Running a Bike Shop a "Dream" For Bike King Owner

It's one of the first warm days of spring and Gil Cournoyea Jr. is busy.

Customers are flocking to Bike King on Cahill Avenue, home of Inver Grove Heights’ only full-service retail bike shop. One needs new tires. A few others need a tune-up and another is checking out one of the nearly 500 bikes for sale. To add to it all, the phone is ringing off the hook.

It's busy, it's hectic. And it's exactly what Cournoyea dreamed about when he was a child growing up in Forest Lake fixing bikes out of his parents’ garage.

"I knew then someday I wanted to own my own bike shop," said Cournoyea.

That dream came true in 1995. After 10 years working at bike shops in Forest Lake and Fridley, Cournoyea opened up his Inver Grove Heights-based business at the age of 25.

"I told myself I'm not trying to do this, I am going to do this," said Cournoyea. "And now, all these years later, here we are."

Cournoyea was driven to Inver Grove Heights for two reasons. He saw a need: Bike King was and still is the only full-service retail bike shop in the community. But more importantly, he felt he could relate to the people of the community.

Cournoyea said when he was trying to identify locations to open the business he would drive around towns and just stop and try and talk to the locals.

"I did my research," said Cournoyea, who has a business degree from the Minnesota School of Business. "When I stopped at gas stations in Inver Grove Heights people would give me time and talk to me. They seemed friendly and happy. I didn't get that in every city I went to. I knew this was the place I wanted to do business."

Cournoyea says while people like to be able to shop locally you have to be able to provide fair prices and good service.

"Customer service has really gone by the wayside," he said. "You have to be friendly. You have to be happy. People see that and if you're not happy they won't come back."

Bike King also includes a full-service repair shop. The store also provides skate sharpening services and sells other items such as hockey and football mouth guards.

"You can't sell a bike if you can't fix a bike," says Cournoyea.

Cournoyea has two other full-time employees, one who has been with him for 11 years and another who has worked at the shop for six years. That stability has helped the business maintain a strong reputation in the community. And that's something that makes Cournoyea proud.

Cournoyea admits he is always thinking about the business — even on his off days, or on the rare occasion when he has some free time to go to classic car shows with his dad.

But you get a sense that the long-time business owner wouldn't have it any other way.

"When I was a kid I thought if I got to work in a bike shop for the rest of my life I'd be happy," said Cournoyea.

Mission accomplished.

Editor's Note: Each month, Inver Grove Heights Patch asks the owners of a well-established, local business what makes them successful. We publish their answers in "Secrets to Success."