Velo Cycles

I treat my bike so poorly that I honestly should not be allowed to own one. I’ve left it out in the rain for days at a time, popped the wheels at least four or five times and even had a whole wheel fall off.
It was the latter that took me to Velo Cycles. I walked my busted bike in expecting a judging look from the staff and a ‘tsk tsk’ of the tongue. Instead, they immediately grabbed my bike, strung it up and said «this’ll take about 15 minutes.» EFFICIENCY.
The boys even gave her a brisk polish and fixed some loose screws (I told you I treat it badly) and then gave her a quick spin around the block to make sure it was a comfortable ride. Now THAT is good customer service.
Velo is stocked with bikes and all the accessories you could imagine, and truly is a one-​stop shop for keen cyclists and noobs alike.

I’m not a keen cyclist by any stretch of the imagination. I have a pitiful, old bike that spends most of its time rusting under the house and when I took it out for a ride today on the Capital City Trail, the gears on one wheel completely jammed up. Bugger.
I took it into Velo Cycles to see what they could do, and they were able to fix it while I was having lunch at the café next door. I was quoted $ 10 – 15 for the repair, but they ended up doing it for me free of charge as apparently it was an easy fix.
The ride home was much more pleasant (gears are surprisingly useful) thanks to Velo Cycles. I was really impressed with their service, and will be coming back here when I decide to upgrade my bike.

I needed to pump my tires and wanted to get my gears checked so I decided to check out this place since I ride past everyday. Went in and I approached the staff, they were super curt when I said hello. She didn’t even look at me and very rudely told me to wait. After waiting and having had her walk by me 3x she finally asked what I wanted like I was a total imposition. I asked where I could put air in my tires and she just bluntly replies, «Here.» The guy put air in my tires no problem and then I asked about my gears. He checked them and said they were OK but needed a service for sure. Didn’t even ask if I wanted to set up an appt for a service but just rudely waited for me to leave. I walked out very dissatisfied and appalled. I’d much rather ride down to Clifton hill and get my bike serviced at Melbourne Bicycle Centre than go here again. Terrible service. A smile wouldn’t hurt…

Velo was the first place I visited on the hunt for a new bike last year. The staff there were friendly and thorough when it came to matching a bike to my size and providing general advice. After a few more days of hunting around Melbourne, I was compelled to return to Velo — they were easily the most generous with their time and knowledge and happy to price-​match on a bike i’d seen elsewhere for a little less.
I’ve ridden the bujeezus out of my bike since that day and they’ve always resolved any issues with minimum fuss. Friendly and insightful staff and a solid range of accessories, plus the location couldn’t suit us any better.

Now I’ve heard some mixed reports about this joint but my experiences have been good.
The shop stands proud on the corner of the Capital City Bike Trail and Nicholson Street — a prime spot for a bike shop — and they fill a large space that used to be a failed chain video store. My dealings with Velo centre around the fact that I and my partner ride what would be accurately described as ‘old bangers’ and they generally need a bit of work. I’ve taken our bikes in for minor shit like broken chains and the likes and they’ve fixed them for free or very little money. The best bit is that they don’t pull that ‘you really should upgrade’ kind of bollocks and they don’t strike me as the usual bike shop wankers.
Also of note is that they do a discount for RRR subscribers, which I am and ever will be. Any business that does all right by RRR is all right by me yo.
They’ll also give you a Metcard or replacement bike while yours gets fixed! Sick!

Velo Cycles (a slightly redundant name) is conveniently located on one of Melbourne’s most used bike paths, the Capital City Trail or what I call the bike path on Park Street. With urban commuter bikes to racing road bikes by Allegro, Jamis Coda, Surly, etc., I’m sure they can find a bike for you. Plus, the guys who work there are super friendly and super helpful.
But it’s not just about the stock, but all the other things Velo Cycles offers that I love:
* Buy a new bike and get 12 months of free tune ups
* Mobile Bicycle Mechanic — need to get your bike serviced but don’t have the time to bring it in? Gather some colleagues and get the Mobile Bicycle Mechanic to come service your bike whilst you work — they’ll be done by 5pm so you can ride home
* Think you have a flat? They provide FREE air checks when you ride past
I had a flat tire near Velo Cycles and they fixed my flat without charging labour. It cost me $ 12 or $ 14, which was the cost of the tube, to get the flat fixed. About five minutes after I left Velo Cycles, I got another flat. They fixed this flat for free.
If you’re thinking about purchasing a new bike, definitely check out this place — friendly and knowledgeable staff.