Dealership Parts Counter Prices

[Hootbro]

A lot of sniveling about what the owner does with "his" money. It is no one's business what he does with it if you have been compensated with your paycheck for that weeks work. Anything else is just jealousy. Do not like it, then leave as you are not a slave to that owner, nor is he accountable to you other than paying your previously agreed upon wage.

Know your role in life and stay in your swim lane.

 

[urchin]

On many occasions if it wasn't for the diligent, hard working, usually underpaid and poorly treated employee, the customers would have left a long time ago at these numerous places we speak of, and since it isn't that easy to "start your own business" today, most ordinary employees are, stuck in place.
Unless of course Hootbro would rather have us all on unemployment compensation...would you? LOL

Most employees even if they are not well treated by their employer DO care about the end customer and try their best to do the best job they can to satisfy them. I look at it this way, the employer simply hands me the compensation that I deserve from the customer,after all the owner/management does not pay our wages, the customer does.

 

[urchin]

Originally Posted By: Hootbro


Know your role in life and stay in your swim lane.



You must love the way China works, the serfs know their place and could be murdered if they don't submit.

Patrick Mc Goohan, from the Prisoner, "I am not a number, I am a FREE man!"

So Hootbro, where it is written in stone that I should submit to tyranny and injustice?

 

[Hootbro]

Originally Posted By: urchin
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,after all the owner/management does not pay our wages, the customer does.



Nice fantasy, but unless you are a co-op or employee own, this is not the case.

Customer does not negotiate your wage, salary or benefits. The owner does. Any revenue that is brought in is under the auspices of the owners direction and the owners stake in the basic investment capital that he has laid out.

Once again, your are paid a wage that is compensation for work performed. Nothing else.

I like threads like this. Brings out the little socialist and communist thinkers that have not really thought out what capitalism is and the relationship between worker and owner really is.

Truly bad owners who fail to find the proper balance between proper wage compensation and managerial direction, the market will self correct them eventually. True capitalism ensures it.

 

[Hootbro]

Originally Posted By: urchin
Originally Posted By: Hootbro


Know your role in life and stay in your swim lane.



You must love the way China works, the serfs know their place and could be murdered if they don't submit.

Patrick Mc Goohan, from the Prisoner, "I am not a number, I am a FREE man!"

So Hootbro, where it is written in stone that I should submit to tyranny and injustice?



Nice try.

I pay my garbage man to pickup my garbage and nothing else. I pay the neighbor kid to clean my gutters and help with landscaping and nothing else. I pay a friend to paint my house and nothing else.

At the end of the day, all these people were paid and compensated to do a job that was mutually agreed upon and none were forced to do it. All these people were managed by me and compensated by me and generated wealth for me as they added value to my home when I went to sell it. Are they entitled to any profit from my home sale?

Same thing with your owner/employer. They paid you to do a job and specific function and nothing else. That is what I mean by know your role, the role you were hired to do. Staying in your swim lane means just that, do the job you are being compensated to do.

 

[urchin]

Originally Posted By: Hootbro
Originally Posted By: urchin
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,after all the owner/management does not pay our wages, the customer does.



Nice fantasy, but unless you are a co-op or employee own, this is not the case.

Customer does not negotiate your wage, salary or benefits. The owner does. Any revenue that is brought in is under the auspices of the owners direction and the owners stake in the basic investment capital that he has laid out.


Doesn't matter, bottom line, if that customer doesn't show up and buy, the owner management ain't gunna make one red cent. In most typical operations the owner or manager is not running the store at the customer level, only the front line employee is there satisfying the customer. The worst part is that many customers today have been "trained" by the elite in society to tolerate poor customer service because it increases the SHORT TERM profit of the businesses if they can underpay the employee and neglect them.

Quote:

Once again, your are paid a wage that is compensation for work performed. Nothing else.

With a narrow minded attitude like this no wonder most employees could give a [censored], obviously today it is a rare business that values the employees that actually make the business work and are the difference between success and failure. The fact is that a lot of customers complain about poor customer service today most of that can be traced back to management/ownership disrespectful treatment of their supposedly valued employees. Think about it.

