[Closed] How to get a discount at Evans Cycles?

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Do you have any Tesco vouchers?

While that particular bike may not be available elsewhere, is there another, cheaper, one you're also interested in?

Why do you deserve it?

Jimmy, the Vitality is why I am restricted 🙂
scotroutes, not enough Tesco vouchers to make any real difference.
CaptainF, who said anything about deserving it, but I'm sure the bike I'm looking at will be sold with at least 25% discount if not 40% when the next years model comes out and I don't think they will be making a loss even at that, so if I can reduce my fairly significant outlay why shouldn't I? Oh, and I'm Northern and paying full price for anything is against my upbringing.

will be sold with at least 25% discount if not 40% when the next years model comes out and I don't think they will be making a loss even at that

Oh, if only that were true...

care to elaborate ben?

Bikes aren't that profitable.

I'm surprised by that comment, do you have knowledge to back it up, e.g. you work in the trade?

I guess Paul's cycles must be running as a charity the price they are selling some of their bikes at!

do you have knowledge to back it up

You just brought a knife to a gunfight.

Paul's buy old stock at reduced prices so they can sell cheaply. If it's a current model and there are no relevant deals on then you're unlikely to get a discount.

I'm surprised by that comment, do you have knowledge to back it up, e.g. you work in the trade?

Yes, for over 20 years.

I don't know Paul's business model, but I'd guess they are like TK-Maxx, selling old stock that distributors are desperate to shift.

You're going to struggle - as you only want this bike, and have to buy in Evans, and in the next 4 weeks, you have nothing to negotiate with. They don't need to do anything to try and win your business, it's a done deal. Think about if you were selling something that someone had to buy off you, in a fixed timeframe - would you give away profit unnecessarily? Nope.

Pay the man (or lady - we live in PC times innit), take bike, ride bike. The end.

Re: Paul's Cycles - they buy up slow moving or end of line stock from manufacturers/distributors at reduced trade clearance prices, hence their low prices. It's not out of kindness.

I want to buy steak from you mr tesco....your only going to discount it at the end of the day when it doesnt sell......

As auld tam says on still game "god loves a tryer"

You are of course hedging your bets on the, not selling out.

Alternatively wait till end of season and buy the bike of your choice in either extra small or extra large for 40% off when the supplier is liquidating stock at below cost just to get it off their books and clear stock rooms for the new models.(thTs how pauls sell their bikes so cheep .... They aint taking the hit , they buy in bulk clearance deals

Some great responses, thanks guys (or gals) and Ben, I do not mean any disrespect, I was hoping for some "insider" knowledge.

I just wondered how Evans can do this

https://www.evanscycles.com/bikes/hybrid-bikes_c/jamis-brand/2016-model_year/?sort=-saving

for some bikes and not others (this is the brand I'm looking at)

Jamis are an Evans exclusive brand. They can charge what they want as long as it sells.

I also wondered if anyone could add any truth to posts like this

"Evans cycles run a saturday to saturday weekly sales target so if you're looking for a good discount your best bet is probably going in on a saturday afternoon when the manager will be trying to makes sales to hit his target.

They CAN discount almost as much as they want, don't let them bullshit you by saying that the computers or whatever wont allow it. Doesn't mean they will though. You shouldn't have any trouble getting 10% out of the normal sales staff but anything more will require manager approval. When it comes down to it, Evans work on around 65-100% mark up so don't feel bad about taking them to the cleaners if you get a chance."

It's from quite a few years ago now.

65-100% mark up is not possible on about 80% of their stock.

Maybe pinical and other brands they actually own...

As for those jamis....i wonder if its the halfords sales model because the reduced price seems to be a fair rrp price compared to other bikes of similar spec which suggests the original rrp was inflated to make people who will only buy stuff thats reduced as its a pukka deal innit.

65-100 good luck.
30% more like.

Sign up for BC membership?

65-100 good luck.
30% more like.

Mark-up isn't the same as profit margin 😀

"Evans cycles run a saturday to saturday weekly sales target so if you're looking for a good discount your best bet is probably going in on a saturday afternoon when the manager will be trying to makes sales to hit his target.

Firstly you can't have a Sat-Sat week. Sunday to Saturday yes. But you can't magically create 8 day weeks.
Secondly, Saturday is far and away the worst time to go bike shopping as the store will be busy, staff will be dealing with multiple customers at a time on occasions and they don't have time to negotiate.

As CFH says, why should you get a discount?

Certainly when I worked for them, discounting bike was absolutely not the done thing; we'd go for discounted accessories but never the bike since that was the one thing being sold that had the lowest profit margin.

Also, walking in and saying "can I get a discount on this?" or even worse "what's the best price?" resulted in no discount whatsoever!

