I asked my LBS as to what they could do to be able to sponsor me and the guy in charge seems to be somewhat keen on the idea of sponsoring a unicyclist. I have to give him my resume and then maybe we’ll discuss what terms there will be. I suggested that I wear his logo and he let me have some discounts on equipment that I may need.
Does anyone have any advice as to what else I should be looking for?
i hate to ask
does he carry anything you need
aside from tubes…
?
Well… Shin pads, helmets, gloves, basic stuff. I’m really not so sure as to how to approach it or if I really need to get a sponsorship.
I bought a couple things there and he took some money off because I asked of sponsorship.
if you have to ask " do i need a sponsorship" then you dont
thats cool though. discounted gear is always good.
discounted unicycle parts are even better.
and free is the best
I might see if they would be willing to help me get a coker uni (Perhaps from Brain M once things are organized) and compete in RTL if possible.
I’ve done some distance biking before and I would like to try transfer that to uni.
now you are talking their language
i think…
Hehe.
But anyway. Does anyone have any advice on how I would go about negotiating what I would like out of a sponsorship?
I was thinking about doing this once I got better, but Im too scared to get rejected 
Try putting yourself in their shoes first of all. Try and negotiate a deal were you attend certain events/rides/whatever just as long as their names gets seen. Its all about image, market them, and they’ll help you. Let them know that your interested in helping them first and foremost, and they WILL return the favor. You gotta give to recieve.
Also, don’t be afraid of asking for sponsorship. Its much easier than you think. If you get rejected so what? Atleast your out there gettin it done.
From what you’ve posted in this thread, it seems like you’re only interested in what you can get from your LBS for cheap or free. That doesn’t sound like a good deal for the LBS.
Instead, why don’t you think about what you have to offer your LBS… what kind of exposure will you give them? How many people will hear about that LBS through you? What media coverage will you receive?
Start by telling the LBS what you have to offer them. That’s a good way to begin negotiation.
That sounds like a good idea. I don’t want to scare them away by asking too much of them too soon.
It would probably help me more if I had a car of my own to bring myself to some events. The bike shop I am talking about is about half an hour away. So that might become a factor in things. Sadly there are no other bike shops close to me. 
I’ll probably be driving my own car in a few months. But until then, I’ll have to see how things go.
I’m pretty lucky that my LBS is about a 2-3 minute walk from my house 
I might go there tomorrow to buy a new saddle, and I’ll bring up sponsorship
Yeah, bring up sponsorship and see what they can do.
One of the reasons why I figured that I should ask for sponsorship was because most people don’t just glance at a unicyclist going by. They actually watch them in awe most of the time. It would surely be a boost for LBS.
yup, exactly 
I wouldn’t just limit yyourself to trying to pull $ from the LBS. Many places might sponsor you. It doesn’t matter if they carry parts or not. For instance, I work @ Wingnut Tattoo, and we sponsor tons of different things. We sponsor so many different softball teams in summer we almost sponsor every team in the league. We also sponsor race cars, pool leagues, dart leagues, motocross riders, fighters, and I’m sure I’m forgetting a bunch. We are also planning on donating to the local skatepark by next year as well.
It’d be best to try to get a few smaller sponsorships instead of trying for a major sponsor…at least to start.
One question, what is LBS?
Sorry for the thread jack,
Cody
lbs= local bike shop
make a video of your best stuff, and show it to them, then show them your absolute best tricks in person
After that start negotiating
Start out pretty high, ask for some free gear and 50% discounts
if they say no, then barter with them a bit, till you can figure something out that works for both of you
Ok, So I know the people at my LBS really well and I walk over to the store sometimes… And Im thinking about asking for a sponsorship on tuesday… 
The owner unicycles and knows alot about unicycling, and I was thinking about wearing his company shirt and stuff when I unicycle. But would this benefit the company enough to sponsor me?
I’m sponsored by my LBS and all they ask for is exposure, in return I get cheap KH parts as well as some nice hard to get tires, tubes, and safety gear. Gotta love 'em.