OP
@torontowest avatar
UTC

Addicted
GTS 300 Super, 76 Sprint Veloce, Ape
Joined: UTC
Posts: 619
Location: Toronto Ontario
 
Addicted
@torontowest avatar
GTS 300 Super, 76 Sprint Veloce, Ape
Joined: UTC
Posts: 619
Location: Toronto Ontario
UTC quote
do you find better products/ service from large multiline/superstores or at a stand-alone brand specific shop?
@lomunchi avatar
UTC

Veni, Vidi, Posti
2020 Honda NC750DCT
Joined: UTC
Posts: 6943
Location: Maple Grove, MN
 
Veni, Vidi, Posti
@lomunchi avatar
2020 Honda NC750DCT
Joined: UTC
Posts: 6943
Location: Maple Grove, MN
UTC quote
OK, You'll hate this answer: It depends.

I run a service department that calibrates and repairs particle measuring devices. We have all the expensive capital needed to to that. We do have 'mom and pop' competitors. They can do part of the job, and do it more cheaply, but they can't provide the level of certification etc that we can.

On the other hand... I'd rather have my Vespa serviced by someone nearby and convenient who could be flexible enough to meet my schedules and needs (I don't quite have that, by the way).

Home Depot vs. my local hardware shop: I needed an M6-050mm screw for my scooter... the small shop had it for about a buck and a half (the big guy didn't have it) - Yeah little guy! I needed an electric chain saw last week. The local shop had one option for $150. The chain had 3 options under $100 - Yeah big guy!
@sallad avatar
UTC

Molto Verboso
GTS
Joined: UTC
Posts: 1231
Location: Brooklyn, NY
 
Molto Verboso
@sallad avatar
GTS
Joined: UTC
Posts: 1231
Location: Brooklyn, NY
UTC quote
I agree with lomunchi, it depends.

There is a great local shop a few blocks from my house, Scooter Bottega. The owner, a long time scooter rider from England, is a friend and I'll roll down there for most anything I need. It's a small shop (literally, he can only work on 2 bikes at a time in it, and if there are 4 people inside 1 has to leave if another wants to turn around). Great, knowledgable, friendly service however it's not much of a retail shop and due to size he has limited inventory of parts.

Because of Bottega's limited supply, when the center stand on my mom's LX 150 snapped I took it over to the local factory store, Vespa Brooklyn, since I knew they would have the parts in stock and they took care of it immediately (same went for the tire I blew out on my way home from work, and was able to push it a few blocks to VB and they hooked me up within 30 minutes).

It's not to say that Bottega couldn't replace the center stand or blown tire, but due to the physical size of the shop they don't have every conceivable Piaggio part in stock like Vespa Brooklyn.

If I want a small part or accessory and I'm in no rush I'll order online.

So for me it all depends. The small local shop for all routine maintenance, no-rush upgrades/fixes, advice, hang-out, etc. The Vespa factory store for emergency repairs of stock parts to get me back on the road within an hour or so.

I have received great service from both these local shops as well as the online retailers I use. They all serve very distinct purposes for me and I'm very glad to have multiple outlets I trust.
@jess avatar
UTC

Petty Tyrant
0:7 And counting
Joined: UTC
Posts: 38087
Location: Bay Area, California
 
Petty Tyrant
@jess avatar
0:7 And counting
Joined: UTC
Posts: 38087
Location: Bay Area, California
UTC quote
I go out of my way to support smaller (and local) shops when possible, but I usually have a pretty good idea of whether a given small shop will have what I need (or a wide enough selection of what I need) or not. If not, or if I'm in doubt (and in a hurry) I might go straight to the big box stores.

Now if what you're asking about is scooters (and motorcycles), then it's probably a different category. I don't mind multiline (i.e. 2 or 3 brands) at all, but at the point where something becomes a "superstore", I avoid it like the plague. Is there a difference between multiline and superstore? In my mind there is, but I'm not sure everyone else will have experienced enough examples to see the difference that I do.
@vezpa avatar
UTC

Banned
Vespa GTS 300 Super & Vespa P125X
Joined: UTC
Posts: 4134
Location: St. Petersburg Florida
 
Banned
@vezpa avatar
Vespa GTS 300 Super & Vespa P125X
Joined: UTC
Posts: 4134
Location: St. Petersburg Florida
UTC quote
I support my local dealer but there are some things, like tires, that I buy online, as cheap as possible from the Superstores.

Nothing beats going down to my local dealer http://www.motoworkschicago.com/ and chatting it up with them for a while.
@aviator47 avatar
UTC

Moderator
2006 PX 150 & Malossi Kitted Malaguti Yesterday (Wife's)
Joined: UTC
Posts: 12955
Location: Paros Island, Greece
 
Moderator
@aviator47 avatar
2006 PX 150 & Malossi Kitted Malaguti Yesterday (Wife's)
Joined: UTC
Posts: 12955
Location: Paros Island, Greece
UTC quote
Ah, the joys of life on Paros. Even our very small branches of "Super Stores" here, all five of them, are either family owned and operated franchises or family managed branches. All in all, no predatory pricing and it's hard to find bad service.
@gtdespatchcourier avatar
UTC

Molto Verboso
GTS 300ie
Joined: UTC
Posts: 1687
Location: Sunshine Coast, Australia
 
Molto Verboso
@gtdespatchcourier avatar
GTS 300ie
Joined: UTC
Posts: 1687
Location: Sunshine Coast, Australia
UTC quote
i only go for garages where i can hand my bike to the person who will be working on it and i can see it. I never trust a shop where some-one in clean clothes takes your details on a computer !!!
@flanman_hawaii avatar
UTC

Addicted
Daring Plum GT 200, Dragon Red LX 150, Kawi Green KLR 650, Hi-Viz Yeller V-Strom 650, Bonneville Black
Joined: UTC
Posts: 634
Location: Honolulu
 
Addicted
@flanman_hawaii avatar
Daring Plum GT 200, Dragon Red LX 150, Kawi Green KLR 650, Hi-Viz Yeller V-Strom 650, Bonneville Black
Joined: UTC
Posts: 634
Location: Honolulu
UTC quote
"Corporate" shops, where they charge you for labor whatever it says in the book, not the time it actually takes to do the job, really piss me off.

I enjoy little one-man bike shops -- there's several up in Maine I've had work on my KLR. The guys know their sh*t, they usually charge a fair price and you get to talk story, admire their personal steeds (1980s Katanas and AMF Harleys with 225,000 miles on them) and get quality service without feeling like you're being jobbed.

In Honolulu, we have moped shops and the Harley/Kawasaki/Big Dog/Schwinn/Vespa dealer. The Harley techs don't wanna work on scooters and the moped guys don't have the parts or capacity.

Ergo, we do our own wrenching. We have the tools, the lifts and we're developing the expertise. It's a bitch getting parts out here, but guys like Max at Motorsport and JimH, the key meister, are a big help. We brought Rolf Soltau and Rich (Glasseye) out here to Honolulu last year for a two-day clinic and got our hands dirty. Now we mostly do our own.
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