Selling price at the end of a (model) year has no relevance on profit margin. The frame maker's been paid, the components bought, they've been painted and assembled...... and if they don't sell then that's all cash down the pan. Compared to 'dumping' that cash, getting almost anything back is preferable (or maybe they can resell them to CRC to split to components, or Pauls who are happy to carry old stock for as long as it takes)

Just 'cos a 40% discount might be on offer at the end of the season doesn't mean they make 40+% profit on it all year.

Same business model as Lastminutehotelroomsandflights.whatever

Price match- I saved over £300 on a recent bike purchase from them. Quick and easy to setup. There's some Ts&Cs [url= https://www.evanscycles.com/help/price-match ]HERE[/url].
Just don't buy it from their Reading store. They are useless and rude.

as the old saying goes.."If you want to play, you gotta pay".

Evans have fantastic deals from time to time on clearance stock - I got my Cannondale with 40% off retail price

And they often have great deals on brands they either own or have exclusive distribution rights for in the UK like Jamis, BMC, etc.

Like Paul's and Rutland, they will scoop up job lots of new/old stock from distributors and then offer it heavily discounted whilst still making a workable margin

In our shop we are about to have all our remaining 2015 sale bikes collected (we have stock rotation with our distributor), they will pop up discounted further on the usual websites very soon 😉

If your ex forces you get 10% discount

I'd agree with Most of the comments above, Esher Shore pretty much hits the nail on the head to be fair, if you want that Exclusivity and the next must have thing you have to cough up otherwise wait while next year and then buy it?

They have their Business Model and you clearly have yours,

Bencooper, Where is your Bike Shop???

Edited: Poop i didnt know you get 10% for Ex Forces, I'll be purchasing my soon to be had GIRO bike shoesfrom them then,

Bencooper, Where is your Bike Shop???

[url= http://www.kinetics-online.co.uk/ ]Glasgow[/url] - not a normal bike shop, I build and import weird things.

The whole 'I'm northern, I don't pay full price' things annoys me, do you waltz into Tesco (other super markets are available) and expect a given discount off your weekly food shop as they have a massive markup anyway?

If your ex forces you get 10% discount

A friend asked a lbs if he could have a discount as he was with us (locals) they asked if he was ever actually going to come back again, a sheepish probably not answered the question...

Wrecker, tats would be a good idea, you can get the veterans badge and a card, discount at Cotswold those sort of places, I just didn't associate discounted bike bits,

What shape is your tatt?

Defence Discount Service ....

[url= https://www.defencediscountservice.co.uk ]Clicky [/url]

It has its perks

You need to provide proof that you served .....ie discharge papers

The whole 'I'm northern, I don't pay full price' things annoys me, do you waltz into Tesco (other super markets are available) and expect a given discount off your weekly food shop as they have a massive markup anyway?

I've got a shotgun behind my counter that comes out for special occasions like these!

Thinking you're special cos you've been raising whippets and wearing flat caps since you were sucking on your mummy's titty will at best result in the silent treatment... Catch me on a bad day, and you'd get both barrels!

I always wonder if the people who ask for discounts would expect to randomly give discounts in their line of work.

Titties....that's how.

I always wonder if the people who ask for discounts would expect to randomly give discounts in their line of work.

How many people here walk into a car dealer and pay full list price? Thought so.

The part missing from this discussion is rampant price fixing in the bike trade, and yes I used to work in this game so I know the story. The number of times someone said they don't discount as the supplier said they are not allowed to is incredible, despite that being totally illegal under the competition act.

I don't haggle on a 26p tin of beans, I do on a £2500 Bike, and I do on a £5M software order (Where you can get 85% off!). If you don't want the business then that's your choice, your competitor will.

If you are a member of a Cycling Club Evans often offer discount (depends on the club). They sponsor ours and I get 10%. Work also give us 10% discount at Evans too. Have to order in a shop and the item must be listed RRP.

phead, my thoughts exactly, the price tag is "invitation to treat"

I got a last year's model from there for £2000 instead of £3200 and he said that I'd almost got it for cost price, so they've got to be making a bit of profit on full price stuff. Just ask in store

But cost plus shop staff plus rent plus bills plus warehouse and delivery staff etc. If something was just above cost price they've lost money on it more than likely. All this bike shop talk makes me want some biscuits now.

Go in and ask if the bike is as good as 'x' similar big brand bike you're thinking of buying. Engage/entice sales person. Ask if they will do 10% value in vouchers/shop credit.
If that fails, steal it, you're northern, then we'll rub mboys nose in it.

The whole 'I'm northern, I don't pay full price' things annoys me, do you waltz into Tesco (other super markets are available) and expect a given discount off your weekly food shop as they have a massive markup anyway?

The OP asked if a discount was possible, and if so, how to get it. If you find a polite request annoying, perhaps you spend a lot of time being annoyed.

