I gave up on local bike shops years ago
I once won a small prime in a road race years ago, the prime having put up by a LBS with whom i was familiar. I strut into the shop proudly displaying my voucher only to find out the cost of the item had gone up by the value of the prime, so i effectively paid retail price. I was too you young and non-assertive to dispute it, so paid up
In other (non chain) LBS's i saw the staff all over someone for whom money was no object, while those like me on a budget were made to wait
I used to spend hours behind the counter in one LBS and the owner and his assistant used to remark on every customer about how tight with money someone was or if he had a big nose or whatever
when I NEEDED a part quickly, prices always seemed to inflate
I was glad when the online shops opened - you knew what you paid, no need to leave your house to order and said items were delivered to my desk the next day
