| Success Stories
SANTOS TRAILHEAD BICYCLE SHOP
Michael and Dawn Phelps, owners of Santos Trailhead Bicycle
Shop in Ocala, FL, have been members of The Biking Solution
for just a little over six months and they are already seeing
the incredible benefits of being part of the group. Their sales
have increased by 42% since this time last year! Michael and
Dawn credit their recent success in the biking industry to the
support of TBS employees and the training, advertising, financing
and warranty programs that TBS provides to its members.
Recently, Michael and Dawn sat down to write an email to the
TBS staff, thanking them for their help over the past six months.
They proposed that TBS be presented with an “Award of
Excellence” for “their system and support, for their
passion and pride” and for “understanding the pressures
of a small shop and providing the best resources and staff to
make our dreams come true.” Below is an excerpt from Michael
and Dawn’s note:
It was definitely time for our shop to change in order to grow
and move to the next level. We are growing wonderfully, but
we don't know how to manage it and keep it growing. We don't
know the best practices to implement and we don't have the resources
to accommodate our needs as a retailer. We worked diligently
to build our shop like the old "Mom and Pop" store.
I believe we have succeeded. However, there was also the realization
that we were a retailer. We needed to think and act as a retailer,
yet keep the "Mom and Pop" concept with our relationship-building.
How? TBS knew.
With TBS marketing programs, we are able to capture those retail
dollars we weren't able to get before. We tried newspaper inserts
before, but never professionally and never direct mail. Our
inserts definitely bring new customers to our store. Referrals
are our #1 advertising. Once we captivate our new customers
with a grand store story (our Mom and Pop relationship-building),
they refer their friends and families. We are the talk of the
town.
With TBS financing, gift cards and extended warranties, we
are able to be a retailer like other large retailers and, more
importantly, we are able to give our customers that large retailer
buying experience they have come to know and expect. We can
fight with the big dogs now.
With the TBS member services, conference calls and newsletters,
we are able to get together and understand how things should
work, what their intentions were in creating these systems we
are implementing, and how to make it successful for us. The
staff works hard to clarify things so we're not just wasting
time and money trying different things and ways to improve and
make more money, but actually taking us by the hand to ensure
these systems are successful for us.
They know their stuff and they are excited about how it works
for us. Our shop is growing unbelievably and it's because we
are becoming a great retailer. Thank you for helping us really
understand our industry and fight for what is ours -- the success
and superiority of a large retailer.
We thank you.
Michael and Dawn
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