Michael,

This was not a great way to start 2019.  To say I am quite disappointed would be an understatement.  This project, from the beginning, has been a continual stream of misunderstanding and miscommunications starting 16 months ago when Chris Baer proposed the entire GPS program to me.  He originally told me that if I agreed to the 80% stocking terms etc. that Giant would handle the "total" reburbishing of my store...  sort of like the "Restaurant Renovation" television show.  He wasn't quite sure about what was involved but the one thing I brought up to him as I knew this was going to be a major issue, was my floor.  My manager and employees heard this and along with the words... "this is a no-brainer since you already do 80% or better with Giant" made this program both exciting and welcomed.

A few months after this I was visited by Chris and Mike Abrahms to discuss inking the deal and the fine points.  When I brought up the floor to Mike you can imagine hs expression as he told me that in no way are building improvements included in the GPS program.  In no way am I throwing Chris under the bus here because I think at the time the program and its inclusions were new to him as well.  Chris is a very dedicated Giant employee and has an incredible amount of love of his job, almost to a fault.  We jokingly say that if Chris cut himself shaving, little Giant bicycles would flow out !  

At this point I wasn't having second thoughts but I knew what my company can afford and started reassessing my budget and finances for this undertaking.  I needed to completely refurbish my large pylon sign, remove the front facade of my building, repaint the exterior, remove the existing floor and level it as the 4 main "I" beams were causing an issue for a new floor.  The entire wall space which was 140 x 8 linear feet of slat wall would have to be removed and new walls strung with street rock run to accommodate the Giant floor design and paint scheme.  Knowing what my budget was I allotted 8k for the floor with the understanding that I would take care of the massive job of removing and leveling the old floor.  I have NOT hired any outside contractors to do any of this demo work but instead kept all of my employees on payroll through a season that they are normally laid off.  I'm proud to say that I was able to save thousands of dollars that would have been spent on a general contractor and kept four of my men working. 

During this demo period I had a number of flooring people come in and assess my job.  Well this was quite a reality check as the cheapest installed floor estimate I got was $14500 !!!  Most of the installers suggested LVP which I shopped around for and found the best and cheapest to be Lifeproof Dark Grey Oak which Home Depot offered at 2.79/sq ft. At 6mm thick, it appeared to be a good value but the installers wanted 1.50/ft to put it in and that was going to put me over budget.  At this point a good customer who does installations for Loews was in my store and offered to install the floor for a TCR Advanced SL1 Disc !!!  Well that was a bit much but he agreed to install for part of said bike.  In any case, I could do this floor for an amount that is much more in line with what I could afford.

When you presented my the Gerflor option at $2.49 and offered to ship it from the west coast, I was ecstatic because now the floor would at least be in budget and be not only better quality but also be inline with exact Giant specs.  So I allude to the 2nd sentence of this letter....  I simply can not fit almost 14000 into this project.  Although this is not a "deal breaker" it may cause me to put the brakes on everything for while.  I am very proud to be a Giant dealer and quite excited about the whole GPS program as our store was one the the original Schwinn "Total Concept" stores when it was opened in 1975.  This program you offer mirrors it in many ways.  Following Schwinn's protocol back then, we sold over 1000 Schwinn bicycles 12 years in a row !!!  

The last line of your last email says.. "..  let me know what I can do to help ".  I have a suggestion that might work for both of us.  In the set of 3d drawings you sent me is an inventory of products that are "included" in this particular build out.  Although I believe Mike Abrahms told me the customer service /cash wrap area was NOT included, it appears there are provisions for a series of cabinets to construct one.  Also there are two free standing Rudy Rack bike stands...  one for 9 bikes and one for 11 bikes ( I  believe those were the spaces ).  I have a 24 bike stand in my store now that is identical to the Rudy unit and can be customized to meet the smaller amounts Giant recommends thus alleviating the need for those items as well.  Could Giants cost of these high ticket items be deducted from the cost of the flooring to bring it nore into the 7k range ?

Going forward, I am sure we can come to some kind of amicable and affordable solution.  Thank you for your anticipated consideration and cooperation.

Kim