Wholesalers
Wholesalers are important to us. To be a proper bike shop you need at least one wholesaler account. It's hard to get the first account, but now that we have been in business for years it's easy to open new ones.
We need wholesaler accounts as it lets us buy large quantities of parts at far less than retail prices. This is less of an advantage than it used to be, as the internet means that some things can be bought by anyone for the same price or sometimes less than wholesale.
We need several accounts as no one wholesaler carries all the products we need, and prices vary between wholesalers. Annoyingly brands move their products between wholesalers. We used to buy our SKS mudguards from Raleigh, but they stopped doing them so we had to open a ZyroFisher account.
Below is a list of all the wholesaler accounts we have ever had in approximate order of opening them.
Where the name is in red, that's a link to the public website.
Greyville
Greville are a medium sized operation and had a very keen rep who signed us up. They are very useful for Stronglight chainrings and Rixen Kaul luggage, which is very good and cheaper than Altura. RK also make fantastic baskets.
Acorn Sports and Leisure
Now closed, they were a good general source of parts.
AMBA Marketing
A boutique specialist. They supply the excellent Busch and Müller lights for hub dynamos. When we opened the account they wanted to be sure that you actually knew and cared about the product, a good credit rating wasn't enough. We don't use them that much now.
J Hartley Dawson
JHD were the great Yorkshire wholesaler. We opened the account as they sold alloy rims in the 590mm size. They were very crusty and traditional. I think they closed when the owner retired.
Raleigh
One of the great names in cycling, Raleigh do the best machine made wheels we have found. We used to buy Brooks saddles from them, but then Brooks were taken over by Selle Italia who started charging what the market would bear instead of a cost plus price.
Chandos Hub and Rim Company
They were a small firm who made cones for all sorts of hubs. The cones were great and lasted forever. What was not so good were other business practices. I would ask for a stock list, but be told that they never produced one, as if they did they would make a new sort of cone soon afterwards then have to update the list. You had to phone them up and ask what they had. It was like groping about in a sack.
Fisher
Fisher used to one of the largest wholesalers, but something went wrong. We stopped using them as orders came late and were wrong. After a few months we started to get occasional phone calls from management consultants who asked why we didn't use them any more. Clearly the consultants weren't any good as later they merged with Zyro to become ZyroFisher, who are much better (see below).
The Cycle Division
A relatively new company, they have a refreshingly simple business plan of selling the routine items a bike shop needs for repairs at keen prices, sending it out quickly and invoicing promptly. This old fashioned and unexciting approach has seen them succeed and grow consistently. As an added bonus, if you phone up and ask a hard question you get to speak to the boss. Sometimes if you phone them and get the warehouse and ask if a part is in stock in the 20cm length you will be asked "What’s that in old money?".
Ison Distribution
We only ever had a Pro Forma account with them. They do lots of interesting stuff, including some good steel frames.
I ran into problems with them after I told them that BMX were for children. Since then they seem to have stopped doing BMX.
Madison
The big boys. The UK main supplier for Shimano. I resisted having an account with them for years as we could get everything from existing sources, but a couple of years ago I gave in and opened one. They are great.
ZyroFisher
After Raleigh stopped selling SKS mudguards we had to get this account. ZyroFisher are far better than Fisher were. They sell more spare parts for Rixen Kaul panniers than Greyville, which is useful.
Reece Cycles
Reece are best known for distributing the Python and Probike brands. In amongst all the usual stuff and dross they do supply Humbert handlebars in comfortable shapes.
M and J
We get letters from them every month so may have an account but haven't used it for ages.
JD Whisker
Not so much a wholesaler as a time machine, Whiskers supply the lightweight dealer with all he could need. They don't have a website, and print their own price list every month. There are no pictures in it, if you have a Whiskers account you know what things are. As well as Campagnolo and Shimano, they have Kinlin rims and Dia Compe brakes, including the very useful deep drop dual pivot calipers with nut fitting, which are an easy away to improve the braking on old Proper Bikes.
