Jonathan Morris, U.S. Army Ranger Ret.and Rowan County Sheep Baron
♦ Skinny Wheels Blog,
I wish you all the luck with your “booming” high-end business down on West Innes in the Bury. You will need all the luck you can accrue on that part of West Innes where just about every shop local retailer packs it in within a year. If someone did time-lapse photography on your side of the street you’d see those retailers flashing in and out of biz with predictability. Like you, they all bragged that business was booming when it wasn’t. No foot traffic–zero parking. Maybe your customers ride in on their “list price” $1650 bikes spray painted invisible. Although I’ve never seen a soul in your establishment other than staff, maybe all of Skinny Wheels customers slip through the door within a ten minute period just before closing. Or perhaps they are part of someone’s fertile imagination in “vibrant” downtown Salisbury. People just do not go to that part of town…ever.
You say you sell used bikes and do bike repair? On your website your used bike prices appear to be priced well out of range of normal people. I don’t know what you gouge people for bike repairs, but I wish you luck because most bike owners around here repair their own bikes. Especially in the county. There was or were several bike sales and repair joints in Salisbury, but most closed up. There was a bike spot called Classic Cycling on North Lee. Not sure if it’s still there. There was a good one called Windsong Bikes out on Main, but it went below the waves in 2012. No biz. I guess people are not ready to blow bucks on the rickshaw and bike age yet. It’s rough going selling bikes from a storefront with all that overhead and no customers downtown to speak of. Internet sales are BOOMING for bikes. No one will find list price at Amazon or the internet chain outlets. Everything is ALWAYS on sale on the net. That’s where savvy bikers go for new bikes and just about everything else. EBay does an enormous biz in used bikes. People find Treks and Fujis there for peanuts.
It doesn’t help Skinny Wheels bike sales when they are promoting the taxpayer rip-off Carolina Thread trail. Most people in Rowan County see the thread trail’s mountain high downside. They already have trails galore in the county. The people who promote the thread tail are thinking of their own self-absorbed intrests and not the well-being of our taxpayers who don’t want to be stuck with paying for the thread trail’s upkeep and safety.
Good luck in “vibrant” downtown Salisbury!
