Featured inChris Zane bought a bike shop at 16 and built a customer-service model now taught as a case study in more than a dozen college textbooks. His keynotes give leaders and front-line teams a proven, practical system for earning loyalty that lasts.
Chris's age when he bought his first bike shop in 1981
College textbooks worldwide that teach the Zane's case study
Premium household brands Zane's Inc. now supplies to the premium and incentive industry
Highest-rated speaker at ASU's Compete Through Services Symposium
High energy, practical and built on real numbers from a real business. Planners book Chris because attendees leave with tools they use on Monday morning.
Every program is tailored after a planning call with your team, using your industry, your customers and your goals.
Most companies chase the next sale and lose the customer. Chris shows why the lifetime value of a customer should drive every decision.
Keynote · Workshop · Virtual
Growth rarely comes from where you expect. Chris shares how customer insight took a local shop into national corporate programs and a multi-brand business.
Keynote · Executive session · Virtual
Great service can't be scripted. Leaders have to build it into how people are hired, trained and trusted.
Keynote · Workshop · Leadership retreat
45 to 75 minutes for conferences, kickoffs and annual meetings.
Half-day working session where teams build their own lifetime-customer plan.
Interactive online keynote for distributed and hybrid teams.
Closed-door strategy session with leadership teams and boards.
If you're looking for a speaker, stop. Chris is one of a handful we have had back in ten years.
He has a compelling story and a wonderful stage presence.
Thanks so much for the outstanding presentation you made to our group. It was a tremendous success.
...professionalism and dedication to excellence is what made the conference such a success.
...talk has "energized" many people. You spoke to all of us, no matter what our job descriptions.
...people are still talking about your speech...
The full playbook behind Zane's Cycles: how a 16-year-old's struggling bike shop became one of the largest in the country by treating every customer as a lifetime relationship.
Chris lays out the elements most businesses overlook: knowing the lifetime value of a customer, investing in employees, and remembering that you're selling an experience, not a product. It's a hands-on case study from an entrepreneur, not a theory from a consultant.
“The first time I heard Chris Zane speak about customer service and creating lifetime customers, it changed my thinking forever.”
“Chris Zane’s bold—and practical—approach to cultivating lifetime customers holds valuable lessons for businesses large and small.”
“Reinventing the Wheel is a marvelous book that will teach you and inspire you.”
“Provides insights, proven practices, and anecdotal customer experience vignettes that demonstrate success by having a relentless focus on the ‘Lifetime Value of the Customer.’”
“Anyone who believes that customer service is central to their business culture needs to read this book!”
“This book is a must-read for anyone seeking to maximize the value of lifelong customer relationships.”
Chris Zane opened Zane's Cycles in Branford, Connecticut in 1981 at age 16, and built it into the largest bicycle shop in the state by 30. His approach of lifetime free service, price protection and an obsession with customer lifetime value turned a local store into a customer-service case study taught in business courses worldwide.
Harvard Business Review, Fortune, Inc., The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and the Associated Press have covered his methods. He was profiled in the HarperCollins bestseller Alpha Dogs and appeared in American Express's national television campaign.
Today Chris is President of Zane's Inc., which after several acquisitions supplies more than 65 premium household brands to the premium and incentive industry. He advises businesses including Fortune 500 companies, serves on boards, mentors entrepreneurs, and has served as Entrepreneur in Residence at Quinnipiac University.
Chris's keynote fee range is $50,000 to $75,000, depending on format, location and audience. Share your event details and we will reply with availability and a proposal within one business day.