blackjack

Hello
we are in the process of buying a bicycle shop in Fuengirola, and are just trawling all the forums for as much info as we can gather!
We are always glad of any advice anyone can offer, we are very much looking forward to our new life and although we realise there is a lot of hard work ahead of us we are happy about the hope of a better lifestyle.

we are planing to expand the rental side of the business and possibly branch out into moped repairs in the near future as we have a mechanic on board with us.

Hope to see some of you in the future!

blackjack

oops. also forgot to ask if anyone thought there would be much call for car maintenance, as we are uncertain of this in the area all our research has been for the two wheeled kind of vehicle!

Rosemary

As Concierge for the Spanish section of BE I would like to say hello and welcome.

BE is a very large expat website, so if you have problems finding your way around we have concierges who will try to direct you. The moderators for the Spanish forums are Mitzyboy and Fred James, moderators are there to ensure that the site runs smoothly within the rules of BE. Problems and complaints should always be addressed to a moderador who will look into the matter and deal with it efficiently and fairly. Our members who post in the Spain Forums are friendly and helpful with a wealth of knowledge of the issues of living in Spain. At the top of the page you will find a quirkily named thread called Free Beer which is full of important and useful information. Hope you enjoy your time participating in the forums.

Please let me know if you need any further help.

Rosemary

Mitzyboy

Hi BJ

Well, we assume you have done your research regarding licences, autonomo payments etc .... and of course checked out the opposition

I'm not so sure bicycles and car maintenance go together that well, but who knows!

cricketman

There is a recenty opened bicycle rental stand at the castle end of Fuengirola. They have maybe 30 bicycles or so. It is where they are redone the bit around the river and put in about 500 metres worth of cycle paths

I've been there 3 times in the past few months and not seen even 1 bike rented out.

The problem is there is nowhere to bike to. Yes you can cycle along the paseo but it is annoying because of the number of pedestrians on there. And in the summer I'd actually say it is too hot to cycle

There is no culture of casual cycling in Spain like there is in the UK. The roads are too dangerous and not thought out for cyclists for a start, especially around Fuengirola. However, there are lots of people who go out to road cycle on a Sunday with their expensive road bikes as part of teams because road cycling is a popular sport in Spain. You also have the mountain bikers up in the hills. These guys tend to have seriously professional bikes though, costing thousands of euros. You dont see people on low-end bikes riding to the shops etc

Mitzyboy

Wierd ... around here the place is full of casual cyclists and many cycle to the shops as evidenced outside Aldi most times I go there.

I do around 25 - 30 miles (sorry) when I go out and I agree with what you say about the serious side of cycling. Big groups, fully kitted out, and riding as if there was no tomorrow!

lynnxa

come to Jávea!!

there are lots of us casual cyclists on our not-so-expensive bikes & you can pretty much get around the town/port/beach area totally on cycle paths

cricketman

Thats cool. I love cycling, as a mode of transport and for leisure, rather than for sport. I would love that to be the case on the CDS too but unfortunately it isnt.

In Barcelona they have a bcing scheme where you pay 35 euros a year to access the route of bicycles. That was excellent and used it to get around the whole city, didnt have to bother with the buses or metro

blackjack

Not the best of replies! not quite as positive as we had hoped for with regards to the rental side of things.
As for the car maintenance, it would be an offshoot really, one of us is a mechanic and would love to set up a seperate part of the business if he got the chance, he is also very much into the classic car and has a mg midget he has restored.

Besides the rentals we had hope to cater more for the scooter and stunt bike users as we believe the skate park is a popular area.

Lynn R

They have this kind of scheme in a number of Spanish cities now, we saw them in Valencia and Zaragoza as well as Barcelona. Our local Ayuntamiento in Velez-Malaga tried to start one up last year. They put 100 bikes in service initially, made the service free for the first year and my OH signed up for it. Unfortunately, within six months 98 of the 100 bikes had either been stolen or vandalised and the service has now been withdrawn. The idiot element spoils what could have been a good idea and a benefit to the town.

cricketman

In Barcelona you have to give your credit card details to hire a bike. So whoever takes the bike from the station is resposible for it until it is put back there.

At the stations it is pretty much impossible to prise the lock open

Probably Velez-Malaga didnt have the budget or knowhow to make it work

I've been told the scheme is being a success in London too

Lospacoshombre

Hi
Is it Williams Bike shop on Avenida de los boliches, if it is, it is a good shop and he has been excellent for me and my bike in the past.

The bike hire near the castle mentioned was busy today as I passed. Bike hire has been dear in the past.

There are lots of cycle ways around Fuengirola. Today I did the river bed (fuengirola river) there are loads of cycle ways around the area, and they seem to be expanding them.

I always thought a cycle shop was a good idea, as I have used them many times and as far as I am aware there are only a couple of them serving the area. Williams being the best I have used, he also does a trade in service for refurbed bikes, which is what my current ride is.

Good luck and tell us where you are

Regards
Al

blackjack

Really nice to get a posititve response, was a little depressed after the earlier ones!
Yes it is Williams bicycles, and it does have a really good reputation and the owner is a lovely guy, we are very excited about the whole prospect and cant wait to get started, its not the most profitable of businesses at the moment,especially as there are four of us to support, but we do hope to expand and build on the excellent service they offer already.

fionamw

Malaga has plenty of cycling along the front, with dedicated path for several km. Don't know about shops, though - thankfully never needed anything that side, went to Velez...
nb there was a HUGE cycling event in November in Malaga with I think over 4,000 cyclists (including me and then-9yo!) of all kinds, the serious racers, the groups, the families, the kiddles with stabilisers, you name it. Depending on timing would be worth finding out if it's to be repeated 2013, would be a brilliant marketing/advertising opportunity.

Rotor

"Real" car mechanics (trained ones one can do any job) generally survive in expat areas but very few work legally as they cant afford to get the necessary permits/licenses so work mobile , as for buying a bike rental business , why not set up your own? , 15 bikes at say £100 each , small lock up for storage 300-500 euro p.m , set up fees allow around 2k euros for gestors and town hall nonsense.