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February 26, 2009

Streetlevel: New Bike Shop for Fort Greene

bespoke-bicycles-0209.jpg
This got a brief mention earlier this month on General Greene, but it seems worthy of more attention: Fort Greene is getting its very own bicycle shop. According to a sign in the window of the former Snip Snap hair salon at 66 Lafayette Avenue, the new shop will be called Bespoke Bicycles and will open "soon." GMAP




Posted by Brownstoner at 2:01 PM | Comments (28)

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finally, after the one on myrtle ave suddenly closed down
and below atlantic are a few but for me near Pratt
too far away to walk with that bike that needs fixing
i will be the first
a dutchman needs his bike...

Posted by: dutchman at February 26, 2009 2:06 PM

whoohooo!

Posted by: kjp216 at February 26, 2009 2:11 PM

Maybe it will actually have reasonably priced bikes and equipment unlike the ones south of Atlantic in Park slope

Posted by: Farkus at February 26, 2009 2:13 PM

if you want reasonable priced equipment, try good online stores like nashbar and performance bike. i live in p.s., and you either the stores have the junkiest selection, of in the case of R&A on 5th, decent/good selection with bad service and worse prices. i found much better quality tires online for literally 1/4 the price R&A was asking.

Posted by: goldie at February 26, 2009 2:17 PM


"We specialize in fixed-wheel models for the fashionable Asshat/Hipster."

Posted by: East New York at February 26, 2009 2:20 PM

That's not the former SnipSnap. If you actually look, SnipSnap is still open 10 feet to the left. That is the former TransAcademy car service which went out of business because they charged $45 to get to JFK.

Word on the street is, TransAcademy wanted $80k to take over their lease which had almost two years left on it. Hopefully they negotiated a lower rate. I just hope they're not hipster track bike snobs.

Posted by: GuyIncognito at February 26, 2009 2:21 PM

"in the case of R&A on 5th, decent/good selection with bad service and worse prices."

AMEN!

Try: www.pricepoint.com

Posted by: East New York at February 26, 2009 2:21 PM

R/A is only good for their pump outside the store, prices are ludicrous

Posted by: Farkus at February 26, 2009 2:35 PM

Ah this is an excellent addition to the neighborhood; there are lots of cyclists in the area and we hope the prices will be reasonable.

Posted by: pierre de taille at February 26, 2009 2:41 PM

The store itself doesn't have a lot of space. I imagine they'll do a few specialty bikes (given their name) and that most of their business will be repairs.

Posted by: GuyIncognito at February 26, 2009 3:04 PM

the more bike shops, the merrier. certainly plenty more bikes on the street these days, I haven't seen that many more bike shops open though.

Posted by: KHuebbe at February 26, 2009 3:08 PM

Great, you people buy all your stuff online...save a little plus sales tax. Meanwhile don't whine and gripe about mom and pop businesses closing in your neighborhoods and gentrification and box chain stores.
No wonder only restaurants and bars can pay rents and thats all we are left with these days.

Posted by: Petebklyn at February 26, 2009 3:16 PM

Nice point Petebkln, however if you do find yourself buying on line maybe show some love to your lbs (local bike shop)and have them install the part, an lbs can in no way compete with online stores but they(good shops at least) offer service that performance,nashbar(crap) can never match.

My gut feeling is that this will be another fixed crazed boutique oriented store, no one in there right mind would open a full service/sales bike shop in todays economy within one mile of three other shops(Bicycle Station, Brooklyn bike and Board, R&A) unless they were targeting a trend. There have been half a dozen boutique shops open in the last few years in manhattan and williamsburg all targeting the fixter, i really really hope I'm wrong(especially since I'm saving to open a repair shop in bedstuy.

Posted by: DowningByLaw at February 26, 2009 3:45 PM

"Meanwhile don't whine and gripe about mom and pop businesses closing in your neighborhoods and gentrification and box chain stores."

They're not mutually exclusive. Good neighborhood shops can compete with online retailers - or anyone else - as long as they have good selection, reasonable prices and good service. In fact, some compete WITHOUT these qualities (as several posters have pointed out, R&A service and prices suck, but they seem to be among the most successful bike stores in Brooklyn). The bottom line is there is enough business to go around for all of the GOOD retailers. It's nonsense to think online retailers will "close" VIABLE mom-and-pop retailers.

Posted by: East New York at February 26, 2009 3:52 PM

R&A is one of the largest online high end retailers, they really don't need walk in traffic.

