open their doors November 1st.
(Photo � J. Maus)
There’s a new bike shop in town, and it’s unlike any other shop in the United States.
Custom Bicycles of Portland will open in November on (fittingly) the boutique-lined NW 23rd Ave. The shop — which will also include a fitting studio — will be Quebec-based Guru Bikes first-ever “concept store” in the U.S. (meaning it will only sell Guru Bikes).
The new shop is the dream of Adam Reiser, a competitive triathlete, law school graduate, and the U.S. sales rep for Quebec-based Guru Bikes. During a recent demo tour through Portland, Reiser said he and his wife “fell in love” with the city and decided to move here in July. Reiser previously lived in Austin, Texas, where he and two partners built up a highly successful triathlon-focused shop (which he left to work for Guru).
During his involvement with Jack & Adam’s Bicycles in Austin, it was named one of the 100 best bicycle retailers in the country and was twice recognized as the Best Triathlon Shop in Texas by City Sports magazine.
Upon arrival in Portland, Reiser says he looked around for shops to carry the Guru line. “I found a lot of amazing bike shops here,” he told me on the phone yesterday, “but none of them were a good fit for what we’re all about.”
What Guru is “all about” is a little different than other bike companies. The brand is more well-known on the East Coast (Reiser said there were 190 Gurus being ridden at the Lake Placid Ironman competition) but it hasn’t taken root yet on the West Coast. In the Pacific Northwest, “It’s a brand few people have heard of,” admits Reiser.
“One thing that excites me about Portland is that it’s such an amazing bike community. If I’ve ever seen a community that’s right for growing more of a tri scene, it’s Portland.”
— Adam Reiser
Even so, he’s confident his shop will find a niche in Portland.
Reiser describes the Guru Bikes business model as being similar to Dell Computers. Guru offers bikes that are made-to-order and customers can choose their paint color, parts mix, and nearly any material (steel, carbon, aluminum) or type of bike (including road, cyclocross, flat-bar fixie, mountain, triathlon, and so on).
At Custom Bicycles of Portland, customers will decide on all these options, then make an appointment to return for a professional fitting using a “dynamic fit unit” bike that has been developed by Guru. Reiser is very enthusiastic about the combination of Guru’s new fitting system and the professional fitter he’s hired — Mark Kendall (previously of Speedshot Racing).
Reiser says the fit bike is integrated with a computer system that inputs every imaginable measurement. Then, as the customer is pedaling the bike (and power and other variables are being monitored), it automatically moves into different positions. When the right position is found, all the coordinates are saved.
The measurements, along with the build options are then sent to the Guru factory in Canada, and four weeks later the bike is ready to pick up.
Reiser says Gurus will have an advantage in the market because they’re more affordable (a complete bike with good components will run around $3,000) and the one-month turnaround is much quicker than other custom brands.
He’s also hoping to use the shop as a springboard to building more of a triathlon scene in Portland.
Back in Austin, Reiser said he organized and promoted a lot of triathlon events and he looks to do the same here in Portland. “One thing that excites me about Portland is that it’s such an amazing bike community. If I’ve ever seen a community that’s right for growing more of a tri scene, it’s Portland.”
As a side job, Reiser is the race announcer for several Ironman events. One of the things on his to-do list is to explore bringing an Ironman event to Portland.
“There’s room here for more great events,” he said.
Custom Bicycles of Portland (website coming soon at CBOPDX.com) will be open for business on November 1st. Stop by and check them out at 808 NW 23rd (between Johnson and Hoyt Kearney).