We’ve just had a brilliant and inspiring morning at the legendary bike shop, “Westminster Wheels”. We got the warmest welcome from Project Manager Barny, and it was BUSY!
“We have 100 customers on a good day”, he told us. “Although it’s not just a bike shop, it’s a community. We have some customers who’ve been coming in for years but they’re not actually customers. They just come in to chat!”.
Barny spent 26 years at “the best bike shop in London”, Brixton cycles, before coming over here in March 2020.
“We’re 40 years behind Amsterdam in London”, Barny says. “But the destination is inevitable … cities for people rather drivers”. Westminster Wheels runs 6 months training courses to become cycle mechanics- they’re City and Guilds and each mechanic gets paid a London living wage.
“We’ve had 50 people come through the doors to train as bike mechanics” says Barny. “I’m so proud of these people – they’ve been a great group of folks. After they’ve finished their training, we help set them up with apprenticeships as mechanics in bike shops if we can.
So many of these people are doing brilliantly in bike shops all over London now”. We met Alejandro today, who’s on the training course. “Out of everything I’ve ever done, this is the thing I’ve loved most” he told us. “It’s something different every day. There are so many different bikes, and we do stripping, refurbishing and repairs. And it’s so social”.
Including Alejandro and Barny, there are 9 bike mechanics in today, and all of them are hard at work. Alejandro lives locally, as do many of the team. They say they can cycle to Oxford Street in 10 minutes from home, and they cycle with friends to football and the gym. They told us of the changes they’d like to see. “I’ve ridden my bike my whole life” says Alejandro.
“I’d like protected cycle lanes. They’ve got cycle lanes on Park Lane and it’s great, I can relax, I don’t have to worry about cars so much. But there are hardly any cycle lanes on the Edgware Road or in Paddington”. “They haven’t even got one going down Marylebone Road!” someone else chips in. They all nod.
These are men with their whole lives ahead of them, and they want to feel safe. Barny takes us downstairs, which is full of second-hand bikes to sort through. It’s a lot of work, hence the face. Westminster Wheels is certainly a hive of activity, a true community bike shop, just like it says outside. And we can see why people come in for a chat.
And if you ever hear of a bike shop needing a mechanic for an apprenticeship, tell them to call Barny at Westminster Wheels. Top notch folks are learning here 🚲🚲
(Plus, this gem is hidden in the basement!)
