April 1, 2012 DT1 DealerTour 2012 Sacramento/Davis California B&L Bike Shop Bicycle Business Bicycles Plus Bike Barn UC Davis Carmichael Cycles City Bicycle Works Davis Wheelworks Freewheeler Bicycle Center IkonCycles Ken’s Bike-Ski-Board Mike’s Bikes Performance Bicycle Practical Cycle Photo by Gary Newkirk by Photo ith a commuter rate of 22 percent cling, there were tons of bicycles.” of the working population, cycling Its flat topography, mild weather and Pedal-powered Whas become deeply entrenched in small size create the perfect environment for the life of Davis residents. Such a pervasive commuting. While the city’s student popula- culture is why more than a half-dozen-shops tion propelled the bicycle movement in the thrive in this college town of 65,000 that’s ’50s and ’60s, today it’s a lifestyle choice em- cities sustain just shy of 10 square miles in size. braced by young and old. Davis has upheld its reputation as a If you live in Davis and work at the uni- bike-centric city for decades. Infrastructure versity, the longest commute is four miles. investments date back to the 1960s, long be- From Davis to Sacramento it’s 14 miles of diverse retailers fore cycling was on the radar of other U.S. cycling through some of the nation’s richest cities, said David Takemoto-Weertes, bicycle farmland. By Lynette Carpiet program coordinator for the University of “Davis has such a biking culture,” said California, Davis. Kevin Hein, one of two brothers at the helm “Davis was the first city in the U.S. to put of Freewheeler Bicycle Center, one of three bike lanes on streets in 1967,” he said. “But shops within two blocks in downtown Davis. it’s always been a bike city. Even before any- “You visit an elementary school and see hun- one was making the effort to encourage cy- dreds of bikes in racks. Customers who got Continued on pg DT10 DT4 Targeting entry-level cyclists in a university town ith 32,000 Univer- saddles a year. sible for a bike to replace sity of California “Locals are our custom- a car for many users. So Beth Annon-Lovering, owner Wat Davis students a ers, and here in Davis that Annon-Lovering sees a close few blocks from B&L Bike means mostly faculty and tie between rising gas prices Shop, their impact on sales staff,” said Annon-Lovering. and traffic into the store. is surprisingly limited. The And due to the historical Baskets, fenders and family-orientated shop sells bike culture of the town, she locks are her largest acces- mostly entry-level cruisers, sells hundreds of 27-inch sory categories, and the shop commuters and kids’ bikes. tires for all the 1970s bikes sells Electra, Free Agent, The week the UC Davis kept in service. Fuji, KHS and SE Racing. dorms open are the shop’s “Because it’s so flat, the A little over a year ago biggest single week, some- market is mostly single- or she opened B&K Too, a times ringing up $70,000 in three-speeds. It takes a bit of clothing-only shop next sales over a few days. But selling to move an internal door to the bikes. With student bike sales during the eight-speed hub,” she added. no bikes or bike parts in rest of the year are scarce. She has pushed e-bike sight, and spacious dressing However, students do sales fairly strongly, but has rooms, Annon- drive accessory sales. B&L not met with any success. Lovering is finding that sells close to 1,000 Wald She attributes the lack of women are increasingly baskets and hundreds of interest to e-bike pricing shopping the store like they Photos by Gary Newkirk by Photos being above what would any clothing store. her customers are She has never carried B&L Bike Shop willing to spend, clothing before, so as she rather than any learns her customers better Annual sales: $1.2 million resistance to the she is trickling in active Employees: 14 e-bikes them- clothing next to her cycling- Shop floor space: 3,200 square feet, selves. specific items. She targets including bike and apparel The flat, her clothes like she does Years in business: 47. Beth Annon- compact city her bikes: to beginner and Lovering bought the store in 1997. means it’s pos- casual riders. —Matt Wiebe Emphasis: Family and commuter bikes High-end boutique builds business on bike fitting f a Campy-equipped bike rolls into tags on any of the bikes in the shop. B&L Bike Shop needing service, the “A bike in the rack is not a finished Ishop sends the customer down to product for us, so there is