The number of times someone said they don't discount as the supplier said they are not allowed to is incredible, despite that being totally illegal under the competition act.

Or, you know, that's an easier excuse to give rather than "no, you can't have a discount, you cheeky sod, I've got kids to feed" 😉

Blaming a higher authority makes it easier to say no.

I've never been told by a manufacturer or distributor what to sell at. Never happened. They publish RRPs, but I've never been told I have to stick to them.

Lots of brands who have there own concept stores arent exactly enthusiastic about being undercut.

Certainly if the brand feels you're damaging the reputation of the brand, they might object - but that's more because they don't want one dealer poaching customers from another, no-one wins doing that.

Price fixing is also a difficult thing to claim - no-one's making you buy (say) a Specialized, you can easily buy a different brand if you like, so it's not really price fixing if dealers for one brand all have similar prices.

So you're looking to buy the latest model of a brand that is only sold by one chain of shops and expecting a discount? That doesn't put you in a very strong position to negotiate unless you are looking at multiple units.
Whatever you do don't ask fro the best price on 100 units and then expect to pay that for one.

I find it interesting reading through the thread on markup that a lot of the calculations people were putting up factored in discount, 10% etc. yet no one here thinks that if I buy a £2k+ bike in cash (well credit card) so no finance no cycle to work scheme etc, I won't even be able to get 10% knocked off the RRP?

Also I have no local Evans so have about 5 within the same distance and no one thinks I'll be able to 'play' them off against each other as a genuine buyer?

yet no one here thinks that if I buy a £2k+ bike in cash (well credit card)[s] so no finance no cycle to work scheme etc,[/s] I won't even be able to get 10% knocked off the RRP?

Add the credit card charges for the shop, then.

Again, why do you believe you should get a discount, just because you want to buy something?

Also, if you're paying with your credit card, why does it have to be Evans? Why does it have to be an Evans exclusive brand?

Dunno how others in the trade find it .... But when i was selling bikes i found the harder the customer pushed for a discount the more of a pain in the arse he was for aftersales - its kind of like an early warning system.

I remember one guy trying to haggle more money off at his first service because the paint had scratched while he used it.

I learned soon after that my boss was right - not all sales are worth the hassle 😉

CFH, why do you believe I shouldn't?

An RRP is a recommended price and any price on a item in a shop is an "invitation to treat"

If it's the difference between a shop selling something and making slightly less profit or not selling at all why not sell it with a discount?

If I don't buy a tin of beans in a supermarket someone will be along a few seconds later to buy it, is that the same for a £2k bike in a bike shop?

The reason for Evans is a tie in with Vitality and the only reason for the exclusive brand is the good reviews the model gets.

If I don't buy a tin of beans in a supermarket someone will be along a few seconds later to buy it, is that the same for a £2k bike in a bike shop?

Of course, putting a tin of beans on the shelf is just as easy as building, prepping, sizing, setting up and then, perhaps giving a first service to, a £2k bike.

You go to a supermarket, pick up beans, scan them yourself and pay and leave. What expertise is needed to help you? What training is needed to ensure that the tin of beans you leave with is safe and ready to ride. Were you offered a free bean fit to make sure that it was the right tin for you? Did they set up the tin (shock and fork, obviously) pressure properly? Did they offer to service your tin after a month or so, free of additional charge, to make sure everything's still properly beany? Etc?

You WANT a discount. You don't deserve one. You don't automatically have some sort of right to get one.

As someone else above said, those that try hardest on the "best price, mate?" bullshit are normally the worst customers. Why should they humour you? Evans can sell many more bikes to many better customers, and I'm sure they will.

Don't see any reason anybody shouldn't ask for a discount anywhere so long as they accept that any seller is entitled to say no

Also....

If it's the difference between a shop selling something and making slightly less profit or not selling at all why not sell it with a discount?

Ask the supermarket for a discount on your tin of beans then. They can make slightly less profit, and, after all, you deserve it.

Don't see any reason anybody shouldn't ask for a discount anywhere so long as they accept that any seller is entitled to say no

Precisely. I've turned down sales because the customer expected a discount - "you can't sell many of these, you should be grateful!"

"you can't sell many of these, you should be grateful!"

See also,

Mate, I'm doing you a favour here...

Etc.

🙂

If I don't buy a tin of beans in a supermarket someone will be along a few seconds later to buy it, is that the same for a £2k bike in a bike shop?

In a company the size of Evans? i'd put money on it.

OK OP, I'm northern, and I've never paid full rrp on a full new bike in my life. I'll let you into my secret, guaranteed, sure fire way of getting a discount. Works in any bike shop, from small independent LBS, to distributor linked shop, to one of the worlds largest bike companies brand stores. id hazard a guess it'd go a long way to working in pretty much any business where goods or services are exchanged for money too.

