Repco, A massive ripoff

[Vesper Martini]

Originally Posted by sd6

While it is true the Internet........

Just a tip bud, can you use paragraphs very hard to read

[sd6]

Originally Posted by Bevsta007

Just a tip bud, can you use paragraphs very hard to read

Point taken, was on my phone when writing everything last night. It has a tendency to get very messy and hard for me to keep track of what i am typing if i start breaking it up.

On the topic of supplying parts to mechanics it also greatly depends on the shop. My local shop i have a good relationship with, i have been directing business there for years. Although i do 90% of my work things that are too hard, time consuming or i don't have the tools for i take to the mechanic. He usually charges me trade price on parts and is more then happy if i supply my own as he is tied to repco and i usually can beat prices by $100's. Obviously in this case if it fails or doesn't fit though i have to wear the cost of the wasted time. The business does this for me because they look after those of us who push lots of money through them, they want us to return.

For shops who do not have a relationship for the customer it would be understandable for them not to want to let you supply your own parts. They don't know if you will ever return and just want a free ride, they don't know if you will turn into a massive problem if your parts fail.

[ratter]

why is it that it appears fair that every other industry, profession etc are allowed to make a mark up on parts they sell, but a mechanic is not?

My wife at one point worked for a large bedding manufacturer, it was not uncommon that the retail price of the product that was sold had at least a 200% mark up from what it cost.

As mentioned, some parts, by the time freight is added, can cost more than the recommended retail price of the part, yes, there is some margin in some other parts though.

Most shops labour rate is based on their cost to operate and some of that does factor in making possibly 10% on parts, if those parts are supplied by the customer then some shops will increase their labour for that job. As mentioned already the liability of parts supplied can be an issue if something goes wrong.

If somebody supplies their oil and filter to us as part of a service, we charge $5 environmental disposal fee. We charge this because we have to use accredited people to remove our waste oil and filters these days, this cost us money, but we normally cover it with the cost of the oil we sell.

[Charliewool]

From an engineering machine shop point of view, our materials & consumables mark up (30%) is where any profit is actually made.
Hourly labour charge out rate @ around a $100 per hour barely covers overheads!
I imagine most mechanical workshops, even with their lower overheads would be similar?

[Mr Brooksy]

Originally Posted by ratter

why is it that it appears fair that every other industry, profession etc are allowed to make a mark up on parts they sell, but a mechanic is not?

My wife at one point worked for a large bedding manufacturer, it was not uncommon that the retail price of the product that was sold had at least a 200% mark up from what it cost.

As mentioned, some parts, by the time freight is added, can cost more than the recommended retail price of the part, yes, there is some margin in some other parts though.

Most shops labour rate is based on their cost to operate and some of that does factor in making possibly 10% on parts, if those parts are supplied by the customer then some shops will increase their labour for that job. As mentioned already the liability of parts supplied can be an issue if something goes wrong.

If somebody supplies their oil and filter to us as part of a service, we charge $5 environmental disposal fee. We charge this because we have to use accredited people to remove our waste oil and filters these days, this cost us money, but we normally cover it with the cost of the oil we sell.

I can not speak for others, but I am the kind of person who will not pay full price for anything if possible. I have no issue others making a profit, I have an issue with mark up of 200% and more as you quote.

I think for me at least, I have a major issue when there is a huge slice taken by all the middle men, and then the end user and (lets stay with the auto industry as the example) mechanic are the ones who have to scrimp and scrape to make a living/control costs.

All industries have the middle men who are ripping huge profits out of the respective industries, leaving the end user and the guy at the end of the chain with the frustrating and difficult juggling act of making a living and controlling costs.

I'd give you an example of a very popular oudoors clothing company and how much they pay for the initial product vs what you pay at the store, but I could get my friends in trouble. And in between product cost vs end user, there are countless people asking stupid money to do things as simple as signing shipping forms etc.

The likes of Repco etc are all middle men/companies. Get as much for a product as they can whether it is sustainable or not.

[Revolver]

Excuse me for being blunt, ignorant and arrogant.

But why does a mechanic need to make any money on parts? Did said mechanic make the part? Supply the materials to make the part?

No and no in my book = No he doesn't.

Should a premium be paid for the service he supplied? Absolutely.

And I have the exact same gripe in the industry I work in.....