We need wholesaler accounts as it lets us buy large quantities of parts at far less than retail prices. This is less of an advantage than it used to be, as the internet means that some things can be bought by anyone for the same price or sometimes less than wholesale.
We need several accounts as no one wholesaler carries all the products we need, and prices vary between wholesalers. Annoyingly brands move their products between wholesalers. We used to buy our SKS mudguards from Raleigh, but they stopped doing them so we had to open a ZyroFisher account.
Below is a list of all the wholesaler accounts we have ever had in approximate order of opening them.
Where the name is in red, that's a link to the public website.
Greyville
Greville are a medium sized operation and had a very keen rep who signed us up. They are very useful for Stronglight chainrings and Rixen Kaul luggage, which is very good and cheaper than Altura. RK also make fantastic baskets.
Acorn Sports and Leisure
Now closed, they were a good general source of parts.
AMBA Marketing
A boutique specialist. They supply the excellent Busch and Müller lights for hub dynamos. When we opened the account they wanted to be sure that you actually knew and cared about the product, a good credit rating wasn't enough. We don't use them that much now.
J Hartley Dawson
JHD were the great Yorkshire wholesaler. We opened the account as they sold alloy rims in the 590mm size. They were very crusty and traditional. I think they closed when the owner retired.
Raleigh
One of the great names in cycling, Raleigh do the best machine made wheels we have found. We used to buy Brooks saddles from them, but then Brooks were taken over by Selle Italia who started charging what the market would bear instead of a cost plus price.
Chandos Hub and Rim Company
They were a small firm who made cones for all sorts of hubs. The cones were great and lasted forever. What was not so good were other business practices. I would ask for a stock list, but be told that they never produced one, as if they did they would make a new sort of cone soon afterwards then have to update the list. You had to phone them up and ask what they had. It was like groping about in a sack.
Fisher
Fisher used to one of the largest wholesalers, but something went wrong. We stopped using them as orders came late and were wrong. After a few months we started to get occasional phone calls from management consultants who asked why we didn't use them any more. Clearly the consultants weren't any good as later they merged with Zyro to become ZyroFisher, who are much better (see below).
The Cycle Division
A relatively new company, they have a refreshingly simple business plan of selling the routine items a bike shop needs for repairs at keen prices, sending it out quickly and invoicing promptly. This old fashioned and unexciting approach has seen them succeed and grow consistently. As an added bonus, if you phone up and ask a hard question you get to speak to the boss. Sometimes if you phone them and get the warehouse and ask if a part is in stock in the 20cm length you will be asked "What’s that in old money?".
Ison Distribution
We only ever had a Pro Forma account with them. They do lots of interesting stuff, including some good steel frames.
I ran into problems with them after I told them that BMX were for children. Since then they seem to have stopped doing BMX.
Madison
The big boys. The UK main supplier for Shimano. I resisted having an account with them for years as we could get everything from existing sources, but a couple of years ago I gave in and opened one. They are great.
ZyroFisher
After Raleigh stopped selling SKS mudguards we had to get this account. ZyroFisher are far better than Fisher were. They sell more spare parts for Rixen Kaul panniers than Greyville, which is useful.
Reece Cycles
Reece are best known for distributing the Python and Probike brands. In amongst all the usual stuff and dross they do supply Humbert handlebars in comfortable shapes.
M and J
We get letters from them every month so may have an account but haven't used it for ages.
JD Whisker
Not so much a wholesaler as a time machine, Whiskers supply the lightweight dealer with all he could need. They don't have a website, and print their own price list every month. There are no pictures in it, if you have a Whiskers account you know what things are. As well as Campagnolo and Shimano, they have Kinlin rims and Dia Compe brakes, including the very useful deep drop dual pivot calipers with nut fitting, which are an easy away to improve the braking on old Proper Bikes.
