As traders of pre-loved and new surplus bike parts, we are contacted by a range of different sellers. Enquiries relating to larger clearouts often have the most interesting stories behind them and going by our experience so far, the sellers who share these stories have been the most enjoyable to work with. Clearouts become more than something transactional, allowing us the time to learn a bit more about the seller, share a few laughs and take a bit of cycling history back into the office while we work out a tailored service that works for all. 

Occasionally these enquiries lead us on a little outing which is what happened after a local cycling enthusiast, Brian, contacted us about his collection of Italian parts and bicycles.

We were excited to discover that his collection included some special bikes from the likes of Colnago and Pinarello and an abundance of Campagnolo components, all spanning from the 1970s through to the 2000s. 

After an initial video call, we asked him to provide images of all the items so that we could get to work to identify and evaluate every single part. 

Our research allowed us to make a preliminary offer that met Brian's expectations. But for a better assessment, we decided to pay him a visit and finally see these marvels up close.
                          
                          Brian welcoming us into his collection

Some nice weather, great chat, sesame snaps and unexpected gems, made it a fun day for all of us.

Brian made up most of his collection while living in London. Clearly a savvy shopper of quality second hand parts, he enjoyed telling us about how he liked to buy - mainly through friends, forums, ebay, and shops like Brick Lane Bikes which some of us at Cycletrade are quite familiar with having come from London ourselves. We even shared memories of the Herne Hill Velodrome!

We were taken aback by the sheer number of items, but sat on his sunny driveway, we were able to methodically work through his boxes of parts, taking photos of each item so that we could continue the itemisation and research after the day was up.

An attentive revision of the stock carried out over the following days allowed us to make an adjusted offer for the upfront purchase of 500 bike parts and eleven bicycles, with the sale of two more bikes on a commission basis. Brian had informed us he wished to keep two bikes to use for his weekly Zwift races along with some parts to maintain them, to which we gladly agreed.

He then accepted our offer and we arranged payment upon collection within 30 days.

We used Zedify: a sustainable and eco-friendly delivery service, who are also our neighbours, to collect the bikes and parts in their electric van.

Thank you Brian! It was a pleasure doing business with you.

Why Cycletrade? 

We are uniquely positioned to take on clearouts within the UK. Our excellent knowledge of products and attentive customer service means we can carefully tailor to your needs, whatever the situation. We take pride in how we do that. 

If you're a collector looking to sell your items please get in touch via our buyer@cycletrade.co.uk email address or call us on 01412660051.