A retaining wall (or anything) that we quote for clients have a markup of 38%. Even though the company does NONE of the work themselves whatsoever. They don't build it, supply it, engineer it, draw it, and so on? It's literally money for nothing.

For the actuall construction service we supply, so the designs, drawings, management, and "installation" or building service, I can certainly understand the markup on that, because we did that. And that's fair enough.

I must be clear, I have this gripe with every industry in this regard. But it's unfair, and IMHO uneathical. And just because "that's the way it's always been" is not an excuse.....

I was told once that "a deal is only a deal when everyone gains"

And from what I see in traditional business, don't generate "deals".

Everyone wants a slice of the pie. When you should only get what you deserve for the pie you make.

Sorry for the rant, but I feel that's something that needs to be said.

Something that needs to be changed.

[Revolver]

I know that the above sounds crazy. Like Donald Trump crazy. But there's something I must add:

We recently needed to buy 2 new computers for new employees for the company. Our estimator (who of course provides all the figures for contracts, and that magical 38% markup) got a quote to supply from our IT company these 2 computers (really just run of the mill PCs with all the usual operating software) and was bowled over by the price. He went onto the HP website to find the identical machinery at a much cheaper price.

And he couldn't fathom as to why......

Until I piped up and said "They are doing to us what we doing to our clients, adding money on for nothing we had a part in. That computer is the retaining wall we quoted the other day, and the IT company is us"

"But we already pay them a bucketload every month!" He replied.

"Yup, and our clients are already paying to build a house with us."

I'm still not entirely sure he got it.

I could go on & on with examples, Coco pops at Coles, Sleepmaker mattresses at bedding stores, Pens at officeworks.

Aaaaaand mechanics with parts.

[Franco Cozzo]

Originally Posted by Mr Brooksy

Slightly off topic (kinda), but those of you who own repair centers (mechanic, tire fitters, panel beaters etc) do you like or dislike when customers like me source our own parts?

The reason I ask is, the two guys I use in two entirely different countries, if I'm not confident (or time permitting) to do the work myself are more than happy for me to source my own parts. They know I will only buy quality, but also know that what I buy they can't get close to matching most of the time.
It saves them time in ordering, and the parts are guaranteed to arrive with the car instead of waiting for their supplier to show up (and sometimes bringing the wrong parts).

Just curious.

It doesn't bother me too much, but I make sure they understand that if they have warranty issues, they will be paying for the disgnosis time spent finding the fsult if its their supplied part thats faulty.

In the case of 4x4 accessories I send everyone to 4WD Supa Centre, you'll get a package deal of 4-6 LED light bars for the same price it costs us from our supplier for a single of the same product.

The people making good coin in the auto industry are the suppliers who we buy from, I try and work on 40% margins but its hardly possible as I explained with Bursons, we're basically the extension of our suppliers doing the hard part of the job for the least reward.

Heres an example on service parts:



10L of Penrite HPR5 costs me $120.30 or you $125.95 over the counter.



Or a Ryco Z9 that costs me $8.11 and you $10.95.

I can't charge you more than RRP because otherwise you just go down to Bursons and buy your own parts.

I don't want to sound all woe is me but we get tarred with the brush of 'ripping people off', look what we're working with.

I had an invoice from Ford where the difference in my price and the RRP of the part was about $2 and I was going to show that but I don't have it at hand, imagine if I had to pay freight costs on it?

[Trump]

Originally Posted by Revolver

I know that the above sounds crazy. Like Donald Trump crazy. But there's something I must add:

We recently needed to buy 2 new computers for new employees for the company. Our estimator (who of course provides all the figures for contracts, and that magical 38% markup) got a quote to supply from our IT company these 2 computers (really just run of the mill PCs with all the usual operating software) and was bowled over by the price. He went onto the HP website to find the identical machinery at a much cheaper price.

And he couldn't fathom as to why......

Until I piped up and said "They are doing to us what we doing to our clients, adding money on for nothing we had a part in. That computer is the retaining wall we quoted the other day, and the IT company is us"

"But we already pay them a bucketload every month!" He replied.

"Yup, and our clients are already paying to build a house with us."

I'm still not entirely sure he got it.

I could go on & on with examples, Coco pops at Coles, Sleepmaker mattresses at bedding stores, Pens at officeworks.

Aaaaaand mechanics with parts.

You should have given me a bell...

