I'll go there to recycle tubes and buy ultra-cheap parts for my beaters, but not much else, especially when I actually need help with something.

Been buying stuff from them online for about 5 years. Prices are competitive, items are good quality. Although, never buy their rain jacket with the velcro "zipper". The velcro is stronger than the rest of the material. So the material rips apart, not the velcro "zipper".

Tomorrow morning another $20 to the first hundred people, also tube exchange all weekend. I don't really get the strategy here but I'm willing to help out.

Their strategy is simple. Loss leaders (recycled tubes - 20$ cards) will get you in the door and get you thinking about them. for 20% of the people who get those cards or win something or just enjoy the grand opening will come back when they want to buy something expensive. Even if you do like rob and only go there to buy the cheap parts for your beater bike they will make their money back no problem.

I once bought a rack for my bike at REI and since I rode my bike to REI I sat on a bench and tried to install the rack, I ran into a problem with the bolts that mounted the rack to the bike were a little to short to get the rack mounted securely. I went in and talked to the repair guy (mechanic) at REI and he had me bring the bike and rack in and dug thru some spare parts and got the rack mounted in about 10 min. When I asked him how much he just waved his hand and said "I didnt have anything to do anyway" Since then I have always made it a point to stop into REI every chance I get and pick up something, even if it is a tube or cliff bar or something. I have also told this story many times to people I met and friends. so I know for a fact that REI has gotten way more than the cost of couple of bolts and 10 min time.

Just Saying

all i know is that a granola bar, water bottle, computer, air pump, bib shorts, and jersey for $4.54 is one hell of a deal. i'm going back tomorrow morning too.

Hmmmm, Well i only went to Performance once and browsed, but the people i always seem to deal with at REI are rude..I asked to get some air once there, and was told since i wasn't a member that i couldn't! Haha. Not to mention their prices, are well, yeah.The clearance stuff is even a little much unless you find a reallyy good deal.Nice place, but it ain't cheap!

Now the only problem is, trying to explain to someone why you want their old tubes..haha.

The thing that sets REI apart from other stores, and what lets them have higher prices, is that they enforce a sort of 'price to entry' in regards of quality. When you go to a place that sells cheaper stuff, sure there will be some high-end gems at low prices, but you have to hunt for it. When I shop at REI I know that I don't have to look to hard to find a product that I can trust, and when it comes to riding or camping, trust is important to me.

Stopped by performance again today to swap tires, painless return, won a water bottle, tried to get me to join their club, twice.

Forget team performance, team thick for life!

I got to talking to one of the salepeople yeasterday while exchanging my old tubes for cash. He mentioned that a big reason he took the job is that the pay is decent AND they have health bennies. That's a plus in my decision making about where to buy, and not just bike stuff. Is the store for everyone? No. But should we be happy to have another store in an otherwise empty storefront? Yes.

Just Got back from there, seemed like an ok place, about what I expected as far as prices go. I like that it is where I can get to it easily so it has that working for it.

The only thing that sort of got me was I brought in two tubes and got the 5 bucks for each of them (which is think is a really good way of bringing people in) but when I checked out and got my bill the 10 bucks wasnt taken off and when I asked the clerk he tried to convince me that it was taken off. since I only bought a handful of things (total came to just over 20 bucks) I was pretty sure I knew the 10 bucks wasnt taken off. only when a manager got involved did I get things straightened out.

Could be just new employees learning a new system, but make sure you check the receipts.

Also I told one of the clerks that I stopped in because I heard about it on the Bike-Pgh forums and he seemed surprised and asked what people were saying. We had a nice discussion before I went off and browsed.

I talked to an employee there yesterday who is a lurker (If you see this, join and post) on the board and knew me from the board. We talked a little bit about CM v. FOC and where to get out for longer non-city rides. So, I am pretty sure that the manager there knows we are talking about them.

It seems that all of their employees are happy to be there. To me, that means a lot.

Yea, knowledge is lacking, but you have to consider a lot of them are new

Got a frame pump, chain whip and handle bar grips, and under the seat bag for $12 with $15 coupons.

Guy tried to pull the "if you don't give us the information you won't be able to make a return" routine too. The guy must be wrong. Receipt = return.

Maybe if you lost your receipt and didn't have any info, then maybe under those circumstances you couldn't make a return.

I just checked it out today for the first time. I picked up a few things that I knew I needed, at prices that seemed reasonable (or better). Best deal was "buy any floor pump, and get a CO2 tire filler for free." Park Tools had a floor pump on sale for $19.99, so it was hard to beat that deal. Now I have a pump for the house and for the car! Or one to keep and one to lend, is more likely.

Since I wasnt on the mailing list and wanted to be I was ok giving them my address. but I can understand how this can bother people. Unless I want you to have my information there isnt much you can do to get it out of me.

i was in there yesterday afternoon, and they asked if i wanted to be on the list before asking me for my information. i declined, and that was that.

oh, and i went in there today to see if there was a good deal on a bike for my SLF. i remember there being more yesterday, and there wasn't anything good in her price range today. and the fella who helped us out was nice enough, but it was clear that all his learning was of the book variety. i had to fill in a lot of blanks for her.

Been there a couple of times...

