Bikes for sale, not selling

[Bikenut22]

Has anyone else noticed how few bikes actually attract buyers in our 'Bikes for Sale' forum? From a check-through of the first thirty postings, it seems that only 'bargain' prices attract any interest. There seem to be loads of good bikes at reasonable prices (jncluding my Spa Elan, to declare an interest) with no response at all or with 'lovely bike but not my size' type response.
What sort of price is expected by Cycling UK members? Does it have to be ridiculously cheap, or is there not really a market for second-hand bikes, whatever condition?

[Cyclewala]

I’d imagine most cycling uk members will already have a bike/s.

Also cycling took a nosedive after the Covid boom and there is a glut of bikes and equipment. One of the reasons Wiggle went bust.

[SimonCelsa]

Looking at your Spa Elan for £940.......a few quid short of a grand.

Realistically, I reckon you'd be lucky to get £500. Unfortunately, although it's a nice machine and probably well worth a grand..... it's 2nd hand, your unique choice of components, and we're in a buyers market.

I had a friend who emigrated and had to sell a single speed machine he'd built up from the frameset, spending close on £700. He got £120 in the end. I could have given him £150 but feel our friendship would have suffered!!!

At the end of the day something is only worth what someone else is prepared to pay despite the sum of its 'as new' components.

Best of luck with the sale anyway and hope you get a good price. It's a mugs game buying new stuff unless you can either afford to take the hit when you sell it, or intend to keep it until expiration.

[Carlton green]

I echo the above from Simon.

As with nearly all things it’s a case of supply and demand, the former is now unconstrained and the later limited. On this forum folk mostly already have the bikes that they want and members are likely distant from each other. If I were selling a bike then eBay would likely be best place and the last bike I bought was off of Facebook from a nearby (ish) seller. The last bike I parted company with - a nice enough runner - was donated to a local bike charity.

Good luck with your sale, but to some extent you’re fishing in an empty barrel .

[PH]

Stuff sells, at the right price too if you're prepared to wait. £600 is a decent saving on an as new bike, but only if it's exactly what the potential buyer would have chosen for themselves. That's more of an issue with custom bikes and builds, if that potential buyer thinks, I'd have chosen a different group set, or brakes, or wheels , or colour... then the compromise has to be worth the saving, and it often isn't. Once someone has decided to spend that sort of money, then a 30% saving for something not quite right isn't a great offer.
Turn it on it's head, with so many great secondhand bikes around, why did you buy a new one last year?
I couldn't sell my Hewitt Cheviot in a really fantastic spec that I'd chosen over the years, yet stripped and sold all the parts within weeks, for a bit more than I'd asked for the complete bike. OTOH a 75% complete Cannondale hybrid got no interest at all, so I spent £40 completing it and it sold straight away for £60 more than I'd been asking. The difference between those was the price point and market they were aimed at. Someone spending a grand on a touring bike is going to be fussy.

[rareposter]

What sort of price is expected by Cycling UK members? Does it have to be ridiculously cheap, or is there not really a market for second-hand bikes, whatever condition?

Classifieds sections of websites are dying - the rise of eBay and other auction sites (plus social media) gives access to a far wider potential market. You're effectively trying to sell a relatively specialist bike to a core group of users who are already in that demographic and likely already have their own specialist bike (albeit many will be looking for spare parts, wheels etc).

Also, as mentioned, £940 is way too much. £500 or so would be ballpark. I got £750 for a carbon road bike with basically that groupset and hydraulic brakes (which is what I was expecting and happy with) so £200 more for that Elan is wildly optimistic. You might get a reasonable result stripping it and selling as parts although equally you may well end up with some completely unsellable parts that end up being donated or binned.

Go with eBay and be prepared to relist it a couple of times or to boost the listing a bit.

It's a mugs game buying new stuff unless you can either afford to take the hit when you sell it, or intend to keep it until expiration.

On the other hand you get exactly what you want when you want it for limited hassle and you know the provenance of the bike, you have a warranty - for many people that is worth the cost. And that ties into the cost of S/H bikes - why would I spend £940 on a bike with no warranty, no comeback etc when I could spend 30% more and get it brand new? If I'm going to take the risk, the bike needs to be 50% off, not 30%.
As a general rule, you can immediately knock off 50% of the RRP as soon as you own it and a further 10% per year. More if it's been heavily used, maybe a bit less if it's excellent condition.
Which would make the absolute maximum S/H price of the OP's Elan about £800 at best.

[Bikenut22]

Thanks for the comments, really interesting and informative. I was expecting to keep the bike a long time, hence worth buying new. I wasn't expecting to be in hospital 6 weeks after my first ride on it.

Judging by all the other posts, I'm not alone in my view of a fair price. Although it sounds as though I may have to take a substantial hit- and someone get a first rate bike , almost new, for not a lot, I'm going to hang on for now and see what happens before going, reluctantly, to Ebay...

