is there room for another bicycle shop in Taos? (Santa Fe: neighborhoods, to buy) - New Mexico (NM) - City-Data Forum

trekbro · 08-30-2011, 07:06 AM

I've been thinking on moving to Taos, and opening a bicycle shop.

do you think there is room for improvement to the existing bike shops?
is there enough biking population?
how is the commuter comunity?
professional biking?

Should I look to open a shop in Santa Fe better?
what are your thoughts.

thank you

GregW · 08-31-2011, 09:00 AM

The more time you spend investigating the market and potential competitors the better your chances of sucess. I suggest Googling "bike shops in Taos" to get some idea of the potential competition. Also check Taos yellow pages. Do the same for Santa Fe. Then visit and "shop" in each place. Good luck.

rruff · 08-31-2011, 08:33 PM

Yep... I doubt that either place is feeling a significant lack of bike shop opportunities. Note that Taos is a small town. Regardless, a successful business is all about providing an excellent service that people are willing to buy.

I've seen 3 bike shops rise and quit in Ruidoso in the last 5 years. Currently there are two quite small operations limping along.

joqua · 09-01-2011, 07:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rruff

I've seen 3 bike shops rise and quit in Ruidoso in the last 5 years. Currently there are two quite small operations limping along.

The first step in opening a bike shop is to have a customer base! Ruidoso has NEVER been a bike friendly town. There are not even sidewalks in most residential areas, and where there are sidewalks, there is heavy side traffic. So if kids can't safely ride bikes around their neighborhoods, adults won't do so either.

I wish the current 'off-road' effort to build 'mountain bike' trails success, but until (and if) it becomes reality and people begin flocking here to take advantage of those trails, the town will not sustain a full-service bike shop. It couldn't even sustain an upscale "outdoor sports" store that had a nice bike shop in it. The young man who formerly ran the bike shop is the one who is currently ramrodding the effort to build mountain bike trails in the region using public funds, and of course, seeking donations from private entities.