Hein Gericke Closing down sale!

[seb421]

Might be a bargain or two in one of the stores near you

http://www.hein-gericke.co.uk/

http://ebm.cheetahmail.com/c/tag/hBQG8q ... .chtah.com

ADMINISTRATION NOTICE
"Hein Gericke (UK) Limited" entered Administration on 30 July 2012.
Simon Robert Thomas and Shelly Anne Bullman of Moorfields Corporate Recovery LLP,
88 Wood Street, London, EC2V 7QF, were appointed Joint Administrators.
The Joint Administrators act as agents of the Company and without personal liability.

[alternative_vtr]

Gutted I have bought quite a lot of stuff from them and usually there staff are keen bikers, what a shame. Its the discount shop around society we live in now.

[chric]

it's only 10% on helmets and 20% off there other items not worth it yet and who knows they may get a buyer before hand
There sale 6-7 week back was better

[alternative_vtr]

My point is I am gutted there closing rather than what discount will I get - I think thats half the problem we have these days full stop, discount discount discount. I own a shop and people are very selfish and rude, having been in sales nearly 30 years people are worse now than ever. When everywhere has gone bust apart from the biggest of stores they (the big stores) will be able to do as they please, sorry, rant over

[firestorm1997]

Gutted,, off to Spain in the morning and will be gone for two weeks, by the time we get back all the good stuff would have been sold.
Most of their gear is good quality but normally priced high which may account for them going in to administration, so a chance to grab a good bargain is going to pass me by...

[simo]

Only 5mls from me. They've been very usefull in the past. Not sure where I'll buy things from now.

[Griff1977]

Got myself some Oxford sports handle bar grips- 80 down to 56 with 30% off! Chatted to staff and they unsure if a buyer will come along. Fingers crossed. Oh, got a front paddock stand with 20% off. New tyres here I come. Mich PR3s I think. £260 fitted. Seems ok I think.

[MacV2]

Only 5mls from me. They've been very usefull in the past. Not sure where I'll buy things from now.

Do what everybody else does & buy on line cheaper.......Hence the administration...catch 22.

[alternative_vtr]

I don't agree, can't be better than going into somewhere and getting good advice and being able to look,touch + handle items before buying then if there are any queries you have a place to go back to. Sorry I must be the odd one out. If all our shops close where will be? Local economy goes tits up, empty shops, unemployment. You then have warehouses on industrial estates selling online owned by shareholders abroad (money goes out of the UK) with minimal low paid staff and all the faff of waiting for stuff to come, is it correct? is it broken? sending it back is a trauma......................... no not for me. I do buy online but keep it to an absolute minimum, certainly not enthusiastically.

[MacV2]

I don't agree, can't be better than going into somewhere and getting good advice and being able to look,touch + handle items before buying then if there are any queries you have a place to go back to. Sorry I must be the odd one out. If all our shops close where will be? Local economy goes tits up, empty shops, unemployment. You then have warehouses on industrial estates selling online owned by shareholders abroad (money goes out of the UK) with minimal low paid staff and all the faff of waiting for stuff to come, is it correct? is it broken? sending it back is a trauma......................... no not for me. I do buy online but keep it to an absolute minimum, certainly not enthusiastically.

Oh I agree totally with all you say.....except, it's already too late....most of the shops have closed.

In my experience things can be so much cheaper on line if you look around & don't click on the first one on google.

As an example I recently felt the need to purchase a piece of gardening equipment, Homebase had the item I wanted at £116 which for what it was I felt was too much. After looking around I found a family run online shop in deepest Devon, same model, same colour, same warranty....£69 delivered within two days!! Now that's a bargain! It shows just how much the big stores add in the mark up & how silly people can be in not shopping around.

As for ''going somewhere & getting good advice''...sorry but that is not always true, a lot of retailers ''push'' their sales folk into selling the brands with the most profit on them, you bought anything from currys/comet lately ? What the sales person recommends isn't always the best bet/buy/quality. If a shop sells Castrol oil why would they recommend Silkoleane if they don't sell it? I've worked in retail I know how it works.

Having said that, I also, a long time ago mind, worked in a bike shop, neither the owner or the shop manager rode bikes..It was all about profits.

Reasoned Rant over, I'll get me coat, which I did buy from a shop, J&S Accessories in fact, highly recommended, great service, more choice & cheaper than HG.

[alternative_vtr]

Mac good points - I think the mix of both our posts is accurate.

[fordtech]

We do need local shops to go and look at products.
Online shops are great for cheap prices but sizing on clothes especially makes shops a must.

I recently purchased leather trousers from ebay secondhand - were damaged and not as described so sent back. Still not learning from my mistake I purchased new trousers - legs were to tight on calf muscles so again useless.
A trip to J and S - only 25 mins away , and all sorted - trousers that fit -good advice and reasonable price !
Have since been back to same shop for new leather jacket and helmet ! - sometimes it is worth paying that little bit more.

Hein Gericke do good stuff and prices are not to far away from the norm - will be a shame to see them go.

[Whoa Nelly]

Buying online has stuffed it for so many bricks & mortar shops - we're all guilty of it; who doesn't want to save a few bob, but we end up the poorer for it when there's nowhere to try stuff on, or get face to face advice, or have to return stuff. A shop has to be more than a shop these days - people need more reason to come in than to just scan the barcodes with their smartphones and fire up Google Shopping.

I run a specialist shop (no not that kind) - climbing & mountain biking. Our customers are very internet & gear savvy, but they're still tribal social animals (a bit like motorcyclists) and want somewhere to gather and get a coffee and get some local knowledge of where to ride & climb, and maybe get their bike fettled while they have a mooch at the mechandise. And if the service is good, many folk tend to say "sod it, I'll buy it now" even if they know it'll be cheaper online. Its not bloody rocket science.

The irony is, we're closing because our head office doesn't 'get' bikes, or people, really, and would rather crash the company than change its 15 year old business model. *sigh*

[boz]

I for one am not bothered they have closed. My experiences were pushy wet behind the ears sales staff who knew bog all about biking and were boderline rude. The very best bike accessories shops are run and staffed by enthusiasts who guide you to the correct purchase, rather than punting you stuff because they are maybe on some sort of sales bonus. I went to buy a lid at their Portsmouth store a few years ago and walked out after about 5 minutes. The sales guy treated me like someone he'd known for years and basically rubbished my choice of lid. Good riddance

[grumpyfrog]

Boz,
Thats prob because you scared the wombles out of him..
Saying that, I was none to impressed with their Aberdeen shop, but the one in Glasgow was far better- prob cause she was hot as hell (or maybe it's because she had a pulse!!)