Kenton Cycle Repair has reopened under new ownership

Kenton Cycle Repair has been saved! The small but mighty neighborhood bike shop just off North Denver Avenue in the heart of Kenton’s commercial district reopened on February 7th. Behind the counter is new owner Thomas Lawn, a 37-year-old California transplant who moved to Portland in 2013 and previously managed the service department at Joe Bike in southeast Portland.

“I played around with the idea of having a bike shop for a long time now,” Lawn shared when I stopped by last week. Years as a mechanic had started taking a toll on his body and his mind wandered toward the possibility of a different role in the industry. “At some point I felt like, if I’m in this [for the long haul] having my own shop should be on my radar.”

When he heard Kenton Cycle Repair was looking for a new owner, he reached out to former owner Rich Walker and the two reached a deal to keep the shop open. Lawn not only has his first bike shop, but he’s inherited thousands of dollars worth of Walker’s tools and bins of parts so Lawn can hit the ground running. The shop is fully open and ready for service. When I was there a steady trickle of folks popped in, including a sales rep who brought a dozen donuts.

The 1,400 square foot shop is located in an old building on N Kilpatrick just a few doors off Denver. Lawn and his crew aren’t planning any major changes, but the look and feel of the shop has already morphed a bit. The counter is now right in the center as you walk in and there will be a lot more new products and accessories than before. Look for a quality used bike section and consignment service in the future. New bikes are also on the way from brands including Breezer, Fuji, and SE. Kenton Cycle Repair won’t sell e-bikes, but is happy to tune them up (as long as it doesn’t include work on the motor or battery due to insurance issues).

In the back of the shop are shelves full of old parts left by the previous owner. Lawn says he looks forward to “modernifying” older used bikes for customers. Sifting through boxes with hundreds of old derailleurs, Lawn said these parts are like an insurance policy. “If the bike industry apocalypse happens, we’re kind of OK. Or if tariffs blow everything up, we have some parts to keep bikes running.”

Lawn shopped at Kenton Cycle Repair just a few times before becoming its owner. Now he says he’ll try to make it a place he’d like to frequent as a customer. According to Lawn, the pillars of the shop will be: “competent repairs, reasonable prices, and a welcoming environment.”

Between taking phone calls, Lawn told me he lives in the South Tabor neighborhood and has enjoyed the new commute to north Portland each day. When he’s not working, you might see him at a Coffee Outside event, or on his bike in Forest Park or Powell Butte. He moved back to Portland (after a stint in Philadelphia which he said was too hot and humid) in 2020 right before the pandemic and has worked at Joe Bike ever since — so he’s been through a challenging time in the bike business; the uncertainty of Covid, followed by the boom in riding and then supply-chain issues.

Given how many small shops have closed recently, I asked Lawn if that made him nervous. “No one has said to me, ‘What are you doing?!’ when I told them I was opening a shop.” We agreed that’s a good sign.

“If I’m up late at night laying in bed thinking about money or whatever, the anxiety is real,” Lawn shared. “But when I’m here in the shop, all those voices are quiet. Everything makes sense when I’m in this space. Not to get all woo-woo, but this feels right. And the community response so far and the amount of people coming in has been really, really solid and it reinforces how I feel. It’s clear this area needs a bike shop and the customers are here.”

Follow Kenton Cycle Repair on Instagram to get more info about shop hours and updates about a grand opening party soon.