Taipei Bike Show – it’s next week! but My Bike Shop is here to serve you!

Hey everyone,

Every year, the major bicycle dealers in Singapore and also across the world make a trip to Taiwan Taipei to attend the Taipei cycle show.

Next week Wednesday March 7 the 25th edition of this international bike sector gathering is opening its doors. The number of international visitors of this jubilee edition is expeted to exceed the one of last year.   With 1,500 booths exceeding the maximum of 2,500 booths the first and fourth floor of the exhibition hall can provide, the show organizer has once again opened the sixth floor and its outdoor area.

So you can imagine, most major bicycle shops in Singapore will take leave and attend the show during this period.

My Bike Shop will  be OPEN as per normal. Our team will be around so please call us 67757133 if you are in doubt.

Our hours are noon to 8pm.

While we will unlikely be able to carry out major servicing and turnaround as usual, our team is on hand to help you with the purchase of a folding bike, change of tubes or the basic tuning/adjustment requirement for our MBS customers!

See you!

The Singapore Lemon law – lemonade out of lemons?

Alot of talk about this law going into effect that gives added protection to consumers of  durable goods. We are not against protecting consumers, in fact this is GREAT news for responsible retailers who invest in staff, process,  presence and premises and are there to serve you for after sales. Something that parallel importers, Internet sellers that cannot do and you might end up witha lemon (We have seen a number over the last few years from such cases). And for those who travel often, you have the opportunity to buy from overseas that could be lower in price due to no tax or old stock,  bicycle warranties are not international but you are an informed buyer, so the Lemon law or warranty coverage does not apply.

Here at My Bike Shop, our top brands are thoroughbreds and come with the Distributors full support and Manufacturer’s warranty (Most of the them are 2 years or more unless otherwise stated). But that’s not all, we take painstaking effort to explain the use and care of your bike and, also allow our customers time to inspect and test your purchase before you bring it home. (We were joking that we may even want to take photos of all bikes before they are released to prevent dispute LoL). for the last 5 and half years, we have 100% responded to all warranty claims and manufacturing defects be it via repair or replacement of the part, backed by the brands and distributors we work closely with.

After that we have operating hours and space at the shop to serve you over the years. All parts and joints are backed by the manufacturers warranty, except for things due to wear and tear. So Lemon law or not, it’s business as usual for us. We do ask that you check with your Retailer or Distributor what is covered and what is not.

However we will have to take up some additional insurance coverage and protection against consumers who want to take advantage of the new law. It’s bad that we have rising costs to our business (rising rental expectations from landlords, COE bids, cost of utilities and labour costs), we now have to figure out how to actively track every durable goods purchased for 6 months. We hope the government can put some sensible guidelines/parameters/definitions of what a flaw means or we will see a influx of people wanting to use the Lemon law for low cost durables eg S$30 lights,  S$7 bell etc so please hold on to your receipts. The bar has been raised again for brand reputation, shop customer service and retailer reputation. We will be seeking advice from the Singapor retailers association and also CASE to understand better.

Extract from TODAYonline 14 Feb 2012 :

From September, consumers who find themselves with a defective product will have more leverage for redress. Proposed amendments to the Consumer Protection (Fair Trading) Act and Hire Purchase Act introduced in Parliament on Tuesday will pave the way for the so-called ‘lemon law’, which the Consumers Association of Singapore has been lobbying for since 2005. Slated to apply from September 2012, the changes will allow consumers to demand a defective good be repaired or replaced. If a flaw is found within six months of delivery, it is assumed to be inherent, unless the retailer can prove otherwise.

Enter the Dragon and its been great so far

Hello everyone and it’s been a busy day so far. Have a few moments to enter a blog entry but judging on today’s opening, the Dragon year is foreboding well and everyone is keen to get fit, get exercise and stay healthy!

On behalf of the team, we thank you for your continued support and a healthy Dragon year for everyone afterall health is wealth!

PS: we revamped our blog page and so will have changing pictures and a more modern look.

.

CNY period closure dates

Dear  all,

My Bike Shop will be CLOSED from 23 Jan Monday – 26 Jan Thursday and will resume normal operating hours from 27 Jan Fri 12 noon.

