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Mobile Oil Change Companies Disadvantages and Inventory Control
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You know there are certain drawbacks to being mobile in the oil change
business, for instance trying to offer add-ons during oil changing services.
For instance we need to get the orders the day before and stop off at the
local NAPA, and pick up the air cleaners, filters, because it is impossible
to try to stock all those damn filters. You indicate you are ware of this
already and rightfully so.
As any Quick Lube operator or anyone in the Associations will tell it, it
just sucks. Why? Well many reasons for instance every time they build a new
car the air filer seems to be the last thing designed and has to fit in a
little space. So of course every type of car requires a different
specification. Of course if you tried to carry all these you would go broke
and the dealers shops do not want you to change the oil or sell the filters,
they want that additional business. Makes sense, but it does not make you
any dollars.
Now realize that in the R.L. Polk catalog I counted 398 types of filters?
Ouch are they serious? Yes and they want you to buy 36 of each I bet? Still
where would you put them, we for instance being mobile would need an extra
Grumman 24’ box van just to carry filters and it would be filled floor to
ceiling, open the door and it would explode like a Taco bell corn tortilla
you bite into too fast. You would be drown in a sea of endless filters
burying you like Saddam and His Sons under the ground from a bunker buster
bomb, lots of luck there, we all know the end to that story. Which does not
need an oil change by the way, only regime changing going on these days, the
oil is for the people. Imagine the cost of 36 of each type of air filter a
small space sensitive location for a quick lube would need to be one bay
short just to house them. That is a lot of skew numbers to keep track of and
also realize that in 1977, 40 new types of filters were added and many of
those cars are still on the road today.
Normally however 10-30 filters are added per year. The manufacturers may
love their core businesses but do not kid yourself because their dealers
want your oil change business too, all of it, they want it now and big time.
It has been said by certain experts that you can get 80-90% coverage with
about 100-116 filter types. But that is still too much for mobile services,
even too much for the smaller compact prefab type quick lubes. Too many
filters to keep track of, no more add-ons to sell, drowning in self-pity,
want to quit? You are not alone as many in the industry indicate, but for
the rest of us, we need to have good relations with suppliers and jobbers to
stock our excess needs for us, so we can cover the inventory of 80% of the
customers needs with as little as 100 or less types of filters. The
competition is tough for some, but that just proves we are in a good
industry, where there is steady customer demand and that it is worth
fighting for.
http://www.oilchangeguys.com
Lance Winslow is a retired entrepreneur; http://CarWashGuys.com
and works with the World Think Tank; http://www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/
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