Internet Retail

The integrated brake/shifter (“brifter”) on my new bicycle broke. I was trying to adjust it and unfortunately there was a problem and it stopped working. I sent it back to them and am hoping that they will send me a replacement.

In my search for a replacement, before I contacted Shimano, I looked online to find the part. The part in question is a Shimano Tiagra ST-4500/4501 shifter. It looks like QBP is out of the part. If you didn’t know, QBP has a monopoly on bicycle part distribution in the US.

I found the part at an online “bike store” and ordered it. The reviews on the store I ordered from were mixed. After waiting 10 days, and no bike part, I got an email from them that they were crediting me back because they did not have the bike part in stock.

I’m pretty sure that the bike store doesn’t keep any in stock. They basically put a the QBP catalog online with a slight markup over wholesale price. When they get orders they order from QBP. They probably order from QBP twice a week, and it adds 2-3 days to any order for shipping.

I don’t think there is anything wrong with this business model, as long as the clients are kept aware of the delay in shipping. Also, if the distributor is out of stock, the store should let the client know ASAP that the order cannot be fulfilled.

This is a very similar business model to most online jewelry stores. It is actually becoming unusual to see retailers assuming the holding costs for inventory. You can pass that on to the client in terms of longer shipping/fulfillment time.