Rivelo closing in January

[velomann]

From Instagram today: https://www.instagram.com/rivelo_pdx/

As a local and regular, I'm pretty bummed by this. It felt as close to clubhouse as I've experienced in awhile, and there's really nowhere else around like it in terms of Rivendell, Dylan, film photography, and fascinating wide-ranging musings of political, musical, and just about everything else you care to discuss. 

I get that the business model was only ever going to appeal to a narrow clientele, and hopefully JB will elaborate on the decision. But I'm sad to see this development.

On a related note, if there's anything Riv-ish you didn't get under the tree, I'm sure your patronage would be appreciated.

Mike M

[Brett Callahan]

Very sad to see John and Darby closing up shop. It's been such a welcoming atmosphere and great place to visit.

[Jason Fuller]

Aww no :(  I live 7 hours north but was looking forward to making a trip out of visiting this coming summer.

[Matt Dreher]

It's a terrible world that doesn't have a place for a shop that sells nice bicycles and cameras and Bob Dylan records, but unfortunately we live in it.

[Mark Roland]

Any retail endeavor is really, really, really hard to pull off these days.  Retail bicycles, add another really. Non-mainstream, non-disc bikes, add another really. Adding in unrelated products to a specialty niche store, which tends to confuse many consumers, add another really. When the added products are non-digital cameras and vinyl records, add two more reallys. Maybe adding CBD chain oil to the mix would subtract a really, but I doubt it.

No doubt John knew this going in, as he knew the fate of the Bike Book Hatchet store. It's a risky proposition and always a labor of love. I don't know John, but he was very helpful with advice through this forum when I had a question about my film camera. I wish him and his partner the best in their next chapter.

[Jonathan D.]

As we closeout 2019, I want to thank Rivelo for the five years. It is a wonderful shop and Darby and John were always kind, patient and helpful. I bought my Joe there and still have a few things to pick up. I will miss Rivelo but glad they are keeping the Instagram going.

I also hope Portland, or the NW, will have another Rivendell dealer. Fingers crossed.

[BSWP]

I was glad to visit John's shop on my riding visit to Portland. I think it's a really hard market, and maybe especially so in Portland, where there seem to be as many bespoke boutique bike shops as brewpubs and beardwax purveyors. The market can only bear so many... I hear Norther Cycles is going away soon, too.

- Andrew, Berkeley

[Alex Wirth- Owner, Yellow Haus Bicycles]

Norther too? Gah!

[Philip Williamson]

And Breadwinner is closing their cafe. They are still going with frames and Sugar Wheels, but it seems from the outside that the Portland bike scene has contracted dramatically,

I hope John keeps on as a focus of the “Ride Bikes Shoot Film” movement. I just replaced the bellows on an old Agfa/Ansco 6x9 folder and shot some pictures on my commute this morning.

Philip
Santa Rosa, CA

[Joe Bernard]

I can't even imagine how hard it is to support a physical store in The Age Of Amazon. I'm thinking..SUPER hard.

[jack loudon]

Many of the bike shops in Seattle have shifted more to maintenance/repairs.  Lucky for them, an astounding number of bicylists (present company excepted, of course) barely know how to add air to their tires, let alone do anything more complicated.  

On Thursday, January 2, 2020 at 10:17:33 AM UTC-8, Joe Bernard wrote:

I can't even imagine how hard it is to support a physical store in The Age Of Amazon. I'm thinking..SUPER hard.no