14 Bike Co / 14 Bike Company / Shop Fourteen

"Come on people, you are all way insensitive!"
fixed, thats why they dont know what youre on about.

P.S. Each of the five main independent shops in London have a different feel, they do different things in different ways. I'd be surprised if you didn't favour or one or two over the rest. That would be normal. I would be surprised if everyone had the same opinion of each shop and all preferred one over the others. There are enough customers to keep all open, so spend your money where you want and don't try and universalise your opinion of which is the best. Its getting a bit repetitive.

Shops have humans in them.....

Come on people, you are all way sensitive!

+1 voice of reason

"Come on people, you are all way insensitive!"
fixed, thats why they dont know what youre on about.

?
I don't understand.

I have never spent more than £40 at a time at 14 yet they're always bending over backwards to help me out.

Did you tell them how you do things in Hornchurch? ;P

the internetz has meant that punters dont have a clue about how to deal with real people in shops,
plus, even worse, when I used to sell Orange bikes, we would get people come, have a demo, talk the talk, then disappear--only to buy straight off the internet.........

14 got me pregnant.
now they wont return my calls.

bastards.

i think i need to go on the internet and have a good whinge about it.

Spagetti oops?

Gold! Oliver reppo'd, Hoops neg reppo'd... ;D

Big +1 to Harry's long post above. Independent shops FTW. I've only been to BLB once but had extremely good service there. People in Shop 14 have also been extremely friendly, even though I've never bought anything there. (They're just not local to me, otherwise I'd be going more often.) People running such shops put a massive part of their personal lives into them. It's not just turning up for a 9 to 5. They're an essential part of what makes cycling in London interesting and varied.

I have been doing my first build and in the last couple of months been in BLB, TF and 14 and I have found all of them to be great. BLB and 14 at the weekends are crazy busy, but even then I was happy with the experience and left with the correct bits each time. The time I wasn't happy with something I got I just took it back and I got some other bit I wanted.

the internetz has meant that punters dont have a clue about how to deal with real people in shops,
plus, even worse, when I used to sell Orange bikes, we would get people come, have a demo, talk the talk, then disappear--only to buy straight off the internet.........

Oh yes, I see. I agree.

Or alternatively everything in life can be corrected with risers.
Correct. You can beat someone to within an inch of their life with a set of risers. I generally do this to people who have put risers on their oh so trendy fixie.

Correct. You can beat someone to within an inch of their life with a set of risers. I generally do this to people who have put risers on their oh so trendy fixie.

Why?

I have found both BLB and 14 to be awesome shops. Even the notorious Jan is always been helpful and friendly. I do however still have an air of elitism but to be honest I expect that going into any independent bike/music/clothing.... store.

Why?

Oh Harry, you know me well enough to take nothing I say seriously. I was just ripping the piss out of someone saying everything can be corrected with risers. Look at all the ridiculously ill fitted bikes in anti-porn or current projects and you'll understand...

Harry defending 14, good on you! My personal experience: BLB good, dont take the polish guys as rude they always sound like that. 14, i own a 14 frame had a couple of problems, free nito stem & front caliper. Every time i go in they remeber my name and ask how the bike is. Sorry you had a bad experience.

does anyone have a number for 14 that works?
no one picked up on the number that balki posted on this thread

0208 141 41414

i hear a lack of food makes one delusional :)

:-)

Just did a little search, says this on their blog, and no number;

"for all inquiries please send an email to john@14bikeco.com the shop is often busy so we prefer not to use the phone, but we answer all emails
cheers"

Hey,

What's with the 14 in the name of the shop, does anyone know?

I'm new bty, hello.

It's based upon your username actually.

Are you sure Ed, I thought it was the average age of their customer base?

The honour!

Seriously, it's been bugging me for ages.

Perhaps it's the minutes one spend at the bike shop before leaving.

It's a Zionist conspiracy number.

If you write down the 14th word from the 14th line of every piece of marketing they've ever released, it reads as follows:

The number 14 has been linked to mystery and power since ancient times. All forms of number research and study, including Numerology, the ancient science of Gematria, and the secret wisdom of Kabbalah, all give significant importance to 14, and 14 derivatives - 28, 42, 56, 70, 84, 98 and 112.

The number 14 is considered a master number.

Nazi Germany announced it withdrawal from League of Nations on 14th October 1933. In Tolkein's The Lord of the Rings, the number 14 is described as a curious number, and reaching your 112th birthday is an event. In ancient Egypt King Tutankhamen's tomb had combinations of 14 in the jewelry he wore, and he had 14 oars placed on the floor surrounding his tomb. The number 14, and particularly the number 42, have significance to Freemasons, and other secretive groups.

In addition, there have been thousands of people worldwide who have recently expressed a strong feeling towards 14. This has been widely reported for the last 7-14 years, and is now commonly referred to as the 14:14 experience, referring to the time of 14:14.

The overwhelming quantity of fourteens, surfacing from the events, people, and places related to the 9-11-2001 attacks, is remarkable. It is as if someone planned the events to occur around the number fourteen. If it was not planned, then the coincidence of the numbers, seems even more mysterious and improbable.

We have also found an 14-year cycle in Osama bin Laden's life. The life changing events occur every 14 years, when bin Laden is 28, 42, 56, and 70.

We have uncovered several patterns of fourteens that have occurred before, during, and after the attacks....

It is my personal opinion that this is only the prelude for what is to come.