[suttoo]

Being a parts manager myself and using both Burson and Repco, I find Burson are cheaper on certain items and Repco are cheaper on say ryco filters, bendix brake pads and gates drive belts. Majority I use Burson purely for convenience and if I need it urgently as they delivery mid morning and repco in the arvo.

[Franco Cozzo]

Originally Posted by suttoo

Being a parts manager myself and using both Burson and Repco, I find Burson are cheaper on certain items and Repco are cheaper on say ryco filters, bendix brake pads and gates drive belts. Majority I use Burson purely for convenience and if I need it urgently as they delivery mid morning and repco in the arvo.

We get 4 parts runs a day from Bursons but only two from Repco.

Bursons are a good emergency as they hold huge stock levels at our local branch, but as you can see, pricing.

[OzJavelin]

Repco used to be a great company .. quality stuff .. employees who knew what they were doing. Those guys knew how to find parts, or specs of parts to get the job done. Can't get pistons for a 259 Studebaker V8 .. well, 179 Holden ones have the same dimensions. Thankyou Repco.

Haven't seen Bursons, Autobahn, etc actually BUILD a racecar .. just slap their advertising on them.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Repco#...la_5000_engine

[sd6]

I have no problems with mechanics putting a markup on items or any business so long it is within reason because they worked for their trade discount. I work in a large retail and logistics company dealing mostly in the building industry. Our trade customers either quote their clients material cost at our retail price, in this case the trade customer makes a little profit as a benefit of their business being successful enough to get a trade account with us. In the other case they sometimes will quote the customer at trade or slightly below our retail, this is done to make their quotes more competitive with others.

As mentioned already its the middle man who's the problem, the mechanic can only put a tiny mark up. Its repco and the likes putting the markup. They buy the Chinese made ball joint for example for probably $10, they then sell it to a mechanic shop for $80 while retail was $85. The result is the mechanic makes little to no profit in the parts and the customer pays for it.

There comes a point though when the middle man gets to greedy, the customer be it a person off the street or a mechanic shop gets tired of it, a new supplier starts business and is competitive. Everyone moves to them and the previous middle man gos out of business, its for this reason why ebay and the likes exist. It just becomes interesting when repco for example fails to recognise this and just gets even worse.

[eb2fairmont]

Originally Posted by OzJavelin

Repco used to be a great company .. quality stuff .. employees who knew what they were doing. Those guys knew how to find parts, or specs of parts to get the job done. Can't get pistons for a 259 Studebaker V8 .. well, 179 Holden ones have the same dimensions. Thankyou Repco.

Haven't seen Bursons, Autobahn, etc actually BUILD a racecar .. just slap their advertising on them.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Repco#...la_5000_engine

Love to see repco in its current form do that, using the highly skilled wombats from behind the counter to do it.

[OzriderXR8]

Repco in general is overpriced and I think it is the old 'Premium Brand' con, people think they are getting a quality product.

I have a SCA and Repco next to each other in Melton and SCA is consistently cheaper, by a long shot, on brand name products like spark plugs, filters, batteries etc. I actually find Total Tools far better priced on tools across the board than SCA or Repco.

(And I'm sick of turning up to Repco to buy a special only to be told the 'allocation' has sold out. Plenty of stock, just on a pallet out the back.)

As far as workshops marking up parts I have no problem. They need to cover the hidden costs, time to order, invoicing, paperwork, GST, freight, warehousing, even the time it takes to down tools to sign for a delivery. They are running a business to make a living, why shouldn't they make a profit on supplying parts. Unless they are Pedders and just plain over servicing to rip people off

[chrisandsharon]

I walked out of repco last visit. I had $115 of stuff on the counter, waiting to be served.....waiting waiting......2 blokes in one of the isles behind the counter chatting away and a lady on the phone. After waiting for way too long I just left the stuff on the counter and walked out. I was the only person in the bloody store!! Reminded me of the sloth scene from the movie Zootopia. I don't know how they survive.

[NTF6]

Originally Posted by cro142

The old Repco was bought out by an American company a couple of years ago and they obviously have a "take no prisoners" approach to customers.

I used to like Coventrys, anyone remember them, great prices and service.

[eb2fairmont]

They're now bursons

[Interceptor]

Originally Posted by OzJavelin

Repco used to be a great company .. quality stuff .. employees who knew what they were doing.

Originally Posted by eb2fairmont

Love to see repco in its current form do that, using the highly skilled wombats from behind the counter to do it.

