Tucked away in Appleby-in-Westmorland, in northern England, The Bike Inn is a busy and trusted bike shop, dedicated to helping cyclists ride smarter and farther through e-bike sales and top-notch servicing. With over three decades of experience, the team handles everything from everyday fixes to specialist suspension work and high-end e-bike maintenance, serving both local cyclists and visitors heading for the Lake District.
The Bike Inn is more than just a bike shop; they’re passionate educators, too. The team is equally passionate about passing on their knowledge through accredited mechanic training for people already in the cycle industry, veterans and aspiring professionals in the UK and abroad. Whether someone wants to launch their own business or learn the basics properly, the team is there to help them get started.
“Bike Inn is basically a one-stop shop for everything related to bicycles,” says Gavin Kipling. “We train people who want to be professional bike mechanics, ex-military, career changers and people already in the cycle industry who want to progress to master mechanic qualification.”
As The Bike Inn continued to grow, so did the complexity of managing different parts of the business, from repairs to training and finances. They saw an opportunity to streamline their operations by connecting their systems to keep everything running smoothly. They needed a system that could support their goals by bringing the workshop and accounting systems together, helping the team stay focused on what matters most: delivering great service and empowering new mechanics.
Objectives
The Bike Inn set out to find a system that could better support their day-to-day operations. Their priorities were clear:
- Reclaiming time through connected systems: Integrating with their existing accounting software to eliminate double entry and reduce time spent on admin.
- Streamlining repairs with better oversight: Gaining clearer visibility into workshop activity and resource planning.
- Clearer communication, happier customers: Keeping job details, notes and customer updates in one place to improve communication and set better expectations.
With these goals in mind, the Bike Inn team began searching for a workshop management system that could bring everything together and streamline operations across the board.
Reclaiming Time Through Seamless System Integration
At the time, The Bike Inn used another service and repair system to manage their jobs. But as things got busier, it became harder to keep everything in sync, especially when it came to accounts. They needed a platform that could integrate with their accounting software to make it easier to match up completed jobs with invoices raised and payments received.
“It came down to the accounts. When we were trying to marry everything up for the jobs done and invoices raised with what’s in accounts… it didn’t. So we’d have to go back and double-check. The manual process was just too time-consuming.”
Integration quickly became one of the biggest priorities in their search for a better system. One platform stood out in particular, and that was Hubtiger. It offered not only the ability to sync with their accounting software but also a setup that felt intuitive and easy to use.
“It was the ease of use and the accounts integration. The main one was the accounts, because that was an absolute pain with our previous repair software.”
With the core issues addressed and the system proving easy to adopt, the team felt confident they had found a service and repair software that could help them manage the workshop and reclaim valuable time.
Streamlining Repairs With Better Oversight
Since adopting Hubtiger, The Bike Inn has experienced a remarkable improvement in its daily operations. The centralised calendar has become an invaluable tool, providing a comprehensive overview of all ongoing work, which has helped the team manage their workload more effectively and allocate resources where needed.
“With the centralised calendar, we can see at a glance what’s in the workshop, what’s waiting, what’s been fixed, where we are waiting for parts to come in and if we need to take more resources on to fix more bikes.”
The team goes on to explain how this high-level overview also helps manage customer expectations:
“If someone walks in with a bike, the calendar gives us a much better sense of our current workload. We can let them know upfront that it might take two weeks, instead of saying ‘yes, it’ll be ready next week’, only to later realise we’ve already got 30 bikes to get through. That high-level overview really helps us manage expectations and plan properly.”
By improving visibility across all active jobs, the team can allocate staff more effectively, reduce bottlenecks, and better manage their workload, helping them keep up with demand without overpromising.
Clearer Communication, Happier Customers
Customer communication was a key priority from the start, and since implementing Hubtiger, The Bike Inn has seen a noticeable improvement. With SMS updates and improved visibility into their workload, the team can now keep customers in the loop throughout the repair process. This has helped reduce misunderstandings and build stronger customer relationships.
The team explained that managing customer communication is now far easier with Hubtiger:
“They get an SMS when they drop it off, another after we’ve inspected it and sent the quote for approval, and a final one when it’s ready for collection. It stops the customer from getting a nasty shock if the repair turns out to be more extensive than they realised. It really helps set expectations, and that’s very good.”
Clear, consistent communication has become a major differentiator, helping The Bike Inn not only meet but exceed customer expectations.
Implementation and Getting Started
Getting started with new software can feel daunting, but for The Bike Inn, the transition to Hubtiger was refreshingly straightforward. The system was intuitive from the start, allowing the team to ease into it without a disruption to their workflow.
“Everything was done well. Good communication, expectations were set, we knew what we were going to get, and the system is easy enough to use out of the box.”
The guidance and support from the Hubtiger team made the process even easier. With minimal training needed, the workshop was able to settle in quickly and get back to what they do best.
Results
The operational improvements since implementing Hubtiger have been practical and far-reaching:
- Time saved on repetitive admin and manual entry
- Improved resource planning with better visibility into workload and parts
- More accurate communication and expectation-setting with customers
- Smoother day-to-day operations through integrated systems
These improvements have enabled The Bike Inn to run more efficiently, giving the team more time to focus on what matters most: repairing bikes and supporting their customers.
When asked what they would say to other businesses still relying on manual processes, the team offered this simple but powerful advice:
“It will give you more time back each day to actually do the work in the shop. So it pays for itself because the time that is wasted manually entering data is time where you could be working on customers’ bikes and invoicing them.”
Looking Ahead: What’s Next for The Bike Inn?
The Bike Inn has always been more than just a bike shop. While they continue to serve local riders with expert repairs and servicing, they’re equally passionate about training and upskilling the next generation of mechanics.
As their business continues to evolve, having the right tools in place means The Bike Inn can keep delivering exceptional service while expanding their training programmes to reach even more aspiring mechanics. Alongside the hands-on training delivered in-house, the team is now pushing forward with plans to take their courses online. This includes making modules more accessible to aspiring mechanics in India and Sri Lanka.
“We’re looking to bring someone over from Sri Lanka for six weeks to help with the Hindi translations as we develop the next phase of our training, which we’re taking online,” the team shares.
The Bike Inn is committed to making professional-level education available to more people around the world. With the right digital tools in place, they are now better equipped to manage both sides of the business and support a wider network of learners and riders. Hubtiger is proud to support The Bike Inn on their journey, and we look forward to seeing their continued impact, both in their local community and beyond.
Helping More People Ride Smarter and Go Further
See how The Bike Inn combines repairs, rentals and training to support their community.