Simplicity

• I am often telling friends, especially younger friends who have not yet divined a clear career path, to make sure to steer clear of the bicycle industry if they value sanity and solvency. One of the problems is, and this is hardly a novel observation, that cycling is the type of hobby quickly becomes a lifestyle. And there are several entry points into the industry, many of which have barriers akin to fast food. On the retail side of things, the internet has for a decade now reshaped and wholly transformed big chunks of the supply chain. And yet, for all of the modernization and competition, the customer experience at the tail end of the supply chain, many small neighborhood shops suffer from lackluster service, outdated merchandizing, and uninspiring shopping experiences. Anyone who has in recent years visited a Hyde Park bike shop knows exactly what I'm talking about.

  TATI has always existed on the edge of this world -- a specialty shop among specialty shops: tiny, focused, and barely open at all. It would be nice to transform into a full scale, full service, beacon of light and bike wonderfulness for the neighborhood -- but that's a distant dream from where I stand. And so each winter, I'll sit down and think and turn some dials and twist some knobs, and try to reconfigure the shop for the next year. This year, TATI will be focusing on simplicity.

  Most of the chaos that is to be cured is behind the scenes to be sure, but I know that it has negative effects on the customer experience. Over the years, the shop has developed a very large number of vendor relationships with similarly tiny boutique importers and distributors. As a result, custom really means custom here -- from made to measure frames to hand made wool knickers to Japanese randonneuring equipment to 49g artisinal German carbon fiber saddles. Every bike is different, and often -- every bike build requires a complex process of ordering and receiving components from a dozen or more suppliers. And more often than not, one or two or three of these vendors fail to deliver the right thing at the right time... resulting in very long lead times.

  But there are other, much more transparent changes afoot. The shop's merchandising has always been based on real world experience and products that have actually been tested and used and ridden here in Chicago by myself or trusted friends. The inventory has always been curated, and not only because of limited display space. Absolute integrity and belief in the quality and durability of every product line has been a core value at TATI from the beginning. (A side note -- a customer once explained that the reason he loves buying from REI and Performance, despite the fact that they are chains, is that they both have unconditional return policies. So he always felt safe with the knowledge that if a product didn't work out, he could return it. I countered that TATI also honors an unconditional return policy, but unlike chain shops -- it's almost never used. Because we don't bother selling products that result in high return or warranty claims.) But unfortunately, great products don't always come from well run companies.

  TATI will still root for the underdog in 2010, with caps from Deller and Spokepunchers, pedals by TIME, tires from Grand Bois and Schwalbe, frames from Storck and IBIS, and apparel from Ibex and Endura. But we're making switches in a few key areas in order to ensure a steady supply of reliably good stuff: shoes, helmets, and commuter bikes.

  I've written enough about the boutique Australian heat-molded shoes from BONT. But what if you just want a pair of nice looking, affordable & perfectly fitting shoes that you can try on in a shop before buying? There aren't too many places left to do this in Chicago, and certainly not on the south side. This year, TATI will stock six models of Lake shoes, ranging from $80-150 in sizes 35-50. And if we run out of your size, Lake just so happens to be located in Evanston -- so more inventory is a day away. I'll admit that I haven't always liked Lake's designs, especially on the high end. But at the entry level and mid-range, these shoes go toe-to-toe with the benchmark offerings from Shimano and Specialized, and at least in the 2010 colorways -- look much cleaner and... simpler.

  We're dropping Basque helmet maker Spiuk this year. Spiuk still makes a great product. The helmets are light, attractive, and fit many heads very well. But sadly, it's just really difficult to be a niche retailer relying on a niche distributor -- and so we've often had to go months (or years) waiting on a particular model or color of helmet. And so it's time to walk away. On the other end of the universe is helmet behemoth Giro. I still think Giro should add a Euro-spec bug net to their road helmets with the huge vents, but aside from that -- it's very difficult to fault their current product line. TATI will be stocking the Stylus, Saros, Atmos, Prolight, Ionos, and Advantage. But strictly in black, ti, or white, because simple monochrome helmets simply look better.

  Finally, the excellent line of $400-550 city bikes by Linus aren't really replacing anything at TATI -- but these bikes are sure to sway folks who might otherwise have purchased something like a $600 Model T. The latter is worth believing in and amazingly customizable for the price, but also requires far more behind the scenes work to spec and assemble versus the Linus... which is, in reality, 90% the bike.

  So that's it for now. Messy ordering and inventory going away. Simple, attractive products by Lake, Giro, and Linus in black, white, and titanium... now available at TATI.

  ---

  Postscript:

  Industry friends and associates have for some time insisted that I spend more time visiting other shops, because as "cute" and "idiosyncratic" as TATI is -- it's pretty clear that it's run by someone who knows nothing about retail. And so this winter I've spent a fair amount of time on recon missions, filling my notebook with sketches and notes. I've learned a lot. One thing I learned is that for many items, TATI's pricing is, on average, nearly 40% lower than Turin, Get a Grip, Rapid Transit, Iron Cycles, Alberto's. This was very clear on items like saddles, tires, tubes, components, rims, bags, clothing, and... well, just about everything actually. These shops tend to stock very similar items from the same set of "best of breed" vendors, whereas the majority of Chicagoland shops seem to rely on a single distributor who offers private labeled goods (JB/Origin8, Trek/Bontrager, Performance, etc.) at lower prices. But the reason for this is simply that I tend to peg prices to those of the online vendors, which always operate at razor-thin margins. This pricing strategy clearly isn't designed to attract more business, because the shop's core clientele is quite stagnant and a result of geography more than "shopping around". But it is meant to avoid wasted time and energy haggling or debating or discussing prices. It was pretty funny to see a customer walk around Turin with his iPhone, googling various accessories...

  I spent a lot of time looking at things that TATI lacks, like cash registers and sizing cycles. This year, the latter is going to happen, and the former... not so much. Price tags still seem too complicated, but a sign on the window isn't such a bad idea. Returning one day from a trip to the suburbs, I stopped off at a Maserati dealership, and stopped cold when I saw the mechanics' work area. It was pristine and perfectly organized, and all of the guys were wearing beautiful pale blue jumpsuits, like an F1 pit crew from 1962. Change the jumpsuit to orange, add a knotted ascot, and I think I've found the new shop uniform. Simple!