On line retailers do cut into any local shops retail, ask any shop owner that has been in biz for over ten years. Shops do not survive on selling complete bikes, In an urban shop the bread and butter comes from accessories, lights, tires, fenders which could all be found on line at a fraction of what most shops will charge.

Good shops do not flourish because of pricing, they do well because they listen and build relationships with repeat customers.

Posted by: DowningByLaw at February 26, 2009 4:16 PM

fixter = pedal hard moron.

Posted by: eh at February 26, 2009 4:19 PM

DowningByLaw,
Let's open that repair shop and get a liquor license too. There's no money in selling bikes, the margins are too low. It's all about friendly service, accessories, repairs and a beer or two. I'd love to have a shop where you could sell someone a beer while they waited for their flat tire to be fixed.

Posted by: GuyIncognito at February 26, 2009 4:25 PM

"R&A is one of the largest online high end retailers, they really don't need walk in traffic."

No wonder they are such a**holes at the store.

Posted by: East New York at February 26, 2009 4:29 PM

There's already a brilliant bike shop in Fort Greene. It's called The Bicycle Station and they're located at 171 Park Avenue on the corner of Adelphi Avenue.

Of course with it being at the corner of Park & Adelphi that area might be a bit too "sketchy" for some of the regular posters on this blog. But if you're brave enough to venture over you'll find some folks there who are passionate about bikes and who provide excellent repair service at a very reasonable price.

Posted by: LimestoneKid at February 26, 2009 7:37 PM

Absolutely, Limestone. I'm glad you commented.

Bicycle Station is all about getting what you need and doing it quickly. They're smart and incredibly helpful. The new location at Adelphi and Park is really easy to get to --right off the Carlton bike lane. It's a true neighborhood bike shop.

Posted by: bamahoo at February 26, 2009 8:59 PM

anyone who thinks park and adelphi is too sketchy should definitely avoid bike shop and go with the lafayette ave one; it's scary over there!

Posted by: bxnative at February 26, 2009 9:56 PM

anyone who thinks park and adelphi is too sketchy should definitely avoid bike station and go with the lafayette ave one; it's scary over there!

Posted by: bxnative at February 26, 2009 9:57 PM

GuyIncognito, my husband and I want to do that but with espresso. Much more conducive to pedaling, no?

Posted by: mshook at February 27, 2009 10:14 AM

mshook, downingbylaw, guyincognito -- I think we are all swirling similar ideas in our respective heads...any interest in a chat???

Posted by: davide5 at March 1, 2009 11:17 AM

davide5 - sorry, only just got back to check this... YES!

Posted by: mshook at March 3, 2009 9:54 AM

Davide5, downingbylaw, mshook - I would like to chat. Sorry it took so long.

And mshook, espresso is more conducive to pedaling, but beer is more conducive to hanging out at a bike shop. And after working in shops for years, that's all most of the regulars do anyway. And considering most of the staff are already drinking a beer, you might as well start charging people for it. The margins are so low its the only way to make a profit. Just 1-2 beers on tap. Otherwise you start attracting the crowd of people who want mixed drinks or even worse, wine.

Posted by: GuyIncognito at March 5, 2009 3:56 PM

I reckon there will be some licensing problems either way. Beers, espresso, uppers, downers... let's go!

Posted by: mshook at March 11, 2009 2:49 PM

Hey everyone, my name is Harrison and I'm actually a (new) employee at Bespoke Bicycles. As of now, it'll be myself and Cassidy, the shop owner.

We're getting close to opening, which should be this coming weekend of April 4th. We'll be throwing an opening party at the shop on Saturday, April 11th, so please stop by!

To quickly answer a couple of your questions, we're going to start by carrying a variety of Raleigh bikes. We'll also be a full-service repair shop. That said, the shop name is literal. Once we've dug in, we'll definitely be building custom bikes! Our base really is going to be other locals such as yourselves.

"I just hope they're not hipster track bike snobs."
GuyIncognito, I assure you that we're not! We're really just two guys that are into bikes. I'm not the type of guy to memorize parts catalogues, and I can't see myself turning my nose up at, well, anything. I was equally relieved when I met Cassidy and learned that he was of the same ilk: a man just excited by bicycles in general.

But yeah, feel free to stop by and say hi anytime! You can call us at (718) 643-6816, email us at cassidy@bespoke-bicycles.com (our website itself is not up just yet), or just stop in and say hi at 64-B Lafayette Ave.

I'm not sure how many of you are still following the comments on this particular entry, so I may end up just submitting this to Brownstoner.

Posted by: HarrisonBespoke at March 30, 2009 12:34 AM

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