Bought a repair stand that's working out quite well. Also a helmet upgrade which, while pricey, feels much much nicer than what I've been wearing. The "grand opening" discounts helped a whole lot, of course.

But of course there's more to it.

Does Performance actually care about you as a cyclist, or are you just a potential long-term revenue source? (The checkout clerks have been instructed to insist on Name, Address, Phone, Email... Huh? I'm just trying to give you some money in exchange for this thing I just put on the counter in front of you.)

As in everything else in life, what really matters are your (long-term) relationships, commercial or otherwise. In the case of Performance, do talk with the manager and figure out if you can work with him over the long term. (I happen to like him, of course that doesn't mean that I'd ditch my local guy... You know, just like in real life.)

I won a semi-nice tool kit on the prize wheel today. I will gladly take all the freebies they want to give to me.

The line for the register was getting a bit crazy at 9:45 when I was leaving.

I will probably be back tomorrow for more freebies.

The manager guy seemed cool to me too. He helped me look for a dust cap in his catalog, but I found out later that Shimano doesn't sell a replacement for the hub I have. He kind of reminds me of a football coach or something.

Welllp, i just got back from there..Got me a helmet,floor pump (free water bottle, and handheld co2 pump) and a Clif bar for 23 bucks! Woohoo.

So I bought an item yesterday and returned it today. The original cost was 30 bucks, but performance applied 15 dollars of my store coupon to that item, plus the 15% off so that I ended up spending around 11 dollars. When I returned the item I only got 11 dollars of credit and lost my $15 dollar coupon. Does that seem right? Especially since I returned the item for a more expensive one? I don't mean to complain, but I was a little disappointed.

mleibowi, that is pretty much standard procedure in retail. It's kind of hard to complain since they gave you the $15. It's not like someone paid $15 and gave you a $15 gift card.

I've never heard of a place giving you your coupons and discounts back when you return something. If it was defective, most places would do an even exchange though.

I just got back from Performance and enjoyed my visit. Aside from the great deals I got, the people were friendly and the selection good.

I like Performance more than, say, the Trek Store because they seem to have a lot more merchandise available and it isn't all Trek, Bontrager or other "house brand" stuff. There's a huge selection and it's a lot like going to the grocery store except it's all bike stuff.

I like the how there are aisles instead of just having stuff stuck to the walls or on small racks.

Some big guy who looked like a wrestler or, I think someone mentioned a football coach, rang me up. He seemed overly occupied with helping the next clerk over apply points to a female customer's boyfriend/husband's performance account, but overall, the experience was good -- and nobody asked me for my name, address or phone number when I checked out.

After having visited performance four times, each time with three tubes in hand, they seem decent enough.

The head mechanic seems cool (didn't catch his name, but he has dark hair, looks about 30)and was always like "Cool!" when I showed up with more tubes (Oh, how descriptive of me)

They have ProLink Chain Lube, which is my lube of choice and it is only around $8, which is one of the lowest prices I've seen it anywhere. A bunch of decent and cheap tools (they were pretty much out of tools by Sunday, I ended up getting stuff I didn't even really need)

(Cheapness in price is their regular price, without discounts factored in)

Employees seem friendly.

yeah, park floor pump + CO2 for $19 was a pretty good deal, i also picked up a pair of gloves.

fwiw, i got asked for my name/# but i just said "i'd prefer not to" and the guy dropped it immediately.

seems like an OK place although as with everything else i'd rather support a local business than a chain.

well, i'll leave yinz to make your own decisions, but i won't be taking any of my bikes there for service (not that i've ever actually had my bikes serviced, but still).

my SLF bought a bike there, what with all the cheap deals and such, and when we went to pick it up, the shop guy half rounded out the seat clamp bolt right in front of us. then, while playing with the shifter, it seemed like it dropped from the third ring to the small ring in one downshift, and the dial on the shifter didn't tell the correct gear (it went from 1 to 1.5 to 2). turns out the derailleur cable was waaay too tight. and the barrel adjuster had been tightened (possibly to compensate?) so tight i had to use pliers to loosen it, which i had no misgivings doing because it was obvious from how chewed up it was that pliers had been used to tighten it.

i know they had a lot of bikes and were rushed all weekend, but that's why we left it overnight, and the issues were so obvious.

They replaced a spoke and trued my rear wheel for me. They returned the wheel to me with both of the little axel springs on the same side and backwards. The wheel is true though.

@HV - SLF? you mean these guys?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aV5eKr4uorg

Are they still doing the $5 for tubes deal? I might go in and check things out today or tomorrow some time.

Friend got a new bike there with the front wheel on backwards. Maybe they didn't notice the obvious tread pattern or the label on the side of the tire that said 'direction' with the little arrow. Good place to pick up cheap supplies but I will still continue to take mine to my LBS (Ambridge Bike Shop Rules!) for any serious repair.

A big thing for me is the hours. With my work schedule it can be hard for me to get to most of the LBS's when they are open.

My biggest problem is reliability. I have one bike, and I use it to go to and from work. If I drop off my bike for some work, and it's promised on Monday, and I show up on Monday and hear that it won't be ready until Tuesday, then I show up on Tuesday and hear that it won't be ready until Wednesday, then I get really frustrated. If after all of that, I pick up my bike and find out when I get home that the work I wanted done was not, in fact, actualy done, then I'm hopping mad.