About Us

A&M Cyclery was founded in 1929 by Fred & Luella Herman at 3123 Morganford. It was later sold to Virgil Herman, who moved the shop across the street in 1938 where it has remained operating ever since. It was sold to Gilbert Chappius in 1941, brother of Velmo Chappius who operated Meramec Cycles. It stayed in the Chappius-Blackwood family until Karl Becker purchased A&M from Bob Blackwood in 2000. Karl’s father, Joe Becker, owned the Bike Center at the corner of Pershing and Jackson from 1970-1982 at which time it was sold to Jim Chappius who later moved the Bike Center to a new location. In 2017, Jeff & Erin Gerhardt opened Cursed Bikes & Coffee in the location of the original Bike Center in University City. Karl operated A&M until his death in 2018. In 2019, Jeff & Erin purchased A&M from the Becker family and reopened the shop in 2021 after remodeling the space. A&M is the oldest continuously running bike shop in St. Louis. The Gerhardt family is honored to continue the rich tradition of this neighborhood shop in historic Tower Grove.