I was highlighting the point that the average staff member wouldn't know the difference as they wouldn't be aware that it was an aircooled car, ie they haven't had any experience with cars and are therefore not a reliable source of tech info, some of their customers mistakenly seem to think that they are.
whqqsh,
Oct 1, 6:43pm
wow, knickers in a twist at all! No i dont expect everyone to be a goldmine of knowledge on all things mechanical but when a customer asks for an item theyre not sure of the least they could have done is picked up a catalog or tapped a few computer keys. & no I dont expect an obviously unpopular item to be on the shelf all the time thats why I asked if one was in stock or if not a cost, then if it wasnt too bad I was going to order one.
gunhand,
Oct 1, 6:45pm
Well why ask for something that dosnt excist then! How about in a friendly way passing on some knowladge to them and making there day a little less crappy. Why would a 18 year old know, or want to know anything about a VW that is older than his parants! Do you think they are trained in 5000 car makes models, sub modelsimports, euros, american, italian, french, aussie, russian, korean, chinese a etc etc etc. And the other 100000 parts and accessories they sell. You could work in a Repco for 5 years and still come across something you have never heard of. YES its a touchy subject.
franc123,
Oct 1, 6:49pm
LOL pack of sensitive buggers these ex Repco people, clearly some bad experiences to be had.Should be fun next week when I ask for a power steer belt for my 04 diesel Ford Courier then!
thejazzpianoma,
Oct 1, 6:51pm
Repco is just becoming another KMart/Briscoes. Have you noticed they are systematically removing the vast majority of quality tools from their shelves and replacing them with Warehouse quality junk!
They are also jacking their prices up so they can offer all and sundry a 20% discount card and do silly "sales" following the Briscoes model.
They are unable to even supply the spark plugs (even on backorder) for more and more vehicles and anything they term even slightly rare they try and charge ridiculous money for.
How about a $800 MAF sensor for a Vectra! Its a $60-$150 item off the shelf in other countries. They will offer it to the trade for $650 and pretend thats a good deal. They need to be boycotted for trying to get 1000% markup on items like these. I was especially disgusted to find when they put this item in their trade magazine on "special" that they only had two in the country and were unlikely to have more replacement stock in a timely manner.
Its such a shame that there is not a proper automotive supply chain that is open those hours.
gunhand,
Oct 1, 6:56pm
Yep reasonably senitive LOL. But you realise that when working there you are excpected to be a, mechanic, auto sparky, car painter, panelbeater, battery excpert, car groomer, window tint applier, air freashner know all, roof rack excpert, boating guru, stero god, alarm whizz, gps dude, and so on and so on. Oh and to be able to lay your hands on any part within 2 minutes. When I wait 20 mins at Maccas I dont moan at the stressed out staff member as its not there fault at all, I make there day and say something uplifting like, I understand what its like, youll escape soon lol and have a good day.
tigra,
Oct 1, 6:58pm
Lot of bias in here against Repco cnat figure out why. Found the Repco store in the Hutt Valley very knowledgeable and the staff all seem to be over 30 (or 40).Styood behind their products too. Better than Supercheap who really do have the school kids behind the counter. And as for #11 - 90% of the country wouldnt know what a Humber Snipe was or should that be Humber Super Snipe!
thejazzpianoma,
Oct 1, 7:14pm
It sounds like you are falling into exactly the trap they want you to, that being only comparing them to Supercheap.
You know you are being had when these supposed volume discounters are charging significantly more for product than you would pay for a better quality item from a small shop. Thats whats happening more and more.
Same goes with Bunnings etc, people are now in the habbit of only going to the Bunnings type places so don't realize they are being had on price/quality.
stevexc,
Oct 2, 6:40am
I've had no trouble getting parts from the Northwood branch.A young girl was even able to give me advice on which cloths were likely to leave bits of lint on everything (note that I did not ask for this or expect anyone there to know).
