Adventures of the First Lady- Confidence Building!

Sunday came and I sold yet another bike. A mom had brought her daughter in and they were looking to trade in a bike for a new one. I give mad props to this lady for bringing her kid in for quality bikes as she's grown. Really, it's fantastic. Starting your child off on a bike of quality, that functions well, is durable, and assembled properly is awesome. Keeping your child on a bike, too, is another feat to be commended for.

A nice closeout Myka found a new home with the young lady who did not want pink on her bike. I told the mom that when I was her age or maybe younger, I was very much an "anti-pink" child. My first store-bought (Walmart) bike was black and blue. It was a boy's model, too. I would not have pink on MY bike...no way, no how.

The little girl was SO happy cruising around the parking lot! It was really awesome to see her face light up.

I also mentioned to the mom that we may have a sign-up having adult-led introductory mountain bike rides for kids.
We'll see how that goes- Kai and I would be able to comfortable handle a small group of 4 or 5, so I think it may be a go once we get details finalized.

Kai, Travis, and I worked well as a team- it's really somewhat exhilarating.

I will admit to being completely, utterly exhausted by the end of Sunday evening. I was tired as all get out and managed to fall asleep on Travis' shoulder while we sat on the couch. I think partly I'm affected by my budding seasonal allergies. JOY. That will wipe you out and make conversation awkward with the scratchy throat/coughing.

Fast forward to Monday, our beautiful 70 degree day before temps drop into the 40's. Kai needed the day off, so Travis and I prepared ourselves for a potentially busy day. Ironically, yes, it became busy but it wasn't completely unmanageable.

I had my first, real, kinda solo-ish sale that required more talking and working with the customer than simply letting them test ride a bike and (boom) they want it. (Which today (Monday) a young man came in and bought a really sharp red/white road bike he coveted on Sunday, but didn't have time to test ride. He felt it was "love at first bike" and by all means. If someone is that set on a bike, well...if it's not dangerous, then let them have a bike they feel happy with.)

It was an older lady looking to find some freedom and activity in her life again. A Specialized Crossroads Sport ended up being the winning bike that fit her needs the best. Upright, potentially comfortable seat, easy trigger shifters, ability to ride on paved/gravel surfaces, and a weight she felt comfortable lifting. Only thing I didn't do correctly right off the bat was have her seat height adjusted properly. However, I feel this was a boon. Originally she asked about having the seat lowered even more, so I went about and showed her a more safe, comfortable way to stop and dismount her bike. Once she had that down, and Travis suggested raising the seat- she was more comfortable pedaling around AND discovered that she could dismount without having the seat so low. I would say that was a success.
Accessories were shown, some chosen as for sure items, she would talk with her husband and will probably be back. THAT was more of a "real" sale. Introducing a woman to the possibilities that she could have with her first bike in years. The smile on her face and overall excitement of being able to be active again. It was not so scary for me, to develop a good rapport with her. My comment about being "allergic to exercise" was something she was able to relate to.
(I will write more about experience in another post.)

Two other gentlemen were in Monday, both of which were fine talking with me- tho I did have Travis assist with them. I suppose I would say that yes, I have been pleasantly surprised that I've had a decent number of men not be afraid to talk to me. Yup. I worried that all men who would come into the shop would instantly just not want to talk to me. Because I'm a woman. I'm sorry that I thought that- and I'm glad that I've had positive experiences to say that NO...this is not the case 100% of the time. Of course even Kai will experience people coming in wanting to speak to Travis because Travis is well known. He also knows his stuff, and people recognize him as "The Bike Guy." A word to the wise, tho. If you do not look up our hours on our awesome website and you call and ask for Travis only to ask him store hours when I could easily answer the question...not cool.

Website? I've gotten positive feedback from it! Not perfect yet by any means, but definitely something that people are enjoying the looks of. YAY!

Wednesday and Thursday proved to be good days as well. I got to have a little more hands on experience working with customers and helped two wonderful ladies pick out bikes that would be purchased during the Spring Sale. It was fun to talk with them, and it sounds like I'll have a pair or trio to take on some Sunday Women's Fatbike Rides! (More details on the Sunday rides to come!)

I'm learning bits and pieces, which is good but yet also brings about some minor impatience.

Thursday a nice fellow had come in with his wife. He has a bike, but is not comfortable with the body position that it gives. I used my thinking cap and had him try a Crossroads Step-Thru. He was a larger man looking to improve a healthy activity that brought him joy- something that he wasn't able to fully enjoy for some time. He wasn't overly emotional, but you could just tell how much being on a bike that was more comfortable brought him joy. Maybe even hope. I'm not sure. He later brought his current bike in to have the tires upgraded. He was kind and patient while I wrestled with the older bike and the bolts/nuts, etc.

He did come back on Saturday to buy his new bike :) I wasn't able to really tell him, but I had a dream that he would come back- and that he was happy.

I must admit, I'll have to write a separate post about the first day of the Spring Sale experience, for there are just too many words- and I'll post it earlier than Sunday. It was a good day!