Bsc !!

mtb101

mtb101

Likes Bikes and Dirt
BSC in receivership. Not good news for my favourite mtb shop.

'CYCLISTS and suppliers have been left puzzled by the unexpected closure of BSC Bikes on Tuesday night, costing between 25 and 30 jobs.'
 
akashra

akashra

Eats Squid
I was always a bit puzzled by BSC's frequent expansion of stores within such a small area. It's a bit odd to have announced a massive new store in the CBD and to then have this kind of closure happen.
 
scblack

scblack

Leucocholic
akashra said:
I was always a bit puzzled by BSC's frequent expansion of stores within such a small area. It's a bit odd to have announced a massive new store in the CBD and to then have this kind of closure happen.
Click to expand...
Not really. They possibly took on debt to fund the new stores, and have over-extended themselves, and are unable to service the interest repayments on the debts.

FAST expansions can be mis-handled and often lead to failures.

Bad news though.
 
quiggs

quiggs

Likes Dirt
Don't know exactly when it happened but there Greensborough store has changed hands within the past few months and is trading under another name.
 
V

vtwiz

Likes Dirt
Here's a thought, maybe the Aussie distributors should stop being so damn greedy. The prices stem from them. Better they lowered their prices, making smaller margins on each sale rather than not making the sales at all.

Too easy a cop out to blame the internet. Retail is changing, keep up or die.

I bet if the shoe was on the other foot and it was Aussie online sellers selling to the US and UK they wouldn't have any hesitation in taking their money.
 
Last edited:
paggnr

paggnr

Likes Dirt
vtwiz said:
Here's a thought, maybe the Aussie distributors should stop being so damn greedy. The prices stem from them. Better they lowered their prices, making smaller margins on each sale rather than not making the sales at all.

Too easy a cop out to blame the internet. Retail is changing, keep up or die.
Click to expand...
Here here - when a local shop can buy a part from CRC cheaper than the Aussie distributor will sell it them then there is something seriously wrong!
 
jathanas

jathanas

Likes Bikes and Dirt
vtwiz said:
Here's a thought, maybe the Aussie distributors should stop being so damn greedy. The prices stem from them. Better they lowered their prices, making smaller margins on each sale rather than not making the sales at all.

Too easy a cop out to blame the internet. Retail is changing, keep up or die.

I bet if the shoe was on the other foot and it was Aussie online sellers selling to the US and UK they wouldn't have any hesitation in taking their money.
Click to expand...
Excellent post, and I agree 100%. I hope someone from Monza, Shimano AU, Dirtworks etc can read this post as well...
 
jathanas

jathanas

Likes Bikes and Dirt
redbruce said:
With that level of business insight its no wonder BSC is in trouble.
Click to expand...
It boggles the mind doesn't it? Suggesting that we need a special tax so that distributers and retailers can protect their margin on a product that is fully produced, assembled, and boxed abroad. Yep, brilliant! Why don't we just ban the internet altogether? China V2. :)
 
Sputnick

Sputnick

Likes Bikes and Dirt
So surprising to see these guys close down!
Am currently working for one of BSC biggest competitors, TFM, I am just shocked at how sudden this is.
Although Mr Hess is right, CRC prices are just too low for them to compete with. I just bought a pair of X0 carbon cranks off CRC for $258 when they retail at around $600!
Shops would pay a little over half of retail to get these products, which is more than what we pay from CRC along with free postage when most shops have to pay postage from the distributors to their shops!!
How CRC does it? We will never know.
 
cleeshoy

cleeshoy

Eats Squid
shops may not be able to compete with CRC, etc on price but they build a loyal customer base through friendly, high quality service amongsth other things. CRC can't service or repair a bike - many people can't do it themselves ....... cue LBS........provide great service and they will return.....

Its interesting that BSC guy blaming the internet and wanting a special internet levy. My response is 'innovate or die' - Unfortunately it appears he chose the latter
 
S

serowe

Likes Dirt
Sputnick said:
So surprising to see these guys close down!
Am currently working for one of BSC biggest competitors, TFM, I am just shocked at how sudden this is.
Although Mr Hess is right, CRC prices are just too low for them to compete with. I just bought a pair of X0 carbon cranks off CRC for $258 when they retail at around $600!
Shops would pay a little over half of retail to get these products, which is more than what we pay from CRC along with free postage when most shops have to pay postage from the distributors to their shops!!
How CRC does it? We will never know.
Click to expand...
CRC do it because their supplier isn't also bumping up the price to get 'their margin' In many cases it isn't the retail shop causing the high prices in Oz, but the importer and distributor (not always the same company either)

Importer - 'That cost us $25 to ship in - lets round it off and make it $75 and pass it along plus our 30%'
 
Coaster

Coaster

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Sad to see. My fav LBS and found most of the staff across the stores were great to deal with. I would only buy smaller items from them (again CRC/ Wiggle for most items) but did get my Kona Unit there and when I did spend locally I'd do it there. I feel for the staff.

