BMW Motorrad Preston (Bowkers)

[Paul Young]

Confirmed this week that they’re closing the motorbike business down.

Last day of trade will be 31st Dec with some staff moving to the car side if there are roles available, but the rest will be redundant and are looking for jobs elsewhere.

 

[steve hughes]

Thats a shame , I guess nearest dealers will be Williams now in Manchester. I was walking around Halliwell Jones in Chester just this week. The showroom was rammed with used bikes. No sales folk in evidence I wonder how long that will last as unlike Bowkers Preston, the bikes are inside the car showroom.

 

[Thejoybringer]

That is a real shame, I have bought bikes from Bowker’s, the staff and service from them was first class. In fact regarding bike sales, I can say they are the best Bmw motorrad dealership I have ever dealed with. The complete opposite to Halliwell Jones in Chester! My present BM bike came from Halliwell Jones and the communication regarding the sale was like pulling hen’s teeth, it wasn’t a good experience.
I hope the staff that lose their jobs manage to secure work quickly at Bowker’s.

 

[brut33]

I bought a bike from them when they were moving from Southport Superbikes to Bowkers, Preston. Imo they'd have been better off staying in Southport as a small well established busy dealership.
Bowkers looked more like a large impersonal car showroom than a bike shop, a bit souless if you ask me.

 

[steve hughes]

I bought a bike from them when they were moving from Southport Superbikes to Bowkers, Preston. Imo they'd have been better off staying in Southport as a small well established busy dealership.
Bowkers looked more like a large impersonal car showroom than a bike shop, a bit souless if you ask me.

My wife has said exactly that ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ just now. Southport was tiny but the staff were brilliant ( eg sadjim off ere) and with the Harley shop across the road I could “ bike out” whilst the other half shopped in town

 

[JoeBiff]

…. Imo they'd have been better off staying in [insert location] as a small well established busy dealership.
[insert dealer name] looked more like a large impersonal car showroom than a bike shop, a bit souless if you ask me.

…And therein lies the root of the motorcycle retailers problems.

 

[Thejoybringer]

BM bikes that share the showroom with the cars are always the poor cousins.

 

[wessie]

BM bikes that share the showroom with the cars are always the poor cousins.

the setup at Cotswold in Cheltenham is good. They sell cars, bikes and everything else BMW or Mini branded. The main building has multiple floors so they can segregate brands, ebikes, M series etc.
The Motorrad part appears to be in a separate building but is linked underground so shares the same parking and workshop area. They can also combine back office support staff to create efficiencies.
Of course, they had the resources to develop a brand new flagship site for BMW by consolidating three operations into a single complex.

 

[trebor]

That's a shame, though I must admit, the last few times I've been there the showroom has been empty of customers so it comes as no great surprise.

 

[nightflight61]

I suspect that there will be another Motorrad outlet not that far away from the present location

 

[Paul Young]

I suspect that there will be another Motorrad outlet not that far away from the present location

Ooooh, that’s interesting. Tell us more

 

[geotim]

Bought my first bike from Southport Superbikes.
Took it back for a service and came out with a brand new GSA (back in 2009, still got it, good salesman!).
Used to service the bikes there.
Tried the Bowkers Preston for a visit or two, but as others have said, soulless, then went over to RGM in Croston (Roy is ex BMW Southport Superbikes).

 

[G&T]

Just to get this one off my chest based on this thread...given the changes to my two local dealerships where I feel more disconnected than ever, I could well change brand altogether.

It just feels like an Amazon warehouse now. Box shifting is the game and relationship building is non-existent.

 

[nightflight61]

Ooooh, that’s interesting. Tell us more

Nothing specific, but there are other BMW (cars) dealers in the north west, and I can't imagine that BMW will leave a gaping hole in this part of the country

 

[steve hughes]

Just to get this one off my chest based on this thread...given the changes to my two local dealerships where I feel more disconnected than ever, I could well change brand altogether.

It just feels like an Amazon warehouse now. Box shifting is the game and relationship building is non-existent.

I echo this comment ^^^^ as long ago as 18 months I went into Motorradd Chester, there were no bikers in there. However a friendly guy who preps cleans and delivers bikes said they were one of the busiest dealers sales wise in the UK. The bulk of their sales were distance selling. I popped in around two weeks ago, there was one guy testing a 1000r but otherwise empty.

It feels absolutely souless and if you pop in on a Sunday you will find the Car showroom lit up and the bikes in darkness.

The showroom ( shared with cars) was jam packed with used bikes though, so they are either buying them in or trading them against new models.

 

[Kritou]

I bought a bike from them when they were moving from Southport Superbikes to Bowkers, Preston. Imo they'd have been better off staying in Southport as a small well established busy dealership.
Bowkers looked more like a large impersonal car showroom than a bike shop, a bit souless if you ask me.

BMW said that to continue SSB had to move to a much larger, modern and out of town location. As Mike and Roy owned the building they cashed in their chips

 

[trebor]

I've just heard a rumour that Lloyds (Carlisle & South Lakes) may open a Motorrad dealership, possibly in Blackpool. How true this is, I've no idea.

 

[trebor]

BMW said that to continue SSB had to move to a much larger, modern and out of town location. As Mike and Roy owned the building they cashed in their chips

That is what I heard (though Roy had passed away prior to this). I preferred dealing with SSB, but Bowkers was more convenient.

 

[haydw]

Just to get this one off my chest based on this thread...given the changes to my two local dealerships where I feel more disconnected than ever, I could well change brand altogether.

It just feels like an Amazon warehouse now. Box shifting is the game and relationship building is non-existent.

This is what I thought. I looked at a few used bikes from Bowkers at the end of last year then took a trip to Preston Ducati and ended up with a Multistrada V4S. The after sales has been great and it’s the fellowship aspect that’s completely different. Local WhatsApp groups, invites to ride outs, come and watch the racing on the big screen in the dealers, owners club meets and discounts etc. That’s made a big difference for me rather than it being a transactional relationship with a dealer. It builds trust in the machine and the money you are spending if you are invited to go into the workshop and look what is actually done and how they do it.

 

[G&T]

The after sales has been great and it’s the fellowship aspect that’s completely different. Local WhatsApp groups, invites to ride outs, come and watch the racing on the big screen in the dealers, owners club meets and discounts etc. That’s made a big difference for me rather than it being a transactional relationship with a dealer.

That sounds fantastic.