Family-Owned Beverly Bike Shop Closing After More Than 70 Years

BEVERLY, MA -- The store that has outfitted thousands of North Shore kids with their first bike since first opening in 1947 -- not to mention thousands of adults looking for a low-impact way to get exercise and get around -- is closing at the end of June. In a Facebook post Tuesday, family-owned Brown’s of Beverly Bicycles said it had come to the "difficult decision" to shutter its retail and repair shops.

Tuesday's post brought an almost instantaneous flood of comments from long-time customers. One woman talked about buying her first bike there in the 1970s and buying a bike for her grandchild there last year. "Three generations of bikes from Brown's of Beverly!" Helen Venditti wrote. Others lamented the loss of another, locally-owned mom-and-pop in downtown Beverly.

"I still have my last bike that I bought at Brown's over 25 years ago. Thank you for all the bikes my family got at Brown's," wrote Beth Pinanski. "Beverly is sure changing and I wonder if it is for the better."

The store said it would accept bikes for repair through June 16. The store is also offering expanded opening hours for its final few weeks. While Brown's will continue to be closed on Sundays, it will be open 10 am to 6 pm Monday through Friday and 9:30 am to 4:30 pm on Saturdays.

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Photo by Brown’s of Beverly Bicycles.

Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).