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NEW TIMES: Have many people purchased bikes lately?
COHEN: The back-to-school rush was quite a bit better than last year’s. As for the actual number of bikes sold, I don’t know off the top of my head. We were noticeably busier this year than last year, especially over the summer months. I know more people are on bikes but not necessarily new bikes.
NEW TIMES: Do you think your move from New Frontiers plaza to the Albertsons plaza has had a positive impact on sales?
COHEN: Yeah, September was our best month ever. It was pretty cool. It was freaking awesome. Post-move sales are up over the previous same period. The traffic in this parking lot is better.
NEW TIMES: Do you think bike riding trends are increasing?
COHEN: They are, every time oil keeps pushing up more people get out on their bikes. You can kill two birds with one stone by getting exercise and saving money. As a shop it appears more people are in here. There are more people buying bikes, riding bikes, and getting their bikes fixed.
NEW TIMES: Do you ride your bike to work?
COHEN: Sometimes during the summer, but riding down Foothill at night scares the hell out of me. I have stuff to carry and you can’t really carry a table saw on your bike. All the other workers ride their bikes to work though.
NEW TIMES: What time of the year are most bikes purchased?
COHEN: Depends on the category of bike. Most of our upper-end bikes get sold in the summer. Mountain bikes and low-end commuter bikes get sold in September when school starts. Kids’ bikes are mostly sold in December for Christmas.
NEW TIMES: What is your range of bike prices?
COHEN: They start at $169 and pretty much the sky is the limit for bikes. You could get a fully loaded and fully custom bike that would set you back $15,000. I guess it's like anything: You could buy a car for cheap or you could buy one for half a million dollars.