I bet they mock you fussy old complainers as soon as your back is turned lol.
tigra,
Oct 2, 8:53am
Not wishing to change the subject. More and more people are going to Bunnings or Mitre 10 or Placemakers simply because they have a range of choices far greater than the smaller hardware stores. Whats more the warranties are usually honoured more quickly in these bigger stores. Sure many of the products are not as well made as those in the specialty stores but I for one know enough to make a reasoned decision about that when taking into account the price difference.Its why we buy foods from supermarkets and not the dairy.
thejazzpianoma,
Oct 2, 9:00am
I see where you are coming from. However I think its more about a greater range in one shop as opposed to a greater range.
For example the range of safety and welding equipment in Bunnings is tiny compared to the engineering shop I go to here in Tauranga. Its not like they just do safety and welding gear either, what they don't do though is lawnmowers, BBQ's and Plants.
Take those items out of the mix and their range of "actual hardware" is quite small.
Obviously though if you are a home handyman and the MRS wants to pick up some plants its easy and convieniant to use Bunnings to grab a pack of nails.
What I don't understand is why people make more significant purchases there when they can walk down the road and get a proper quality item for less than the cheesy one at Bunnings.
I guess they just don't realise and alternative exists.
modie61,
Oct 2, 9:00am
Why dont we have better automotive parts retailers ! Is it that we use second hand parts more than we used to in the past !
thejazzpianoma,
Oct 2, 9:02am
I don't and I am on a VERY limited budget these days. In fact I am loving how inexpensive new parts are. so long as they don't come from ripco!
I do think that is part of the problem though. They have sort of brought things on themselves in that a lot of the "actual auto parts" business has been lost to the internet and other suppliers. The silly thing is though they wouldn't have lost much at all if they didn't try and take the piss on pricing.
If other NZ suppliers can remain competitive with internet pricing then there is no reason why Repco can't.
franc123,
Oct 2, 9:31am
No I don't think thats it either, given what wreckers charge for many things that isn't really that economical either, in fact second hand parts can even be more expensive if who you are dealing with is a big enough crook.A large proportion of the traditional second hand parts trade is now being done privately on here now because of this, even on here you still have to know what things are worth to avoid getting ripped off.The market has changed and what few retail chains we have for car parts have reacted in different ways to change or often haven't reacted at all.With cars becoming less DIY orientated in the last 20 years or so and the "too scared to open the bonnet" syndrome becoming more prevalent, companies like Repco that are still obviously large trade suppliers, have diversified more into the audio, general accessory and even the outdoor recreation markets, and have put less effort into retailing actual repair parts to the public, this was especially so after SCA came on the scene. BNT haven't changed at all and are still tucked down the back streets beavering away at their trade business and don't really give a stuff about retail, and the other ones like Partmaster and Autoone have tried to do a bit of both, and really without any great success.I do believe that a fresh approach is needed.
modie61,
Oct 2, 9:41am
Here is an excercise i did last week. I wanted to buy an oil filter,the part number is Z418,as on the old one. In my area only i wanted ease of service and a good price. The easiest service was Supercheap,because i could go to the shelf, pick up the part and go to the counter,no queue,paid for and back on my way. The other outlets i tried,i had to wait to be served and the part was not on the shelf. I also had a look on the interenet and found that i could buy the filter there, but would have to wait 3 days to recieve. Prices were within 2-3 dollars of each other. So i guess for me it comes down to ease of shopping,so when its not on the shelf you have to rely on the staff on hand to get it right,i know that they pay $14 per hour for a junior staff member here at Repco. What is the minimum national wage these days anyway !
thejazzpianoma,
Oct 2, 9:42am
Good points fran123, I think one approach that may work is a BNT style shop that sticks to proper automotive stuff but has more of a showroom rather than stuff out the back. The key difference though would be the extended trade hours that the home mechanic needs.
The store would not necessarily have to have prime retail space and could service a larger area i.e just one store for Tauranga district instead of 3 and they should have a proper online presence as well detailing their full range of stock with an online shopping option.
