The Bike Shop Wales wins ‘Welsh Independent Bike Shop of the Year 2019’

The Bike Shop Wales has been crowned the winner in the Independent Bicycle Shop category at the Welsh Independent Retail Awards 2019, Creative Oceanic has announced.

The black-tie ceremony, hosted by broadcaster Polly James, welcomed over 200 guests at The Exchange Hotel in Cardiff on April 30th. The awards 2019 rewarded talented professionals who “have made it their mission to supply the best of everyday products to their customers and meet their needs”.

A spokesperson for the Welsh Independent Retail Awards 2019 said: “These awards are the leading celebration of the independent retailers that work tirelessly to serve the Welsh communities. The event provided a platform to showcase the ongoing commitment of those who treat every customer as a friend, stand as an important part of local communities, where their great service and value, result in the return of loyal locals to their retails. We really appreciate the response from the public that was so keen to get involved in our nomination process and voted for some incredible independent retailers. The competition was fierce this year and therefore, we would like to congratulate all finalists and winners for their amazing achievements.”

Karey Sharp, managing director at The Bike Shop Wales, said: “First I would like to say what an honour it is and how appreciative we are to our customers and supporters that we have been selected for this award. We’ve been asked what it takes to win. I don’t really have any answer other than; Be helpful, be nice, be proactive and work hard for every customer. We have a great team that understands that from start to finish this job is about the customer. Every person that walks in the door has a need and we see our job as to help define the need if necessary and to help resolve it. No matter if they are here to purchase a bike worth a few thousand pounds or if they are looking for a spare used chainring bolt that we will give them for free. Each person gets the same attention and desire to help as the next.

“We feel that it is critical not to view every customer experience as transactional. For instance; if someone has just gotten a job and needs a few repairs done on a bike to be able to get to their new job, we are happy to help and let them square with us when times are better. They always do and they always become long term customers and advocates for our business. A large part of our business is repairs and service. We believe that we stock on site for immediate use, the largest variety of parts anywhere around. This gives us the ability to have amazing turnaround times on our services and repairs and often results in people coming from great distances to get a part that they urgently need for an event.

“As well as striving to make sure we have an expansive selection of parts in stock, we always give a little extra. Every bike that comes in for a service gets a bit more than the customer expects for the price. If it is replacing a broken bell or giving the bike a clean or a quick true of the wheels at no extra charge, it is always a little something extra to show our appreciation for their decision to trust their bike to us. This approach has recently lead to our being able to open a second shop. It is a satellite location that we launched in cooperation with Cardiff Council on the Cardiff bay barrage. This is the busiest car-free cycling route in the city and we are looking forward to an amazing year providing bicycles and service to the commuters, sport and leisure riders on the route. We know there are a lot of great bike shops in Wales and we are very proud to have been singled out for recognition amongst such a strong group.”