Seattle Cycle Center

Morphing through the decades to meet customer needs

April 4, 2012 marked the 28th anniversary of Seattle Cycle Center, but owner Bud Myers' (at right) history with the store goes back to 1974—working at the location when it was Seattle Honda. "I've always had an interest in bikes since I was a kid," says Myers, who once left the motorcycle industry to work for the Snap On Tools franchise, but later returned.

"In 1984 there was a distinct lack of a store with a broad selection of motorcycle accessories, so when the opportunity came up for the location I knew what gap I wanted to fill," he comments as we lunch at a nearby restaurant on Aurora. Myers says he liked the idea of going independent rather than opening up a franchise motorcycle shop, because it gave him much more flexibility to run his business. "I still enjoy coming into work everyday," he notes.

In The Store

When you're at Seattle Cycle Center, you'll find two floors of riding accessories, including hundreds of gloves, helmets, jackets, pants, suits, glasses, goggles and other assorted clothing. No matter what your riding style is, Seattle Cycle Center carries a wide array of gear. It's also a great place to find things for older bikes, including specialty tires, batteries, parts and more. 

After-market items such as lighting kits, bags and other add-ons are well stocked here, and what they don't have, they can usually order and get quickly. Long time employee Doug Micone notes "The people on our staff all ride and have been here a long time.  We like to provide top-level customer service. If we don't have what they need, we can special order it and typically have it here in just a few days."

Over the years, Myers has purchased the building and handles maintenance and remodel needs annually. Recent upgrades include a new driveway, parking in the rear, new signage and new paint inside and outside.

Attached to the north side of the building is a service shop for basic and intermediate service needs and, of course, tire replacement. From simple oil changes for cruisers, commuters and sportbikes to full service for scooters. Right—scooters!

Bring on the Scooters

For decades, customers had often asked the crew: "Why don't you sell motorcycles?" It seemed a likely place to get a new bike, or at least have a selection of used bikes, but for 25 years that was not an option at the store. However, in 2009 Interbay Scooters closed their doors and Myers snagged the opportunity to bring two wheelers into the show room for the first time. Seattle Scooter Center was born as a component of the already successful business. Today they feature the entire Kymco lineup and have been known to sport a few other lines from time to time. In 2011 they were awarded the #1 Kymco dealer award in the Northwest sales territory.

Rentals?

Okay, they've got some scooters and a friendly staff. And the store is situated adjacent to some great riding locales like Carkeek Park, Golden Gardens, The Hiram Chittenden Locks and more. Myers has considered all these factors and added scooter rentals to the mix as well. The shop, being open 7 days a week, makes it easy for a local or out-of-towner to get on a scooter and ride to any of these scenic wonder spots and enjoy a morning, afternoon or whole day out in a great city for scooting around. A portion of a scooter rental can be converted to part of the purchase price later should a renter want to own.

On The Web

Myers jumped both feet first into the web in the early 90s, and has taken his business to an e-commerce model where anyone can buy products through his website at Seattlecycle.com. He now employs a full-time web master/order processor with good results. More recently the shop has initiated an email rewards program so that anyone on their email list can earn 5% back on future purchases. As an incentive to build the list, Myers frequently holds contests for new subscribers to win top-rated gear such as an Arai helmet. And if you see it on sale online, it's on sale in the store as well and vice-versa.

SR/Winter 12