Sure its a lesser market but they would have an almost monopoly and with a large catchment and lower overheads I think it may be viable. Also. having one staff member that's savy and can answer questions and give advice on site at all times would make sense. Just keep that person advising the parts desk when they get stuckand the shop floor and not tie them up ringing up sales.
franc123,
Oct 2, 9:52am
Yep dead right Jazz, I'm sure there is a large clientele that would appreciate that, I believe that you do need to be offering a combo of both regular retail and online sales, its the way of the future and thats what is happening overseas and I think its only SCA that is currently doing it here, even then its only really the normal stuff they carry in the shop as opposed to repair parts. A bit of decent tech knowhow will go a long way too, Its going to be a case of adapt or get left behind if any of them are keen enough to win back customers who are looking overseas more and more for their parts needs.
richardmayes,
Oct 2, 10:08am
You roll the dice a bit going into Repco.Definitely there are some staff that are a bit undersized for the job, but then it's a retail shop and the level of service is on average about what you get at Farmers, some of the guys really know their stuff, and some are just there to mark time.
My local Repco is the Kent Terrace / Basin Reserve store and the guys in there are excellent.
We needed a new rear seatbelt for my lady's Ford Laser a few months ago. The one the repco catalogue said to use was completely wrong. Fortunately, young dude behind the counter understood all about the different seatbelt reels, and the angles they are meant to be set up at, and how the model number of each different one tells you which way around it goes. So he was able to narrow it down to two possible models that might be right, and ordered those in, and sure enough the first one was spot on.
I forget the bloke's name - young ginger guy with a beard. Extremely knowledgeable, and could not have done more to help us. That man deserves a Stoke Amber. (i.e. not a DB)
morrisjvan,
Oct 2, 10:30am
you could pay them $30.00 p/h and they'd still be monkeys!
thejazzpianoma,
Oct 2, 11:22am
If only it worked that way on all items. Try the same trick with a mass air flow meter for a Vectra 2.0 16 Valve. $800 for a $100 part makes buying online well worth while.
Likewise paying $80 for a cam cover gasket thats under $15 online is absurd as well.
I suspect that "known value" items like filters are intentionally kept competitive so that people make the assumption you do that things are reasonable across the board.
thejazzpianoma,
Oct 2, 11:26am
I always make a point of flicking an email off to the company when I get service like that. Not only is it a nice thing to do but it helps in multiple ways. The staff member usually gets a pat on the back which encourages them and helps keep them employed there where they can help you next time. Often I also get some a voucher or something back too which is not why I do it but makes the time worthwhile.
gedo1,
Oct 2, 2:56pm
Well!Isn't that a coincidence!I decided to change the battery arrangement on our motor-home.Rather than have 12 volt batteries (a pair) I changed it to four 6volt (paired in series to obtain 12volts) and to have a greater capacity.Went to Repco.in Mt Wellington! and they could not have been more helpful.Spoke to a young fellow there and he knew all about 6volts and Deep Cycle and capacities and motor-home usage.Other staff were also interested so it became a good discussion and great customer service.Just goes to show, eh!Good and bad.
urbanrefugee54,
Oct 2, 3:18pm
I've had both good & bad service at the Hornby Repco, apart from the inconvenience of having to go back into there to change the oil filters recently [trainee had served me]. it's not easy learning parts & most of them know what they are doing - I would say it's each branches manager that are the problem, as they are the ones that would put people at a counter that are inadequate for the task.
modie61,
Oct 3, 5:42am
I guess if we are going to talk about good and bad service,you could say the same about any retail outlet,there is good and bad everywhere. Its a bit like going for a WOF inspection,some are good and some are bad,mind you if the car passes they are all good,lol.
bjdw,
Oct 3, 10:14am
If they paid $30 dollars an hour they wouldn't only have monkeys applying for the jobs.
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