Here’s the current status of over 50 Portland bike shops

(Photos © J. Maus/BikePortland)

As the grip of coronavirus tightens around Portland, bike shop owners are caught in the middle. Stay open and risk the health of their workers and customers? Or close and give up much-needed sales revenue and leave people with diminished access to a vehicle that in many ways is needed now more than ever?

“We have a tent setup in our MLK store parking lot for service intake, online order pickup, and to maintain the number of customers in the store to 10 or less.”
— River City Bicycles

For most Portland bike shops the answer is (right now at least) to find a middle ground. In the past 24 hours I’ve heard from over 40 local bike shop owners about how they’re dealing with these unprecedented conditions and I’m collecting their status on a Google Sheet anyone can view.

Things have changed a lot since I first covered this topic three days ago. The latest responses to the crisis are as varied as their product offerings: Some are open as usual with heightened cleaning protocols, others are closed and will only see customers by appointment.

Before I share more, it’s worth noting the special circumstances bike shops are in. Unlike bars, restaurants and other small retail businesses, bike shops provide an crucial service during this crisis. And that’s not just my bias showing. We’ve seen in past disasters that bicycles are amazingly resilient and necessary mobility tools when times are tough. In the past few hours, officials in places that are under lockdown like Philadelphia and the California Bay Area, have decided that bikes shops should be considered “essential” business and are allowed to remain open.

Cat Six Cycles on NE 42nd Ave has set up a way for customers to purchase store credit.

Without a specific mandate to close from Portland or Oregon officials, bike shops are establishing their own protocols. A few trends I’ve noticed: Most all local shops remain open and have extensive cleaning measures in place; Shops with e-commerce capabilities will fare much better; Most have moved to electronic payment methods only; The best way to support shops is to donate, buy stuff online, or purchase gift cards or store credit; Nearly every shop is available via phone or email for drop-offs and pick-ups of repairs or new bikes and products.

Find your favorite shops via the Portland Bike Shop Status spreadsheet.

I’ll share a few selected highlights below…

7 Corners Cyclery:

If you want to just drop your bike off and leave without any contact with people, please put your name and number on masking tape and mark your bike and leave it in the rack by the register or elsewhere at the front of the store. We will call you to discuss what work needs to be done on it.

Abraham Fixes Bikes:

We are limiting our interactions to one person at a time.

Block Bikes:

We’re offering free pick-up and delivery for most services ($35 labor minimum) in our 97203 zip code.

Cat Six Cycles:

We’ve set up a PayPal.me site where folks can get shop credit in any amount they like and we’d ask folks to add their name and phone number or email address in a note so we know whose account to give the credit! We don’t have traditional gift cards or certificates, but this is as good as cash for anything in the store (including labor).

Clever Cycles:

We have a webstore that showcases a lot of what we sell, and we continue to answer the phone and email whether we’re working from home or at the shop. Like Amazon, but with real people that know stuff. For any orders within a reasonable radius of the shop, we’re offering free bike delivery.

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Evan Ross of Cycle Portland in Old Town is resolved to survive the downturn.

Cycle Portland:

I started my business in the spring of 2008 and watched as the economy melted in front of our eyes, I made it through the Eagle Creek fire and the pinch that put on tourism, and now I have another situation to make it through. In the past 11 years I’ve never had to lay someone off, but yesterday told my staff that I had to cut their hours.

Metropolis Bike Repair:

We have shut off the entire bike shop except the front counter. We also have a side window that opens that we may use to sell small things like tubes.

The Outer Rim:

We want to help people continue to be able to get where they need and be a resource for our community. We can take orders over the phone and have them ready for “take out”.

River City:

We have a tent setup in our MLK store parking lot for service intake, online order pickup, and to maintain the number of customers in the store to 10 or less.

Splendid Cycles:

All visitors will be asked to wash and disinfect their hands upon entering the store. All visitors are expected to know and implement CDC guidelines to help stop the spread of germs.

TriTech Bikes:

The light is still on and we are still open. Come make sure you social distancing machine is in tip top shape so that you can enjoy the scenery!

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Nonprofits hit especially hard

“This closure will like set us back at least about $75,000 in revenue.”
— Jonnie Ling, Community Cycling Center

Portland’s nonprofit bike shops are in a different boat. They don’t carry lots of inventory, they don’t have e-commerce sites to fall back on, and their business relies on volunteers (which don’t exist anymore) and face-to-face contact. Our friends at Bike Farm said, “As our shop runs on volunteer power we will not have an income during this time as we are unable to sell stand time, parts or bikes which are our primary sources of revenue.” Bikes for Humanity is completely closed.

The Community Cycling Center is the largest nonprofit bike shop in Portland and the impacts of the virus will hit them very hard. Executive Directory Jonnie Ling said 2020 had already been tough on them and their currently planned two-week closure will cost them about $75,000 in revenue. “We are concerned about the weeks and months ahead, but are cautiously optimistic that our staff and community of supporters can help push us through this.” The CCC has set up a special “emergency funding campaign” website to accept donations.

