South Valley Bikes owner Mark Silva wants to sell his
4,000-square-foot building, but that doesn’t mean he’s fleeing
downtown.
South Valley Bikes owner Mark Silva wants to sell his 4,000-square-foot building, but that doesn’t mean he’s fleeing downtown.
Actually, he’s looking for a buyer to remodel the Monterey Road location, so he can reduce his floor space and refocus his high-end business on families.
“The idea is to down size the shop,” said Silva, a 38-year-old San Martin resident. “The industry has changed a lot, and people are buying more high-end (cycling) gear through mail order catalogues or over the Internet.”
Silva said filling a large store with deluxe bikes is rather expensive, especially since his clientele has changed over the years. It makes more sense to him to cater to families buying “entry-level” bikes and hauling them in for tune-ups. About 25 percent of his business is repairs, he said. Skateboards, too, have been a good money-maker.
For now, Silva said staying downtown is still up in the air. While the laid-back store owner said he’d like to find a buyer to reconfigure the shop and keep him on as a tenant, he’s also scouting alternative locations in case he decides to bail. So far, he’s found a possible spot at Morgan Hill Plaza and other downtown he declined to disclose.
While he hasn’t committed to moving just yet, Silva said he wouldn’t mind improving his parking situation.
“The parking downtown is just a mess,” he lamented. “It’s our biggest hang-up. Most of our business in the early afternoon are moms, and when they have to park behind the store and carry in bikes (to be repaired), that’s an issue.”
Silva bought his building nearly three years ago. He’s trying to sell it for $999,000, after reducing the price from $1.15 million. He declined to say what his purchase price was. He has received some interest so far, he said, keeping the potential buyers’ names secret. The building’s been on the market for about 45 days.
South Valley Bikes is one of two locally owned bike stores in Morgan Hill, the other being Sunshine Bicycles on Monterey Road south of Dunne Avenue.
