Which store web page do you use?

Blinkybaz

Hi all

As we have a load of newbies on the forum, I thought it would be good to collate a list of Triathlon/sports shops or web pages we use to buy our kit/bling.
It might we worth saying why if there's a special reson! i.e quick delivery, good range of sizes etc.....

I will get us rolling,

J E James cycles but only on the web as I dont live close to the stores.
www.sportshoe.com for running gear.
TRI Uk (shop) its only a 25 minute drive foir me. They say they are the biggest triathlon shop in the UK
Ebay for the smaller items of kit!

ris

wiggle - range and reasonable prices
chain reaction cycles - good alternative to wiggle
sportshoes.com as well - shame about the delivery costs being as high as they are, but i guess shoes do weigh something.
cycle-clothing.co.uk (cheap and cheerful kit)

total fitness bath - on my doorstep and ok for gels, laces, odds and sods. they have a range of hideous but very cheap cycle stuff that is good for training kit.

LegacyUser

Wiggle!!!!
Superfast delivery (even for 'big' things!) no quibble-easy returns, money off vouchers...
Love em, I do!
XXX

iadama

Echoing the poster's shouts for Wiggle, but for a different reason - most deliveries come with free Haribo!

TRIumphant

Nothing more satsifying than a 30p packet of Haribo when you've spent last months salary on dubious training gear, gets me everytime.

LegacyUser

.....WHO'S BEEN EATING MY HARIBOS?!!!!!!!

md6

+1 for Wiggle, but I also use Chain Reaction Cycles if Wiggle don't have what i want/need... but they don't give me Haribo so Wiggle is the first choice...what an easy ploy to win affection that is, just throw a cheap pack of sweets in and they'll be back!!!!

Blinkybaz

MMMMmmmmmmm haribo................................Sorry are they yours curvy Cactus?

GHarv

Think you have to be careful here...

Any of the big players e.g. Wiggle, TFN etc. will normally be good.

What i find is that places like JE James (on more than one occcasion & Rutland & others ) tend to advertise cheap stuff in the magazines or on their websites - so you order and then they are not in stock.

Now prefer to pay more and get the reliablility of the big boys.

aoneill69

Was a total Wiggle fan last year, however they have some competition for my money now as J E James Cycles and Evans offering better deals which wiggle couldn't price match...also very good delivery times....(of course no hairbos!)

also great servive from Likeys for my NUUN and gels (and some other bits/pieces)
http://www.likeys.com/

jibby26

Wiggle, Chain Reaction Cycles, ProBikeKit.com, Amazon

Wouldn't order from JE James as two people I know have had big problems with them (my parents ordered something as a christmas present from them in plenty of time, after > 2 weeks they finally sent an email on christmas eve, to late to go to a real store, to say they had lost the order and would no longer fufill it).

Zacnici

Must confess I am also a Wiggle, Chain Reaction, Evans, JE James and TFN customer - hang on are we all clones?


As with anything on the interweb, have a look at the big boys (now stop sniggering Britspin) and do a search, sometimes the small suppliers have some cracking bargains, stock clearance etc. that can top them. After all if a bargain can be had it means you can buy something else as well

tri_tri_again

+1 for JE James being rubbish. I had a similar experience to above. Placed an order for an item website listed as in stock. Once it hadn't turned up for seven days, I called – to discover it hadn't been in stock for ages. And wasn't likely to come back in stock EVER. I could have been waiting forever, and they wouldn't have bothered getting in touch to tell me. For that reason, I won't bother with them, no matter how competitive their prices.

Wiggle and CRC as above. Evans has some competitive prices, and as I work in central London I can collect easily enough, although they seem to have useless chimps working in most of their stores.

Amazon and eBay for smaller bits and pieces.

jamiec

I must admit I haven't had any problem with jejames cycles so I can't comment on them but I know lot's of places order stock from their supplier after you have placed the order with them, which is why you can get problems and delays. I've just started working at a place that only says an items in stock, if it's actually sat in the warehouse. We're very new and sell a whole range of sports equipment. Hopefully we'll be on this list soon Here's the link: http://www.sports-where.co.uk

Bucko75

Anyone one but Evans........had so many bad experiences with them its unreal - poor customer service, deliveries taking weeks rather than days..... Althought they did redeem themselves recently when I ordered a pair of 09 Specialized Trivent shoes at 80 quid down from 130 via their website. Instead of sending me a pair of size nines as requested they sent me a right shoe in 9 and a left in size 11!!!! I went to my local store ready unleash hell on the unwitting store assistant only to be completely surprised at how helpful he was. He apologised and told me they had completely sold out of the 09 shoe in size nine but gave me a 2010 pair for the same reduced price of 80 quid!

Wiggle have always been extremely helpful and their customer service is second to none - must be why I spend so much of my wages there!

moonshine

another vote for Likeys and they're great if you ever go and visit

Tredz in Swansea

Bridgtown cycles - Cannock - incredibly helpful and deal with my numptyness with no problem at all

sp1n

Got some bling at Roadace and great wheel advice.
SJScycles get my vote too.
The usual suspects you have already mentioned.

antonyfromoz

I have bought many things from Wiggle and they have always been good to deal with - I had one item go missing in the post and they just asked me if i wanted a refund or should they send another one? No hassle and very personal service so they get my vote. I have also been looking at CRC and friends of mine have been happy with the service there. I cannot vouch for Triandrun though - I emailed them about one of their products and never received an acknowledgement or response of any kind. I also emailed Questbikes regarding a price that looked very attractive on their webpage - the ad copy described the features of the Shimano RS80 wheelset but the price looked to be for the front wheel only. Thinking that this might be too good to be true but that it was worth investigating i emailed to ask if the price was correct. I received no response at all but suddenly the price went up by over double . I realise that any shop can make a mistake but a good one should really say thank you if someone questions it or points it out and explain the situation (or at the very least answer the email). Suffice to say that there are good reasons why shops like Wiggle, CRC etc continue to do well in the market ...

Oh, one other factor in Wiggle's favour is that they have always provided me with an answer to a product question I have emailed through - and the posted questions/answers and reviews are good for getting a bit more product knowledge when i am comparing potential purchases.

Atomic

+1 for wiggle.

1st class service and no problems with returns. I sent a pair of 6 month old compression tights back after the stitching burst and a nice shiny pair were sent within 2 days. Don't think you can get better service than that.

Oh.........and the haribos helps to keep the WAT officer off my back.............at least for a short while

archieriggg

Wiggle-wiggle!!!