We take this opportunity to wish our Chinese friends – Gong xi fa cai!

As it is a long break and you might be planning to cycle from 25 Jan onwards, please get your spares or that folding bike by this Saturday 21 Jan 2012.

170th post – It’s been fun and blogging is hard work!

WordPress gave us Bloggers at WordPress a chance to take up a challenge – we signed up for the a Blog entry a week and tried hard to post articles and interesting information that would find traction within our readership and world of foldies. WE DID IT!

This is the 170th post and as we wind down the year and reflect what we have achieved and also continued to serve our many customers, we try hard to say what makes our day. Guess what? – Smiles!

Smiles when the customer picks the right folding bike, smiles when they get set up well and that first ride on the road gives you  that second to none feeling of  freedom and exceeding perinuem comfort,  smiles when we tried to fix that problem that noone wanted to fix, smiles when we help you start (or restart) your cycling careers, smiles when we know we get a compliment (or even frowns from underserved customers on long busy days) from you all.

Of course we have had our fair shares of sadness from losing friends from errant drivers, loss of friends and loved ones to illness and the loss of people we cherish when they move away or move on unexpectedly. We know we cannot please everyone but we will certainly try.

For 2012, and time to make resolutions, Team My Bike Shop will endeavor to keep getting these smiles. Will say this for sure – We will not turn noone away and we always try our best!

Have a blessed Christmas and a Happy 2012 New Year!

Cycling tours – got tips, stories and suggestions?

We have heard so many stories about the sights and fun in cycling tours. Siem Reap and a visit to the Angkor Wat, Trekking in Taiwan, Tonkin Alps in Vietnam, Bali beach combing, Hua Hin Spa getaway, Kunming  etc

A few of us may want to do a series of these trips when a long weekend is around the corner and perhaps do it in a different way.

I know so many Internet tips and links but if you have done it before and want to share,  please send us your stories via email checkmybikehop@gmail.com and we will post extract of the stories in this blog entry.

So put your tips, best deals, food places that “die die must try” rating to us.

My Bike Shop gives back for Christmas

Hi everyone,

It’s Christmas and everyone is caught up with the festivities and also the parties and gifts. My Bike Shop have always had a heart for the orphans and single parent children between the ages of 2 – 7 years old. 

My Bike Shop gives back!

Know an orphanage with kids (3-7 years) who might benefit from getting a Firstbike or Waveboard (Firstbikes each worth S$198 ea and Waveboard S$99 ea) plus S$50 Popular voucher for each of them!  

This is opened only for Singaporean charities. Nominate your charity and the contact of the PIC there! If you like what we are doing, please Like our page!

The top 5 home or 15 kids with the most Likes will win.

Closing date is 30 Dec 2011

My Bike Shop has very kind customers – one in particular is Han Jok Kwang

My Bike Shop has a large clientele of people from all walks of life and we have a few patrons who have always been there with us and often gives us very sound suggestions and feedback. We like to feature one that touched our hearts yesterday. As some of you would have met him when he is at the shop or seen him lead the way in raising funds with the HP Alumni for the needy ( ST Pocket Fund for 2011, 2010 and 2009), Japan Earthquake disaster fund and more recently a gala diner that raised money again for charity). Han even sang (LoL) – he always have time for the less priviledged.

Yesterday despite his busy schedule and knowing our long hours at My Bike Shop for the last few days that sometimes means a few of us miss our lunch, he popped by to say hi and dropped off fried fritters for us! You can imagine how welcome that was! Not to forget Donald aka Number 1 (for his desserts Ching Chow and Green bean soup) and many others who bring coffee and specialties from different corners of Singapore, we salute you all!

Thanks to all your patronage and patience! Makes our hard work worth it.

As the leading folding bike establishment in Singapore and a service culture carved into our  nature from day 1, we have been working hard to help folks understand the considerations, pitfalls and benefits of owning a folding bike. It’s our 6th year and what better way than to launch an exciting new brand – Tern.

Many friends and visitors come and always extend their appreciation and thanks ( and we occasionally get the brickbats from just difficult customers but we always retain a smile).

If you are trying to look for us in the evenings, look out for our banner for My Bike Shop and My Bike Shop too!