STOCKTON, Calif. — As gas prices continue to climb across the nation, the doors are busy and the phone lines are constantly ringing at Robby's Bicycles in Stockton.
Tyler Young, a manager at the locally owned bike shop and repair business says that since gas prices have gone up, so have their sales numbers.
"A lot of people coming in for new bikes, a lot of people coming in for E-bikes," Young said, as phone lines rang in the background. "Also, a lot of people are going into their garages and pulling out the bikes from their rafters.”
As of Friday evening, the cheapest gallon of gas in Stockton will cost drivers around $5.20, according to GasBuddy.
Young says dusting off an old bike or buying a new one has become a favored choice by many seeking relief from record-breaking gas prices.
“Today alone, I’ve heard it probably three or four times, ‘dropping this off, gas prices are way too high, I need to get my bike fixed,’” Young said. “People are mentioning that every day.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Young says interest in bikes rose as well. However, inventory and supply chain issues during the pandemic prevented the store from fixing some bikes and selling new ones.
“During the heart of COVID, inventory was very hard to get, I only had a few bikes in the store for sale,” Young said. “We’re pretty much back to normal as far as inventory so I can facilitate any type of sale and my shop is fully loaded.”
In recent weeks, Robby's Bicycles has seen sales more than double, according to Young.
On an average day before gas prices began to surge, Young says the store would make as much as $3,000 in sales. Now, he says the store is averaging nearly $7,000 in sales each day.
With a fully loaded shop, Young says he is ready to continue selling bikes and making fixes to older ones as more people look to alternatives to paying for gas.
The average price for a gallon of regular gas in California is listed at $5.72 as of Friday, according to AAA.
“It doesn’t get any cheaper at the pump than showing up on your bicycle,” Young said. “If you’re wanting to get out of the car and away from the gas pump, come into the bike shop and buy a bike.”
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