[rareposter]

Thanks for the comments, really interesting and informative. I was intending to keep the bike a long time, hence worth buying new. I wasn't expecting to be in hospital 6 weeks after my first ride on it.

You know what might work.
Give Spa a call (or even better, visit in person). Speak to someone senior there and explain the situation, see if there's any possibility that they'll buy it back off you for (say) £800 or so.

They can then clean it up and sell it as ex-demo with at least a limited warranty / guarantee and still turn a small profit on it, you get a bit more money than you might otherwise make.

I have no association with Spa, they may tell you to jog on but it could be worth a try. If they say no, that's fair enough but you'll lose nothing by at least asking.

[fastpedaller]

That seems to be a good idea, however, looking more deeply, anything we buy immediately loses 20% due to VAT, and Spa can sell parts or a bike and maybe realise more profit from selling new. OTOH it's certainly worth asking (nothing to lose), and even if you get (from Spa) a price as low as selling on Ebay, there will be no repercussions.

[TrevA]

I’m always on the lookout for a bargain new bike and have actually bought 2 bikes via the Cycling UK Forum. But the killer for me (apart from bikes being not my size or SRAM equipped), is the distance to go to view and collect the bike. Both bikes I bought were from people fairly local to me, one lives about 10 miles away and the other was happy to meet at an Motorway services nearby.

I might see a bike that’s worth buying, but if it’s in Scotland or Cornwall, I’m not prepared to travel that far.

[Nearholmer]

I’ve noticed very good bikes, at very good prices, not selling here too, and my nstinct is that it’s because:

- regular readers here probably alteady have N, and would only buy a very, very particular +1;

- novice visitors asking for advice sbout what to buy almost always get advised to buy a very mainstream hybrid in the £400 to £900 (new prices) range, and most of the bikes for sale here are too good/specialised for the novice;

- by keeping an eye on Gumtree, Facebook, eBay, and local bike charities it is possible to find really, really serious bargains in somewhat outdated bikes ……. I’ve acquired a bad habit of taking on waifs and strays by that means, and “resto-modding” or fettling them up, because I enjoy the tinkering involved, and I enjoy trying out different bikes. In fairness, when the fleet gets too big, I give them to (back to in some cases!) the bike charity.

[al_yrpal]

These days a lot of folk seem to have loads of money so naturally they choose to buy safe, buy new, to get the latest technology and a warranty.

But, there are people like me who like a bargain, careful with money, and are capable of spotting one,

The endless 'what bike shall I get ' and the reams of advice that are offered are somewhat tiresome...

Al

[slowster]

This forum is populated mainly by enthusiasts who tend to have their own particular requirements and preferences in a bike. When I see a Spa bike for sale with a bespoke build choice of components, I do not think how closely it would tick my boxes, instead I see a lot of parts that would not be my choice and many of which I would have to change for the bike to fit/suit me.

I suspect that, as PH found with his Hewitt, on this forum (as opposed to ebay etc.) a better approach may be to sell the frame and the various components separately, because there are likely to be more potential interested buyers of a frame/fork on its own, and similarly of individual parts, many of which are more likely to be of interest to more people who just need new wheels or a pair of brake calipers etc. , whether that be for their current bike or for a ’project’.

By the by, Covid has had a huge and lasting impact on the bike industry and sales, resulting in over-production which I think is still working its way through the industry and market. The world is currently staring down the (oil) barrel of a fuel crisis. There is a lot of uncertainty about what the precise impacts of that will be, but I suspect that any increase in demand for bikes from people for commuting/utility use will be small and far outweighed by a reduction in demand as a result of many more people tightening their belts and reducing discretionary purchases.

[mjr]

Has anyone else noticed how few bikes actually attract buyers in our 'Bikes for Sale' forum? From a check-through of the first thirty postings, it seems that only 'bargain' prices attract any interest.

How can you tell? I think my two most recent purchases were negotiated over private message and then in person. What would I gain from letting others know I was interested?

[Tiberius]

A sure fire sale killer is 'Collection only' - So many sellers are not prepared to box up a bike and sort a courier.

I completely get that viewing/riding prior to buying is the best way to sell and buy but, for various reasons, that's not always possible. It's a doddle nowadays to send decent photos and videos, a buyer can confident enough in what they're buying. Yes, the buyer can moan that this/that/the other isn't as described, but that's the same buying anything used. Ebay even provides a degree of buyer protection, so it would appear that it's the sellers who get the jitters.

I 've bought expensive motorbikes unseen and couriered to me without issue, people do it every day. Why do cycle sellers find it so difficult?

I would put one caveat on all of this. I completely accept that there has never been a time in history, when there were so many people who were prepared to waste your time and mess you about for no good reason.