Relationships. It's all about good relationships. if you have a good relationship with someone who can help you get what you want, you need them to want to go the extra mile for you.

This can not be achieved in the 20 minutes of sales patter before you make your first purchase. It takes several visits over a few months, years even. You need to go into the shop and have a chat with the workers, get to know them, have a laugh with them, sympathise with them about idiot customers, talk about bikes (not the bike you want to buy). essentially make friends with them. It also helps if you buy stuff too, you may even have to pay retail to start with, you know, to show that you are a serious customer. Does the shop do evening rides, demo days or other events? Go to them. It's a cliche, but buy them cake, biscuits and beer. But not in lieu of actual, mortgage paying, money

Do the same with the manager/owner/person with influence, this way when you do go in, hoping for (but not expecting) a discount, the salesman will see what he can do for his friend, so when he asks the manager for a discount, its for you, a friend, not just some random chancer looking to play one shop off against the next in order to chip a couple of quid off as '90% of something is better than 100% of nothing' or some other such self entitled cliche as mentioned above'

Yes it takes time, and you probably won't take any of my advice as you want a bike now, and you have done none of the ground work, but to show you it works heres what I have gained over the last 8 years, form dealing with 3 shops, in the range I mentioned above (from my posting history it won't take sherlock holmes to work out who they are)

Savings of around £5,000 on new bikes alone.
Discounts on bikes that 'shouldn't' be discounted i.e. ordering on day of release and to be released bikes, before official model year launch
£'000s off parts and labour, including going well above and beyond on some warranty issues I had (a similar strategy applies for this too, never once have I had to go all 'I know my rights!!!11!' on people)
All this with the shop still making a healthy enough margin, a good deal is only a good deal if both parties are happy with the deal and would happily do it again. if the shop has had to drop its draws on this deal, it has to make it up on the next, and you won't be happy with that so go elsewhere. nobody wins in the long run.

And finally, though this may not matter to you, if all you are interested in is what money you can save.

Dozens of actual friends, you know, people I go out on the piss with, on rides with, even on holidays half way around the world with. when I moved here, the only people I knew were the folk at work. Every other person I know in the town in which I live, save for maybe half a dozen (if I'm honest, these are all girls), are from the local bike shop scene, which frankly, has kept me sane. (£priceless)

Let me know when Paul's or CRC start offering that service.

The poor chap only asked. I bet everyone here would take a discount if offered. Trouble is he is in a place, both almost literally and metaphorically where he aint going to get one.

"rampant price fixing "
If only. Surely that should be encouraged . Any retailer has a duty to make as much as possible. Now that may mean being nice to customers but that's part of the deal. Funny how people whinge bitterly at the hint of any prices being kept high but none at them being forced down. 😆

He is already getting a minimum £250 discount via his Vitality cash back so it's not like he's paying full retail anyway.

OP: Simple answer is, you ask and they either give or tell you to do one. Given the way you've responded on this thread though, in a bit of a confrontational way, I can see that you may need to practice exactly how you ask for the discount a few times at home first...

If you are a long standing customer, or manage to strike up a bit of a rapport with the sales person they ,ay give you a little bit of money off but if you're tied into buying from them they have no real incentive otherwise to discount for you.

Follow Tomhowards advice above 😀 even in the short term his strategy is the best option. Although I'm now imagining his 'friends' from the industry reading his post and thinking '[i]it was all just to get some bloody discount[/i] 😉

The whole point of haggling is you have to have something to bargain with. As others have said they have absolutely no reason or inclination to offer a discount so it an unreasonable expectation to get discounts in this case beyond whipping out a voucher or membership card of some sort

😆

The friendship bit came first (honest!) and is priceless, which is betterer than any discounts 8)

I find in life that there is a trade off between "getting a good price" and getting the exact one you want

Evans still lists loads of MTBs from last year at 40% off.

But you want a specific one that is this years and exclusive to them.

So in the end you pays your money and makes your choice.

Oh and Evans will let you swap any new bike no question asked for 30 days. That is a cost to them. But I might use them as i see that as a benefit to me

Bought a new bike a few weeks ago, got a discount without asking.(not allowed to divulge what brand due to what I believe are restrictive practices which appear to be the norm in the bike industry)
Bought a fs bike way back in '05, again got a discount without asking.
Bought a road bike around '02, again got a discount.
Why/how?
KI use and recommend to others the same lbs as my parents who bought me my first new bike some 50yrs ago !!!!!!! The current manager/owner isn't that old but he knows I know the owners(he leases the shop) He is also aware of the fact I can get discount from other shops inc the best bike shop in the Lakes 😆

So as tomhoward ^^^^^^^^ suggests you need to develop a relationship with your lbs 💡