There’s a new service started just a few days ago called Buyapowa. It aims to bring the bulk buy discounts that have previously only been enjoyed by retailers and make them available to you and me.
Robin, who is part of Buyapowa got in touch with me a week ago to ask: What sort of items would I like to see discounts on? I gave him a few excited suggestions and invited him to pose the question to London Cyclist Blog readers.
This is how it works: Each “co-buy” lasts a limited amount of time and once it’s sold out it’s gone for good. As more people join the process the price drops. In the end everyone pays the best price (lowest) that it reaches.
There’s a big social element to this too by getting your friends involved in co-buys of items you think they’ll like too (hence again the importance of picking the right products in the first place). In the end the person who’s invited the most friends gets the item for free!
So what kind of cycling products would you like see discounted? (There’s a good chance Robin will be able to get them so have a good think!)
Rapha. Nuff said.
Haha would certainly be nice to for once be able to afford something from Rapha 😉
i just noticed that at the moment rapha trousers, which have excellent reviews even when they were priced at £150, although it says on the site the rrp is £100, are a WAY more reasonable £50 online:
http://www.rapha.cc/rapha-trousers
i thought i should mention this as it seems like an absolute bargain – i’ve ordered a pair but not received them yet, hopefully they are as good as people say they are!
thanks andreas by the way, this is an awesome blog
Thanks for the heads up Dave
Is this just for clothing? Discounts on accessories would be welcome too eg high-end £100+ lights, drive chain components, brakes, saddles, panniers, speedometers, etc
Nop, can be anything you want related to cycling. Thanks for suggestions!
clothing would of course be great (men and women’s), as well as saddles, food and refreshments for long journeys and good quality lights
I’m seeing a recurring theme on the lights here!
Coming into Autumn, discount on decent lights would be top, I would definitely go in for that
Clothing (all)
Lights definitely! Always something I lose every year and need to be replaced and are way expensive and the same goes for gloves! I always lose one and they are expensive to keep replacing.
I agree with lights as they are universal, when you get into drive train everyone wants something different (dura ace anyone… or how about Di2). winter gloves would be good, reflective and or waterproof clothing, rapha stuff, or helmets. Oh and how about helmet cameras.
Great idea though, good work.
I mentioned helmet cameras to Robin also and I’m with you on the components – think everyone wants something different. New set of brakes for me please!
clothing for definate….its all far too expensive and i reckon most people cant afford decent cycling shorts and tops when they are soooooooooooooo vey expensive…
Yep, lights for me too as they’re the thing that get damaged/lost. If a short list is required, perhaps opt for the ones you recommended a few months ago (which I’ve starting looking at cos I need to get some). Also, now the season’s changing, some waterproof reflective clothing.
The Blackburn Flea. Love that light!
Lights i think would be a good one, always buying more lights for some reason,
pedals might be worth it but i suppose i don’t really need to buy to many of them all the time.
cycle shorts would be good as well after a while washing just can’t get rid of the smell of countless trips
stand pumps always seem quite expensive for what they are as well..
winter jackets, windproof etc for the upcoming change in seasons.
anything by altura or similar – the retailers must put a massive mark up on these, given how cheaply they get rid of them during sales.
Lots of people have mentioned clothing. But although lots of people may want the same item they usually want different sizes. Would bulk-buying cover this?
From the list so far I’ll nominate lights, panniers and speedometers.
Thinks we may buy regularly e.g. energy food and drinks
What about something like locks? That’s a market with less variation, and a good one is bloody expensive. (I’d like to upgrade my u-lock to one of the super heavy, tiny Kryptonites, for instance, to complement my Abus chain.)
I would really love to get some panniers, please! On the whole, these are very expensive and at the moment I can’t afford any, but they’d make my commute so much easier. I need something plain and robust and waterproof, and preferably something that doesn’t cost a million quid.
I’d like in the future for there to be bike shops to browse in, where I can scrutinise and touch products.