no reason to Davis Wheelworks. The high-end shop price it. In addition to fitting and swap- returns the favor when a coaster hub ping different stems and saddles, many or old Schwinn is brought to them for customers will upgrade the wheelset service: Off they go to B&L. or prefer to use their own. And if it is With Cervélo, BMC and Felt as its a tri bike, they will swap out the bars,” core brands, and with owner Joe San- Townzen said. tos, a bike fitter to the U.S. Olympic tri The narrow niche focus and recog- team and personal fitter to some of the nized competencies of the shop mean a world’s top triathletes, Davis Wheel- sizable number of Davis Wheelworks’ works owns the area’s elite road market. customers travel up from San Fran- And fit is the shop’s calling card. cisco. Most of the sales staff are F.I.S.T. And they expect to invest time trained, and customers are fit on demo into good customer fits and realize bikes before leaving the store. they will be swapping out many parts “We offer a lifetime fit warranty on as customers exercise their freedom every bike we sell. If a customer gets to make their bike exactly what they injured or becomes less limber, we will want. Finicky high-end customers are continue to fit them on any bike of ours embraced. Davis Wheelworks we have,” said Chris Townzen, Davis So far this season the shop has pre- Annual sales: Not available Wheelworks’ manager. sold a few Cervélo S5s and a few dozen Employees: Seven Even the shop’s popular Wednesday Shimano Ultegra Di2 groups. Shop floor space: 1,200 square feet Putah Creek time trial, with up to 80 High-end Zipp and HED wheelsets Years in businesses: 30. Joe Santos riders showing up, has a fit element. A are the shop’s largest category after bought the shop seven years ago. photographer shoots each rider so his complete bikes. Saddles and aero bars Emphasis: High-end road and tri bikes; or her fit on the course can be evalu- quickly follow. And while the shop Chris Townzen, manager no kids’ bikes, mountain bikes or ated. does not carry Specialized bikes, it sells cruisers The shop’s opening price point is lots of Body Geometry shoes, saddles around $800, but there are no price and other components. —Matt Wiebe DT6 Depth of inventory powers chain store’s success n terms of sheer size, Mike’s annual sale. Last year alone, shipped to each store. benefits from being near the Bikes stands out among it put more than 2,200 butts The Sacramento store also American River Bike Trail Ithe cluster of bike shops in on bikes. stocks Mike’s Bikes’ house that connects Sacramento to downtown Sacramento. As Durling said his customer brand of accessories it sources surrounding communities automatic sliding doors open, base ranges from the par- from Asia called BikeSmart, and is “better maintained you walk in and are greeted ent buying a kids’ bike to an which includes bottle cages, than any road out there.” by two-story racks of bikes enthusiast shelling out thou- pumps, tools, saddles and bar All the products sold on filled with carbon road and sands for a high-end Wilier tape. the company’s website are mountain models on the left equipped with Campagnolo’s Durling, who began shipped from this store. On- next to neatly merchandised new electronic group. “As far working in bike shops when line sales have grown to com- apparel section. On the right, as income levels, it’s all over he was in seventh grade and prise as much business as a the checkout counters are the place,” he said. has been at the company for single brick-and-mortar store, equipped with the latest large- The store rakes in a fair 12 years, said the store also he said. —Lynette Carpiet screen Apple iMacs. This isn’t amount of high-end busi- a shop; it’s a store. ness—the wall behind the It’s also one of the newer checkout counter displays locations of the soon to be $70,000 worth of carbon fiber 11-store renowned Northern bikes equipped with the light- California chain owned by est components. Mike’s Bikes Sacramento Ken Martin and Matt Adams. Durling attributes at least Annual sales: $2.2 million And it consistently ranks part of the store’s success to Employees: 12-18, depending on time among the top three perform- product mix and depth of ing stores for the company, offerings. The store and adja- of year which opened its first store in cent space allows him to keep Shop floor space: 10,000 square San Rafael in 1964.