Hopefully federal/state/county financial assistance will be coming soon for these businesses and their customers in need. For any Oregon shop owners who might be at risk of eviction due to coronavirus-related losses, I highly recommend reading this thread from lawyer Doug Hageman about the fine print in Multnomah County’s eviction moratorium order:

I wish everyone well. BikePortland is here to help. Don’t hesitate to reach out if our platform can assist you in any way. I’ll continue updating the Portland Bike Shop Status Spreadsheet as conditions change.

— Jonathan Maus: (503) 706-8804, @jonathan_maus on Twitter and jonathan@bikeportland.org
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Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Founder of BikePortland (in 2005). Father of three. North Portlander. Basketball lover. Car driver. If you have questions or feedback about this site or my work, contact me via email at maus.jonathan@gmail.com, or phone/text at 503-706-8804. Also, if you read and appreciate this site, please become a paying subscriber.

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Brad Parker
4 years ago

Thanks for your support.

D2
D2
4 years ago

I stopped at Universal on my ride yesterday, they are doing pick up orders only, I had one in from last week but you can make your order from your phone if you need something last minute.

Wylie
Wylie
4 years ago

Go By Bike is open, but our hours and staffing have changed a bit(7 am to 7 pm), and we’d prefer to do tap payments only if possible. We can definitely help to make sure people can still roll around on their bikes by doing flat fixes and tune-ups.

Rachel Cameron
Rachel Cameron
4 years ago

My shop is currently closed for the week because the ceiling is being replaced. Going to be by appointment only after that until things clear up.

Hello, Kitty
4 years ago

The list is a great idea. Thanks for assembling and publicizing it.

A. Nony Moose
A. Nony Moose
4 years ago

SouthWest Bicycle in multnomah village will 100% be open until the state starts enforcing a lock down. They’re open 10-6 mon-sat. The guy can be a jerk but hes a good mechanic if anyone is in need.

Fred
Fred
4 years ago
Reply to  A. Nony Moose

There’s also a very nice guy there who does nice work and charges a reasonable rate. So don’t be put off by the jerk.

Maria
Maria
4 years ago

Thanks, Jonathan, this list is so helpful. I’m unable to read some of the details because the windows aren’t expandable, is that something you can update?

Dan Sloan
4 years ago

Hey Jonathan,
We at Everybody’s Bike Rentals are open by appointment only and still taking reservations at pdxbikerentals.com
Thanks for doing this.
Dan

Todd Boulanger
Todd Boulanger
4 years ago

Good to hear that some akamai US cities have defined bike shops as essential services. The Dutch have done that too. Perhaps everyone should email their governor and mayor (in other near by NW cities/ towns) to make the point.

Matt
Matt
4 years ago

This is great. What about VeloFix? Their website doesn’t have any COVID info.

Brandon Bruins
Brandon Bruins
4 years ago
Reply to  Matt

Velofix Portland is open and currently doing no-contact appointments upon request.

Adam
Adam
4 years ago

This is great. Well done Jonathan.

Ryan Smith
4 years ago

Let us not forget that Citybikes Workers’ Coop is still open and going strong after 30 years, hello?

footwalker
4 years ago

I love this. Thank you for compiling it!

Is there anyway to have the spreadsheet pinned at the top of the page for the next month?

Becky Newman
4 years ago

Jonathan, looks like you came by on a Monday (photo), which is normally a closed day for us. Golden Pliers is taking appointments for bike repair, and doing sort of a walk-up service for quick sales. The café is closed, but we can sell beer, wine and snacks to-go. We’ve slimmed down our staff and trimmed our hours a bit:
Tues-Friday 12-7, Saturday 12-5.
Here’s more about what’s going on:
https://www.goldenpliers.com/new-page-1

Brian
4 years ago

Velofix is still offering a no-contact service. Here is the most recent email sent out.

Dear Riders,
The health of our community is our highest priority.

We are writing to inform you of the initial and ongoing efforts being taken in light of the continued response to COVID-19. Fortunately, we are in a unique position to better serve riders during this time because of our minimal exposure to crowded areas and surfaces.

For the health and safety of our Team and our customers we are recommending a NO CONTACT SERVICE. Please check your local area for availability.

Did you know:

You can complete a booking and service appointment with us with no physical interaction or contact.

a. Specify NO CONTACT for your service by adding a note in the directions section.
b. The technician will call when they arrive and ask you to put your bike outside.
c. The technician will complete the service in the Mobile Bike Shop, return the bike to your door and call you to collect.
d. We will send you an invoice via email for payment.

Moving forward we are continuing to implement both our standard and escalated cleaning procedures by:

Disinfecting our Mobile Shops, tools and equipment with medical-grade, non-toxic cleaning solutions every day and in-between every booking.
Increasing sanitation and hygiene procedures for our technicians.
Reserving additional time between each service appointment in order to perform thorough sanitation procedures.
Requesting all customers wash their hands with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds before and after their bike exchange.

We will continue to operate our services and monitor guidelines set forth by health and government officials. We encourage safe riding at all times, the practice of social distancing and are working diligently to ensure the good health of every rider looking to stay active during this time.

If you have any questions please contact us.

1-855-VELOFIX | http://www.velofix.com

Thank You,

Team velofix