The Pro's Closet at it again

[aliensporebomb]

It's all well and good to have online listings for things you can't personally stand over and check out.

What if you get the bike and it's obviously not the one in the picture? Like they took a shot of a random bike and sold the same model but it's obviously not the same? Or what if it's simply unacceptable? (undisclosed damage or not apparent in the pics?)

Yet, when a local shop has something like this, that is used, in like new condition that you can personally inspect why would you order online?
Same shop I got my Serotta at.

No, sadly, it wasn't my size (too large) or I would have tried to get it. So beautiful!

https://imgur.com/a/rkPIKnJ

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by BobbyJones

Well, they are successful at raising money and growing employee count. That’s all I’m seeing there.

It’s easy to blow through other peoples cash. Making a profit? Well, you know…

Welcome to the new economy I suppose.

I 'suppose' but....not too shabby, I'd say....almost $250,000 per employee...

The world’s 500 biggest companies employ some 69.9 million people and together earned a total of $2.06 trillion last year. That translates to roughly $29,500 for each worker.

VC give $ to lots of companies...but TPC has had 4 phases of VC $...I'd say 'somebody' is pretty confident in TPC 'model'...

But, if ya don't like TPC, don't buy or sell with them..easy...

[Clean39T]

Originally Posted by aliensporebomb

It's all well and good to have online listings for things you can't personally stand over and check out.

What if you get the bike and it's obviously not the one in the picture? Like they took a shot of a random bike and sold the same model but it's obviously not the same? Or what if it's simply unacceptable? (undisclosed damage or not apparent in the pics?)

Yet, when a local shop has something like this, that is used, in like new condition that you can personally inspect why would you order online?
Same shop I got my Serotta at.

No, sadly, it wasn't my size (too large) or I would have tried to get it. So beautiful!

https://imgur.com/a/rkPIKnJ

Where's that Indy Fab for sale? Asking for a friend..

[Hank Scorpio]

Originally Posted by Clean39T

Where's that Indy Fab for sale? Asking for a friend..

Elevating to Jack Brunk status in 3…2..1

[raygunner]

I gotcha with Radavist branded shirts, water bottles, and other associated swag.

But from swag to 10k bikes is a big jump and I'm wondering who would be their targeted demographic since I'm sure like many on this forum were laying down 10 for a Mosaic they'd would go fully custom but that's just me.

Would having Prolly shred a Mosaic, make a post about it, then later sell it on TPC be more in-line with what their used bike market?

I'd even be happy to see other builders partner with TPC to off-load their personal ridden but loved bikes to TPC. Good exposure for the builders and good for customers as to buy something nice at a discount.

[BobbyJones]

Originally Posted by oldpotatoe

I 'suppose' but....not too shabby, I'd say....almost $250,000 per employee...


VC give $ to lots of companies...but TPC has had 4 phases of VC $...I'd say 'somebody' is pretty confident in TPC 'model'...

But, if ya don't like TPC, don't buy or sell with them..easy...

Don’t have a horse in this race besides business curiousity- would love to know what the roadmap is that got them all of that funding.

A prediction of mine in an earlier thread was expansion into other sports equipment segments…. Like an online Play It Again Sports. But if my hunches were any good I’d have a much healthier bank account.

Revenue per employee is a very isolated metric, much like revenue per square foot in retail. But hey… if that’s how you measure success, have at it.

[spoonrobot]

Originally Posted by BobbyJones

Don’t have a horse in this race besides business curiousity- would love to know what the roadmap is that got them all of that funding.

Personal fitness boom during COVID19. Remember Peloton?

[ktakashismith]

Originally Posted by oldpotatoe

I 'suppose' but....not too shabby, I'd say....almost $250,000 per employee...

I think you're forgetting that you live on the planet Earth, not just the United States of America. Fortune 500 companies employ millions of people in developing nations as part of the central theorem of the globalized economy - exploiting cheap labor.

Also, take the VC investment into account when calculating true $/employee, which is to say that I doubt those Fortune 500 companies are currently operating with four rounds of VC capital hanging on their balance sheets.

[aliensporebomb]

Originally Posted by Clean39T

Where's that Indy Fab for sale? Asking for a friend..

The Bicycle Chain - 1712 Lexington Ave N - Roseville, MN 55113.
bicyclechain.com (651) 489-4513

I've noticed their website doesn't show any of their used offerings.

Good luck!

[RWL2222]

Originally Posted by BobbyJones

Like an online Play It Again Sports

Love that place—its the best lax store in town. Bikes too, here at least.

[oldpotatoe]

Originally Posted by BobbyJones

Don’t have a horse in this race besides business curiousity- would love to know what the roadmap is that got them all of that funding.

A prediction of mine in an earlier thread was expansion into other sports equipment segments…. Like an online Play It Again Sports. But if my hunches were any good I’d have a much healthier bank account.

Revenue per employee is a very isolated metric, much like revenue per square foot in retail. But hey… if that’s how you measure success, have at it.

I have no idea..I'm no biz guy. All I know is I know a bunch of people there, including Nick and Pete(no longer there), the founders. AND they are content about where they are and where they are heading. I 'hear' that they may expand into Europe as well...but...'Many' like to throw stones at a variety of business', manufacturers, many....but TPC started as a 'yard sale' selling bike pro's old junk and is now in a Amazon sized warehouse(that I think they own outright) with over 100 people doing the 'bike thing'...so good on them and I, for one, wish them continued success.

[nmrt]

for a moment i thought you were talking about Specialized except with Sinyard cranking out tires in his "yard".

i also wish big S continued sucess!

Originally Posted by oldpotatoe

I have no idea..I'm no biz guy. All I know is I know a bunch of people there, including Nick and Pete(no longer there), the founders. AND they are content about where they are and where they are heading. I 'hear' that they may expand into Europe as well...but...'Many' like to throw stones at a variety of business', manufacturers, many....but TPC started as a 'yard sale' selling bike pro's old junk and is now in a Amazon sized warehouse(that I think they own outright) with over 100 people doing the 'bike thing'...so good on them and I, for one, wish them continued success.

[fourflys]

Originally Posted by oldpotatoe

I 'hear' that they may expand into Europe as well....

I have been seeing TPC commercials on my Youtube as I'm watching GCN videos.. I think they are doing just fine. I look at the bikes often and, while I haven't picked anything up yet, they have lots of bikes I don't see available elsewhere..

[Mark McM]

Originally Posted by fourflys

I have been seeing TPC commercials on my Youtube as I'm watching GCN videos.. I think they are doing just fine. I look at the bikes often and, while I haven't picked anything up yet, they have lots of bikes I don't see available elsewhere..

I'm pretty sure that the commercials are inserted by YouTube (based on previous viewing history, and probably also from parent Google's knowledge of you're browing history), so that's no indication of any connection between European based GCN and TPC's intentions in Europe.

And a company throwing money at advertising isn't a good indication of their financial state or the solidness of their business model - remember companies like Pets.com?

[prototoast]

Yeah, from the outside it's really hard to know if TPC is profitable. Clearly they are well-financed, and have had very strong revenue growth, but at what cost? Are they Amazon, showing little or no profit for nearly two decades while they grew, only then to start showing a profit? Are they Uber, a company that has not ever made a profit, but is at least on paper worth more than the sum of the cash invested into it? Are they Wework, a company that has only ever lost money and is worth less than the sum of the cash invested into it?

I don't know. As a potential customer, I've sometimes found some good deals from them, even though more often than not I think they're overpriced--but if I'm selective enough, they still bring me value on occasion, so I'd be happy to see them continue.