A levy? Yep, sure. Don't want to actually make sales competitive do we. Usain Bolt's a fast runner, he and every other champ should wear weights so I can be the fastest man in the world. That sounds fair. Ok, piss take there.........

I imagine the volume pricing that CRC and Wiggle buy from the distributors also makes a big difference. How many derailleurs do you think CRC would order compared to BSC!
 
akashra

akashra

Eats Squid
If stores are so upset with the prices distributors are charging them, and they can, supposedly, but parts cheaper off online sites than they can get them wholesale, then why don't the stores just start importing direct using those online sites?

Oh, what's that, because it's not cheaper on all parts? Hm. Then where is the price difference coming from on those parts?

Over the years I've heard some funny stories from distributors - I'll take one completely unnamed example - their cost price is 18% of retail, with an average wholesale price being 60% of retail, yet they still only clear <15%.
(eg - a $1000 component costs them $180, which a store buys for $600, and after factoring in running costs, salaries, taxes, etc, the disty makes <$90 on that sale).
So the store then has $400 to play with in salaries, running costs, discounts, blah blah...

I'd like you guys to run the math on how many, let's say cassettes, a store needs to sell just to cover the salary of one staff member. When you look at it that way, it all of a sudden isn't looking like such a profitable business.
 
jathanas

jathanas

Likes Bikes and Dirt
akashra said:
If stores are so upset with the prices distributors are charging them, and they can, supposedly, but parts cheaper off online sites than they can get them wholesale, then why don't the stores just start importing direct using those online sites?

Oh, what's that, because it's not cheaper on all parts? Hm. Then where is the price difference coming from on those parts?

Over the years I've heard some funny stories from distributors - I'll take one completely unnamed example - their cost price is 18% of retail, with an average wholesale price being 60% of retail, yet they still only clear <15%.
(eg - a $1000 component costs them $180, which a store buys for $600, and after factoring in running costs, salaries, taxes, etc, the disty makes <$90 on that sale).
So the store then has $400 to play with in salaries, running costs, discounts, blah blah...

I'd like you guys to run the math on how many, let's say cassettes, a store needs to sell just to cover the salary of one staff member. When you look at it that way, it all of a sudden isn't looking like such a profitable business.
Click to expand...
It's not a profitable business because there are too many parties skimming a margin without adding real value (that's another discussion I know).

A cassette for instance is designed, made, and packaged abroad. There might be 3 parties (wholesales-distributer-retailer) making a margin on that product before it gets to the end-user in Australia.

The GST that retailers are complaining about is what 10%?
 
DJ_Robbie

DJ_Robbie

Likes Bikes and Dirt
vtwiz said:
Here's a thought, maybe the Aussie distributors should stop being so damn greedy. The prices stem from them. Better they lowered their prices, making smaller margins on each sale rather than not making the sales at all.

Too easy a cop out to blame the internet. Retail is changing, keep up or die.

I bet if the shoe was on the other foot and it was Aussie online sellers selling to the US and UK they wouldn't have any hesitation in taking their money.
Click to expand...
Why shouldn't they be greedy, they are in business to make money, and they are doing it well! I don't see monza, or groupe going out of business. They have the demand. Distriburters aren't going to lower their prices because they feel sorry for poor joe blow, not while they are making fistfuls of cash. They ARE making sales.

The second point is whats the difference between one business (the manufacturer) marking up 100%, another business (the dist.) charging a 100% markup and another (the LBS) charging the same 100% markup? Everybody wants their slice of the pie, and the successful ones make a tidy profit from their work. There always has been, and always will be a market for retail in Aus, it just needs to be done well, if that means, importing some stuff from different places to make the most profit possible then so be it, but good luck asking a supplier, weather it be the manufacturer, the dist, or the LBS to lower their prices just so the poor customer can save a few bucks when their business is booming.
 
Samy

Samy

Likes Dirt
Sputnick said:
How CRC does it? We will never know.
Click to expand...
A small insight on PB below to what would be a very streamlined process with extremely high turnover to make profits on smaller margins and completely different to anything done within bike shops here. Interesting to note that CRC started as a LBS but chose to innovate and embrace the way they saw the world going (I think even starting with mail-order!). I can understand the pain it brings to the LBS, I prefer to buy local, but instead of hating I can only marvel at how big they have become.

http://www.pinkbike.com/video/195823/

This is also a good read and tells some history:
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Help.aspx?HelpTopicID=128

I do think they need to innovate again and launch a new and modernised website! Not my favourite by far..
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top