What's a Pro Shop?

Anyone who has been to our Pro Shop (formally our only shop) has interacted with Kevin at some point. In some rare cases where you may have only spoken to another sales or service associate, Kevin still has looked at your bike or the notes on your work order at some point. He may have even ordered your parts, exchanged or read the SMS communications with you, looked at your fit data, set up your suspension, or QC’d (quality controlled) your bike before you rode it. There’s a good chance Kevin has discussed your bike with a mechanic or even fixed part or all of your bike. If you bought a bike from us, he’s most likely been integral in placing the order with our vendor. Maybe when visiting the shop, you’ve discussed suspension kinematics or saddle width with him or had a lengthy discussion about bike light beam spread or “lumens per dollar”. Kevin may have done a sizing or fit for you on your road bike, did a firmware update on your eMTB, or even made a custom modification to your brake mount for more disc brake pad clearance. If Kevin hasn’t done any of these things, he’s helped install the internet and phones in the shop that allow us to email or call you, repaired the compressor that fills up your tires, cleaned and disinfected the keg lines of the beer you drank, or built the displays that you pulled the gloves off of that you ride with. That bar and point of sale counter you’ve sat or been rung up at, he built those by hand. When it’s hot or cold outside, the climate is always right in the shop thanks to Kevin’s expertise with fixing the heating and the AC units. Again, if you have ever stepped foot in our shop at some point, even if you don’t know who Kevin is, he probably knows your bike and has definitely had a huge impact on your shopping experience with us. To say Kevin is the nuts and bolts of the business is the biggest understatement of the century. For 10 years, Kevin has executed our business plan with precision. #bikesdoneright

So, after launching this blog in 2017, why has it taken me so long to mention or focus on him? In truth, he’s probably not entirely psyched that I am doing it but it needs to be done. Kevin certainly doesn’t care about recognition and that isn’t what drives him, it’s something entirely deeper. Not only has Kevin had my back for over 20 years, but he has had your back as a customer for almost 10 years. If you purchased your bike from us and even if you bought it online and brought it in, you are treated the same way and his passion for bikes carries over to his passion for your bikes and your cycling experience as well.

When we opened up the Family Shop downtown, we had a long discussion (debate) about what to call what ended up being the Pro Shop. We tossed around many different names but finally ended up with Pro (short for professional or maybe even professor). The word best defines Kevin and what he’s helped to create at our County Road location. While it has been a team effort to create and grow the business, Kevin is definitely the captain of the team and has put his blood, sweat, and tears into every aspect of the bike shop. Oh…did I mention, he’s one of the best riders I have ever seen on a bike and is by far the best at the shop? There’s that too.