Niagara Cycle

Niagara Cycle website states that they have 30+ of a product «IN STOCK», which would suggest that they can ship to you right away. But the fact is they did not have even 1 of that product in stock to ship out and it would take days to be put in a box and ship to me. It is not cool to lie on your website people!!!

Do not do business with this company directly or through Amazon!
I purchased a «Brown and White» basket one through
. I received a brown on brown monstrosity that other than the pattern shape in no way resembles what I ordered. I contacted the company who informed me that I did indeed receive the correct item! Ummm the brown and white basket that is brown on greasy fecal matter brown with a black top rather than white is correct?
I’m eligible for a refund but since they didn’t make a mistake, they will not pay for shipping to return the item! I’m going to pay nearly as much as the original item to return something that you failed to properly describe in your listing?
Here’s the excuse I got from Danielle M.
«Hello,
Thank you for your reply and for the photo as well. Based on the information I do see that you did receive the correct item that you ordered. I understand that this item is not the color that you expected. The picture of this item on Amazon is against a white background as well as the resolution of the photo may differ.»
No explanation as to why the wording says «Brown/​White».
Interestingly, they ask you NOT to give a negative review on Amazon but to give them a chance to make it right.
Well Niagara Cycle Works, you failed. A prepaid postage label and full refund would have made this right but you refused. So now you get a negative review on Unilocal,Google, AND Amazon.
Train your people to not blame the customer for your errors. And if you can’t properly run an online business, stick to your brick and mortar shop. Seriously some of the worst customer service I’ve ever encountered in shopping online!

Cliff notes:
Do not buy any item online from this company, especially if you are not 100% sure it will work for you!!:(
Unabridged edition:
Found niagra cycles when I was looking for replacement tires and tubes for one of my bike builds. The price was fair and I ordered.
As other reviewers noted, the shipping time was much longer than indicated, depite being ‘in stock’.
When I received the the package the tires were folded in a figure 8 as another reviews noted. Turned out to be the incorrect size, my mistake (tire sizing can be confusing). They sent me a rma and I paid for the return shipping. I then ordered the correct size from them.
Took them a week after arrival to refund. Apparently they sent me an email that stated that because te tubes did not come back in the packaging they could not refund the amount. When I asked to have the tubes I purchased back, this is the reply I got…
«I’m sorry but I am unable to do that.
We did not originally hear from you so we field destroyed the tubes and refunded you for the tires.
Thank you for your understanding.»
???field destroyed’???
Do they take it out to a field and blow it up?!
The reality is these were cheap tubes, but the point is this response is a joke and its clear from the reviews this company needs to stop selling online or do a better job.
Save your money, pay a little more and use an online company that supports their customers.
RIP 27″ bicycle tubes… sad you were not able to feel the thrill of the ride

Their online business is serious amateur hour. I ordered a pair of grips 10 days ago and they still haven’t arrived, despite the website saying they are in stock and ready to ship. Shouldn’t take 10 days for a product to ship from NY to Boston. I have contacted customer service numerous times by email (they aren’t answering the phone) and they just tell me that the package is in transit and to let them know if I don’t get it. Ok – I haven’t gotten it.

Ordered an item online from these people. it said 4 – 5 days to ship, but they had 150 in stock. it’s now 10 days later and my order is still «Awaiting Fulfillment» i emailed them a few times already and they have an automated response. I will never order from them again, not happy,

The store has strange hours, almost never open! Slow customer service. Not sure how they stay in business.

I bought my bike from them a few years back. Took it in to get some help to attach a «quick connect» to the rear axel for a small trailer. No help getting the bike in the door, would have to LEAVE my bike 3 weeks. He was reluctant to even help get the wheel back on properly (from my attempt to do the job myself). I said just call me the day you would be ready to do the attachment, I would bring it right over! NO, I have to leave it. He then gave me the names of 2 other local shops. He and the young girl watched as I left, never even held the door so I could get out easier, and, of course, no help getting back in my car!
The customer service is awful, Will not go back.
Went down the road to Precision Bycycles… they were very courteous and had the quick connect on in less than 10 minutes! AND helped get it in the shop, made some gear adjustments, and put it back in my car!

I found a great deal on my favorite socks through their online presence. We’re talking $ 5 for socks that go for $ 10 everywhere else. I saw some iffy reviews on Unilocal but also some positive ones as well. It felt like a coin toss but I gave it a go. They arrived in a very reasonable amount of time considering that I chose the most economical shipping option. They are exactly what I ordered.

VERY pleased with my online order. I received my order 5 days after submission and everything arrived in great condition, actually better than expected. The bike lights I bought are fabulous and the price was much lower than what other retailers wanted. The tires look great and I CANNOT wait to ride these puppies this season! I emailed the company regarding shipping and the response was immediate and swift. Very impressive. Stellar shopping experience from inception to completion — GREAT prices — FAST shipping — EXCELLENT Customer Service. Thanks Niagara!

I’ve email customer service twice, The first time was 3 weeks ago the last time was a week ago and they have not heard a word from them. If this is the type of customer service a person can get when you have a question about one of their products how will they teat a person when they have your money???