The lack of skilled staff at Repco, along with a move to a more retail oriented operation with lower quality tools, "cheaper" parts and a stock selection covering more than just automotive is a direct result of the freedoms allowed by the internet, where you now have a generation of google/youtube educated "experts" who will happily buy from an online store that provides little or no technical support or advice, simply buys and resells stock.

Its hard enough financially maintaining a bricks and mortar store with the overheads, nevermind paying for staff that know what theyre doing and who are willing to put up with the crap that comes with working in retail, be it from customers or seat warmers higher up the management chain.

If you're not willing to spend the money to employ someone who is mechanically minded and who can read deeper into things than what the parts catalogue on the computer says, at best you get someone who can ask the right questions, feed the information into the computer and read back what the computer spits out. At worst, you get some snot nosed brat who is only there because they keep getting paid, but who doesnt really care about anything than their phone or what parties are on this weekend.

As for the ridiculous mark ups, try this one on for size

Retail price: $209
Dealer buy/wholesale price through the "official" supply chain with a genuine parts sticker and part number: $145
Manufacturers price on MY account pricing: $10.60

And people abuse me saying I'm the one ripping them off!

[fordfreak1]

going to chip in here a little.

firstly my cousin is a mechanic and uses bursons. he doesnt mark up on items other than open packet and install it. eg oil filter/spark plugs.

ive only used repco for maybe for 2 things in my life which were massive sales 50%+ off type of thing. even then i think gee 60% off and they still make profit lol.

im in sales for kitchen/shop fitting industry and we always give our trade customers automatic 30% rrp before they even have to ask for discount. if you buy in bulk type of thing they get anywhere from 30-60% off rrp. thats massive and at times we hardly make any profit at all. cut throat industry where profits are tight. dunno.

[roKWiz]

Tried Repco Benalla today (last resort) looking for automotive paint and was told they don't stock it anymore. WTF !!

[madmelon]

I've been at Repco 10 years. Ownership has gone from Exego Group (Chinese) to GPC Asia Pacific (USA) in that time. It was certainly much more enjoyable and better regarded whilst under Chinese ownership. Biggest changes I've noticed through that is the enormous pressure on managers to extract maximum business from trade customers and the constant price increases, both trade and retail. The two don't really go hand in hand in my eyes but I've been told more than once by store manager/trade rep/regional manager that 'Repco will not compete on price...'.

[madmelon]

Not sure what stores some of you guys visit either but at our tiny store we've got/had numerous engineers and ex mechanics, plus people ex dealership parts departments. If someone doesn't know, they ask someone with more experience.

[chizzy86]

everytime I go to repco it seems the prices have gone up. The markup on some of their more basic hardware type items is extreme. Can get some of the stuff, near identical, from Bunnings.

The weekends where they have 30pc off for NRMA members seem to be getting more frequent as well. Desperation perhaps...

[Franco Cozzo]

Originally Posted by madmelon

I've been at Repco 10 years. Ownership has gone from Exego Group (Chinese) to GPC Asia Pacific (USA) in that time. It was certainly much more enjoyable and better regarded whilst under Chinese ownership. Biggest changes I've noticed through that is the enormous pressure on managers to extract maximum business from trade customers and the constant price increases, both trade and retail. The two don't really go hand in hand in my eyes but I've been told more than once by store manager/trade rep/regional manager that 'Repco will not compete on price...'.

They're not too interested in competing on service either because they only do 2x parts runs a day where as Bursons do 4.

And they're both ripoffs

[ratter]

We pretty much have unlimited tune from both Repco and Bursons

[madmelon]

Originally Posted by Franco Cozzo

They're not too interested in competing on service either because they only do 2x parts runs a day where as Bursons do 4.

And they're both ripoffs

All depends really- the two stores I work at, one has 2 drivers doing hourly runs, one has 3 drivers doing hourly runs. It's Bursons who drop the ball with delivery in my area.

[snowcone]

I recall when Repco was the only place to go for quality car and engine parts.
The latest reincarnation is just a store selling seat covers and GTX "on special".
I walked into my local a few weeks ago needing a Holley needle and seat or an overhaul kit, whatever they had in stock.
Well they had nothing for Holleys and didn't want to even find the parts from a supplier.
I went straight onto eBay and had a full kit for $50 2 days later.
The store just doesn't have the knowledge or the products anymore