I’d hate ‘bulk’ buying like this to undermine existing shops. And I especially don’t like the idea of being used to encourage other people to buy stuff – that’s a good way to lose friends. Bottom line is I guess I don’t agree with the level of consumerism and materialsim with special food, special clothes, special lights etc etc ad nauseam. Not just ‘special’ either but ‘special’ and ‘unnecessarily expensive’ (even after so-called “discount”).
Shoes
Waterproof clothing, specifically jackets! And lights as well.
Although if you have recieved bad customer service in any branch of Evans (which happens more often than you would think) near oxford street, you can usually wear down the manager to give you 20% off for lights. 🙂
Winter jackets, cycling shoes and lights.
agree with others – lights, gloves. They get lost all the time so they’ll be popular. Season appropriate clothing. Season inappropriate clothing if it’s cheap enough 😉
I’ve got the flea too – very nice, though my first set didn’t charge properly. Chain reaction swapped them for a new set under warranty and I’m amazed to see they’ve gone up from £32 last winter, to £40 now!
on a further thing for a co-buy – those little velcro straps that you use for the flea lights, or similar tiny accessory lights – definitely will need more of them as the velcro goes.
Have they? Extortionate! My vote goes for doing a big discount on the Flea light!
they look great, big discount on them would be the way to go alright
Well, that’s one person buying it – me!
I’ve been looking at lights and I’ve come to the conclusion that if someone’s tested one and given a comprehensive report, ie you Andreas, why look any further? 🙂
Thanks Stacey 🙂
Hi, everyone. Thanks for the fantastic response and all the great ideas. It looks like lights, a helmet camera, panniers and winter gear are already big winners. Keep them coming and I’ll compile them into a nice Top Five list and challenge our team to make some of your choices happen!
Don’t hesitate to ask me any questions. We’re absolutely here to make things happen for you, so I’d be delighted to help in any way I can.
Robin @ BuyaPowa
I’d also like cycle clothing inlcuding reflective gear which is really over priced.
Need some powerful front lights too so I’ll also vote for that! 🙂
Would Brooks saddles be possible?
Absolutely, Nic. Feel very free to name specific brands. We can’t make any promises but, if enough people want something, we’ll absolutely go to the brand concerned and try to get a co-buy going. Thanks for your suggestion!
A Blackburn Flea USB front and rear lights as researched by Andreas on this site. I’m looking to buy them soon, so I’ll wait in anticipation! Cheers
Look KeO cleats, I’ve got through 3 pairs so far this year…
Ortlieb Back Roller Plus Cycle Panniers!(red and black colour combination. I am regularly looking for a really good deal on a pair of these.
Components, clothing, car racks, turbo trainers, GPS devices, pretty much all the expensive wants/needs/desirables for a keen cyclist
Lights, warm, comfortable gloves and socks, good quality locks. All things which make cycling more pleasant. I am just about to replace my wearing out ( after 19 years ) Karrimor panniers, and am split between Ortlieb Back Roller Plus in yellow- waterproof and visible- or Carradice Super C Shoppers- highly water resistant, huge capacity, made in England. Can anyone with experience recommend either way?
Great stuff, everyone – keep them coming and I’ll compile a list for our crack team of buyers!
Ooh, panniers definitely, but also decent reflective clothing – Altura maybe, dhb, or Endura (I’m desperate for one of their Luminite jackets) – would be good.
Hi, everyone
Just wanted to thank you all again for all your fantastic suggestions – we’ll definitely work our way through them over the coming weeks and months.
We thought a great place to start, though, was with some lights – by far the most popular suggestion above. With that in mind, we’ve got a really unbeatable co-buy up right now for two Knog Frog Strobes for as little as £7.99 (with free shipping) – that’s up to 62% off. Andreas, you have some of these yourself, don’t you?
You can take a look at http://www.buyapowa.com right now! If you join, don’t forget to tell your friends – whoever brings the most other people in will get their lights for free.
As ever, don’t hesitate to throw more requests our way. We’re absolutely here to give you what you want 😀
Best,
Robin, BuyaPowa