I’ve dealt with this store a few times on-​line and the service was satisfactory so I thought I’d stop by and see the store first hand and buy some items. Firstly just trying to determine what their store hours were wasn’t as easy as you would think, the web site listed «winter hours» however technically we are in spring so I called the store to confirm when they actually opened. The person I spoke with was at the physical store location didn’t know what time they opened which I found odd and after i insisting he ask someone he finally did so and we determined the winter hours were still in effect and 12:00 was the opening time. So I went out of my and stopped at the store last week about 10 minutes before 12:00 and notice people in the store but the door was locked, these were «on-​line» employees apparently and one came to the door and said I’d need to wait 10 minutes for the store to open but whoever was opening may be late. At 12:20 still no open door so I drove away and wasn’t really impressed, my advice to those who manage this store your customers pay your wage and customer service is key to success.

About a week ago, I placed a call to Niagara Cycle to purchase a front fork, brake shoes, a kickstand and a wheel. I was told that they were unable to take orders over the phone and that I would have to email the product specialist. Seriously?
So, I emailed the product specialist and then followed up with three telephone calls because I received no response.
Today, I received this email from Danielle in Customer Service,
«Thank you for your patience again, I did forward your email, at this time we would be unable to assist you further, it would be best to go to your local bike shop.»
–
Sincerely,
Danielle M
Niagara Cycle Customer Service
Obviously, this shop is either unprepared to operate as an online business or it is in need of new management.
I cannot recommend this business based on my experience with them.

I’ve only dealt with this store online and have been very pleased, Delivery is prompt, and they were very accommodating when I returned one item and also canceled another purchase. Having worked in a bike shop in my youth, I’d like to note that many bike shops have trouble finding knowledgeable sales people who understand both cycling and the concept of customer service. Even the best shops will get a bad review now and then due to staff problems. Don’t let one incident sour you on a certain shop. I’ve had both excellent and deplorable service at my local bike shop, but I’ve noticed that the «bad» employees don’t usually last long.

I was REALLY displeased when I went into this store. I was in the middle of a 60+ mile bike ride when I had to replace a flat with some CO2, and I wanted to get some more cartridges and a new tube as back up for the rest of my ride and this was the closest bike shop to my current location.
I come into the store and ask if I could use their bike pump (I wanted to replace the CO2 in my tubes with air). One guy was helping another customer, while the other two employees were standing around looking at said situation. The response I get from the two employees doing absolutely Nothing was to wait… Wait? Wait for what? you’re not doing anything except just looking at your third employee helping the only other customer in the store. After 5 minutes of ‘Waiting’ I ask again for the bike pump and one of the guys rolls his eyes while the only employee doing a damn thing steps away from the customer to grab the bike pump for me. I’m like, ‘holy C***’ this would never fly at a bike shop where I’m from (Denver). I buy a new tube and some CO2 and was glad to be done with this place. I guess this is the type of service that is offered when bike shops have very little competition and are the only store in the area to supply bike parts.

While Niagara Cycle has a solid online business, when I visited them, they were about as bad a bike store as I have been in. They were «too busy» to help me… even to say hello…
And…when I saw the sign that said «Do Not Try On Clothing»…I knew that this was not a great place to be!
Run your online business… but close the store front until you learn about in person customer service!

I bought 2 tires and they were folded into a figure 8 then over on itself. The tires are deformed… not sure if its permanent. Will not buy from them again.

This place is okay. They have a wide selection and a good variety of affordable options which I like. They’re on Amazon, which is convenient.
But what I can’t stand, and what I forget every time I order from them, is how godawful long it takes for them to ship an order! It is really unbelievable how long it takes, and even on simple/​small orders too. If you need anything in a hurry don’t order from this place.

tires arrived six days after I ordered them. would’ve been five «overnight.» Good prices, people listen, strange stocking policies. I’d do business with them again but not for time-​sensitive items.

I found this site when looking for some spokes at a reasonable price. Their prices were good, but their service was dreadful. I selected the 2 day mail option and got the order 20 days later. The order was wrong as well. They don’t return emails promptly and sometimes not at all. They don’t always read the emails. They don’t return calls. I wrote them a detailed letter after the order arrived and it was clear that they still didn’t «Get it» and they still didn’t read the whole letter. They have no business having an internet mail order business. They might be a good LBS, but they make going to your own LBS make sense.

Need a bike, parts or accessories? This is your place, yo.
I was on the hunt for a bunch of stuff: tire levers, extra tubes, CO2, lube (get yer mind outta the gutter, *bike* lube is what I meant), degreaser, etc. Niagra had some of the best prices around, plus I liked their shipping options.
Here’s how I broke down the rating:
Web site – 4 stars. They’ve got ALOT of stuff, which is great for one stop shopping.
Communication – 3 stars. Meh. I received a confirmation once I’d made a purchase, but after 10 days, hadn’t heard anything else. I contacted them and found out they were waiting for my *wait for this one* lube to show up. I explained it would have been nice to know there was a delay in receiving my order, as I had paid for shipping that had a turn around time of 3 – 4 days, and their website states they turn orders around in just a few days. At max, I should’a received my stuff in about 8 days.
Customer Service – here’s the real winner here, and why I will totally shop there again and recommend them to my team mates. Since my expectations were not met, they not only refunded my shipping expenses, they gave me a bonus refund (for what, I still haven’t figured it out). To credit me the shipping is one thing, but to take more money off my bill? Wow. Seriously that’s going the extra, extra distance. It was totally unnecessary, but I certainly appreciated it.
Yeah, I’ll be back!