Taking on the Surrey Hills with Ease!

 

Photo Credit: Jim Linwood

Bikes Direct are a friendly, Surrey-based bike shop. Established in 1999, they’ve been helping folks enjoy Surrey’s rolling hills on two wheels for nearly 20 years!

With the Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 event taking place over the weekend, we thought our friends down in Dorking were a topical choice for this month’s Dealer Spotlight…  

1. What motivated you to open/run a bicycle shop?

I first started working at the shop when I was 13 to fuel my passion for cycling and when that passion grew, so did my love for all things bikes. I continued to work hard on learning as much as I could about cycling and the business around me, this passion and experience led me to fortunately taking over the shop at the tender age of 19. Jumping in the deep end, I had no choice but to learn quickly, what’s life without a few challenges anyway?

2. What makes your store different from others?

We’re an outlet style shop in the heart of the Surrey Hills, the cycling mecca, more commonly known as Dorking. Our core values lie in making everyone feel welcome, from amateur to experienced cyclist, with a range of over 150-bikes ready to ride in our test ride area. We’re the one-stop shop for cycling in Surrey.

3. Where is the best/favourite location you’ve ever cycled?

The best memories I have for cycling have to be a combination of the Surrey Hills themselves or the beautiful Cairngorms National Park where I also run a luxury cycling retreat which you can find more about here: housepartyscotland.com

4. What is the funniest/strangest request you’ve ever had from a customer?

There are almost too many to list. Why not pop in for a coffee and we can share them all with you!

5. What about the VOLT™ brand & range led you to stock them?

The efficiency. Not just as a power-assisted bike, but as a business. It’s always a joy to work with a brand that’s got the full package – not just the pretty, well priced bikes but the reliability and service to back it all up.

6. What is your favourite VOLT™ e-bike and why?

The Kensington, obviously. There’s nothing more classy than rocking up to get the weekly shop on one of these bad boys.

7. What is your top tip for anyone looking to buy an electric bike? 

My top tip is to not drown yourself in the research and specs. Get to a local stockist and try a few! There’s nothing better than riding the bike of your dreams… You will know instantly whether it’s a match made in heaven. It’s our mission to sell you the right bike, there’s nothing more rewarding than that!

If you’re based near Dorking and would like to tackle the Surrey hills with a little bit of help checkout Bikes Direct and arrange to test ride. You can find more of our Surrey Dealers here.