Bicycle Repair Shop

[ひさしぶり]

Japanese just don't know or are too lazy to repair a flat tire.

There's this 60+ year old man in my neighborhood doing it out of a shed-like shop and he's always busy.
I don't think he's cheating (walking around with a needle/pin puncturing tires in the neighborhood at night).
He works five days a week from ten to six and goes on onsen trips at least once a month. Not a pensioner yet.



Think about it - He charges Y1,050 to fix a tire (front or back) and Y100 to pump some extra air.
How many "punku"and "kuuki" is that to make the equivalent of say... an eikaiwa salary? You did the math already?

No qualifications necessary and you'll be self employed.

Buy your used bicycles from the local government (the ones removed from the station but have never been picked up)
and sell them for triple the amount you paid and you got yourself a nice little extra going as well.

Initial setup cost: Y740 for a repair kit including spanners and some rent for the shed.



Learn more "tricks of the trade" and you'll be able to expand your business in no time.

Good luck!

[TomT]

I think there is a "certification" to do bike repair. Inspections for kids school bikes and such.

One of my Japanese friends runs a motorcycle shop but I think he makes more money off bicycle repair. Was in there once when a kid wanted two new tires and brakes on a ragged out bike. The quote was 8,000 yen. My buddy told the kid to just buy a cheap Chinese made bike instead.

I watched my neighbor fight with his daughters flat tire on her bike for about an hour before I went over and replaced the inner tube in about 5 minutes. Got some free coffee and cake out of the deal

Good post by the way.

TomT

[Guru]

I used to get my car's flats fixed at USD 10 / tire in the States. JPY 1000 is very steep for fixing the bicycle's flat tire.

[TomT]

I used to get my car's flats fixed at USD 10 / tire in the States. JPY 1000 is very steep for fixing the bicycle's flat tire.

Hiya Guru,

No doubt they used a 2 dollar thread plug to "fix" your cars flat tire. No need to dismount the tire from the rim, just stuff a sticky rubber thread into the hole, cut excess and re-inflate. Heck, in some cases the tire/rim assembly does not even have to come off the car.

I had a flat on an 8ply, one week old van tire a couple years back and it was JPY4000 to fix (JPY20000 tire)... and that was with me taking just the tire and rim to the shop. They dismounted the tire from the rim, glued a rubber patch to the inside of the tire and then remounted the tire to the rim, re-inflated, checked for leaks and balanced it.

A bicycle tire/tube/rim setup is similar (except the balance part). You have to remove the wheel from the bike, remove the tire from the rim, with tube, clean/scruff the tube, apply adhesive and the patch, allow to dry, inflate tube to check for leaks, deflate, and re-inflate/remount everything. I think JPY 1000 including the patching kit (shown above for Y740?) is a decent price. How much would a new tube plus replacement labor cost? Quite a bit more I'd think.

TomT

[Guru]

Hiya Guru,

No doubt they used a 2 dollar thread plug to "fix" your cars flat tire. No need to dismount the tire from the rim, just stuff a sticky rubber thread into the hole, cut excess and re-inflate. Heck, in some cases the tire/rim assembly does not even have to come off the car.

Some of the shops use the plugs. But, the other one which I brought my car actually put a patch on the inside wall of the tire (for that I think it was close to USD 17 / tire).

[ひさしぶり]

[ひさしぶり]

I think there is a "certification" to do bike repair.

Yes, there is. It's called the BAA (Bicycle Association Approved). I asked him about it today and he told me you can apply for one after having worked for 3 years repairing bicycles. He also said that you don't necessarily need one to set up shop and that there are very few people who take notice or even know what it means. People come in to have their tire fixed, chain put back on, that kinda stuff. It ain't rocket science...





These are some other "certifications" he has hanging around. When asked, he brushed it off so I didn't get a clear answer as to what they are. At least one of them is to certify that he's a union member, me thinks.

[Tatsuo]

Think about it - He charges Y1,050 to fix a tire (front or back) and Y100 to pump some extra air.
How many "punku"and "kuuki" is that to make the equivalent of say... an eikaiwa salary? You did the math already?

No qualifications necessary and you'll be self employed.

Buy your used bicycles from the local government (the ones removed from the station but have never been picked up)
and sell them for triple the amount you paid and you got yourself a nice little extra going as well.

Eikaiwa and repairing bicyles. You seem to have big dreams and a clear plan what to do with your life. I would say: Go for it . . .

He works five days a week from ten to six and goes on onsen trips at least once a month. Not a pensioner yet.

The old guys onsen trips show clearly that he makes a fortune with his bicyles. I mean you coud say: 3 fixed tires is one onsen trip, 日帰り、高速バス. Sell one bike and you could have a hell of an evening at　サト和食.

Initial setup cost: Y740 for a repair kit including spanners and some rent for the shed.

This is what I call a good business plan.

[hypertokyo]

Let's take this one more level up and think how economies of scale, standardized service etc could come in and make it a scalable business: how about a franchise chain of small booths offering 24-hour bike repairs and parts? Picture it like a "Mr. Minit" for bicycles?

- flat tires: free to use air machine
- chain problems: 2000 yen
- includes free use of a replacement bike while you wait...
- catalog of bikes for sale (pick up or delivery)
etc

Possible chain name: "Chari Mama"

[ひさしぶり]

Eikaiwa and repairing bicyles. You seem to have big dreams and a clear plan what to do with your life. I would say: Go for it . . .

The old guys onsen trips show clearly that he makes a fortune with his bicyles. I mean you coud say: 3 fixed tires is one onsen trip, 日帰り、高速バス. Sell one bike and you could have a hell of an evening at　サト和食.

This is what I call a good business plan.

You've got me wrong Mr T. I've posted this for people who want to stay (come to) Japan but are not able to find work. Maybe because of the economic slump or because they don't have the proper qualifications such as a university degree. There are quite a few people like that on these boards, or so I've read.

Don't you worry about me or my dreams, I'm all set.

[ひさしぶり]

Let's take this one more level up and think how economies of scale, standardized service etc could come in and make it a scalable business: how about a franchise chain of small booths offering 24-hour bike repairs and parts? Picture it like a "Mr. Minit" for bicycles?

- flat tires: free to use air machine
- chain problems: 2000 yen
- includes free use of a replacement bike while you wait...
- catalog of bikes for sale (pick up or delivery)
etc

Possible chain name: "Chari Mama"

See? That's what I'm talking about. Excellent input right there.

I asked the guy about profitability and his grin just gave it away. In a small voice he gave me the figure - almost double the average eikaiwa salaries