The story begins in 1997, when a then-teenaged Matt Neugebauer first began buying and selling childhood collectibles on eBay. We're talking baseball cards, sports figurines, Star Wars stuff...basically anything that a giant nerd would be into. This was back in the "Dial-Up Days" of the early Internet and eBay didn't offer much in the way of photographs or online payment processing. Each purchase and sale was an exercise in trust, patience, and trips to Wawa to purchase money orders. During this time Matt learned the value of an accurate listing, prompt replies to customer's questions, and the importance of getting the product out the door quickly after receipt of payment.
Matt eventually grew out of his collectibles phase but his love for selling on eBay never faltered. After he discovered his lifelong passion for riding road bicycles in 2003 he already knew that the perfect way to dispose of his lightly used gear was via his old eBay account. Ever the hustler, Matt also saw the opportunity to buy and sell other riders' unwanted gear to make a fair profit to help fund his cycling addiction. Friends and fellow riders began asking him for help in consigning their gear to be free of the hassle of photographing, listing, packing, and shipping gear themselves. Part-time work at a bike shop meant a deepening connection with both the local Delaware Valley and global eBay communities.
In 2009 Matt and his family opened a brick and mortar shop called Brandywine Cyclery in North Wilmington and grew the business through excellent brands and customer service. The eBay account was frequently employed to sell customer's used bikes and gear to help ease the process of buying a new bike. Never wanting to say "no" to a customer in need of disposing of a used item, Matt and his staff took pride in assessing items for structural and mechanical soundness, cleaning and restoration to make sure they looked their very best, and producing photographs and listings that fulfilled the all-important standards of honesty and integrity for which The House of Cogs is known.
Times change and by 2016 the decision was made to sell Brandywine Cyclery and try something new. With product mix changes in store for the new owner, Matt and the BC team were tasked with quickly liquidating a large amount of inventory. The eBay store was now crucial for the sale of not just used gear but also new inventory. The shop's larger brands didn't take kindly to the sale of "restricted" product being sold this way but facts are facts and the inventory had to GO to ease the sale of the business. By the end of 2016 the necessary inventory was gone, the brick and mortar shop was sold, and Matt was ready for his next chapter.
Through conversations with other shop owners Matt discovered that industry-wide sales restrictions on certain brands were handicapping the ability of small business owners to manage their inventories and control their fate. Soon multiple shop owners began to ask for Matt's help in managing their inventory via selective consignment sales of bikes, gear, and any other items that were "nailed to the floor" of their shops. The House of Cogs began providing both mental and financial relief to shop owners who had been "oversold" by the larger bicycle companies to help ease the burden of a high inventory load. As the checks were deposited and space on the sales floors freed up, shop owners began to feel a new freedom in guiding their establishments in a rapidly changing business environment.
Still never wanting to say "no," Matt was also always pleased to assist in buying and selling his friends' and old customers' bikes and gear for fair prices. Now both to-the-trade and the end user alike, The House of Cogs network has grown via grassroots efforts like shop visits, referrals, and always maintaining the high standards of honesty and integrity learned over two decades of work within the eBay space. A 100% positive feedback rating with over 1700 reviews is the result of years of hard work and passion for connecting what is the "wrong" item for a particular shop or rider with the "right" buyer. We love what we do and we do it very well!
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