Quote:

I like threads like this. Brings out the little socialist and communist thinkers that have not really thought out what capitalism is and the relationship between worker and owner really is.


And that is in your opinion...master>slave?

I like this threads too, it brings out the folks that would like to see neo-feudalism make a return in modern times.

BTW, I am not a socialist, communist, democrat, or republican, I am a free man, who abides by no enslaving construct, including fascism. I actually live what I speak of.

 

[moving2]

Originally Posted By: Hootbro

Nice fantasy, but unless you are a co-op or employee own, this is not the case.

[...]

Truly bad owners who fail to find the proper balance between proper wage compensation and managerial direction, the market will self correct them eventually. True capitalism ensures it.


Hootbro- nice fantasy. Read up on the early history and origin of labor unions in the (capitalistic) US of A and get back to us. If what you say were true, there would be no need for that little piece of history, as "true capitalism would ensure" that. Nice try, though, and thanks for the laugh. Keep em coming.

 

[Hootbro]

People only rise to the level of competency and/or ignorance that is ingrained within them.

 

[Hootbro]

Originally Posted By: moving2


Hootbro- nice fantasy. Read up on the early history and origin of labor unions in the (capitalistic) US of A and get back to us. If what you say were true, there would be no need for that little piece of history, as "true capitalism would ensure" that. Nice try, though, and thanks for the laugh. Keep em coming.


Great, got the Union angle interjected. Thought sea urchin would have brought this up by now.

I will bow out now that the union thug crowd is here.

 

[moving2]

Originally Posted By: Hootbro

Great, got the Union angle interjected. Thought sea urchin would have brought this up by now.

I will bow out now that the union thug crowd is here.


Hootbro- hmm...strange, but I do not see any attempt at a logical or rational counterargument here. Notice I referred specifically to the origin and early history of labor unions in the US, and not the present situation, but you seem to have ignored that....(I wonder why?)

Check and mate. That was almost too easy- I guess we've reached the point where your twisted logic falls flat on its face, and your response is (predictably) to run away as fast as possible with lame and totally invalid excuse in hand. I see pros and cons in modern labor unions, so you have made some incorrect assumptions about me. But I understand completely- how else could you avoid responding but use the "union thug" excuse even when it does not apply and you know nothing about me?

Do get back to us when you can form an actual counterargument (*gasp*), and thanks for trying.

 

[bdcardinal]

Not to change the subject or anything, but the customers attitude greatly reflects the discount they receive. Someone that comes in demanding a discount because their poop is purple and smells like rainbow sherbert is gonna get an artificial discount where they actually get charged MSRP, but the list on the invoice has been bumped up to reflect a discount. The person that comes in and says "is that the best you can do" gets 10% off right away. The person that says "i can get that from Kragen for less from their brand" get told that we don't compete for business against inferior aftermarket parts, trust me we buy and compare.

I know the owner of my dealer lives well, and he has every right to. If I owned a dealer or five, I would expect to be able to live comfortably. I get paid based on department profit. If the owner of a dealer bases his salary off of a set dollar amount, so be it, he owns the place. I get paid what I negotiated and I can tell the months that I bust my butt I see it reflected in my commission pay check.

 

[rat]

Originally Posted By: 82DMC12
Originally Posted By: LS2JSTS
On top of that 82, I'm just not sure that rat understands how a business is run, and how the accounting/payroll/departmental cash flow gets accounted for. The owner of his dealership most likely draws a salary and bonuses, all accounted for clearly for the IRS to review, if they see fit. An owner of a business cant just take cash off the books and put it in his pocket from a department and not account for it somehow. Thats skimming and it's illegal.

If the owner is operating as rat describes, his business would surely have some pretty cooked up books. The IRS might be interested in a peek at those books...lol.


I believe Rat is a typical free-lunch-bunch worker who thinks owners are evil and constantly withholding money that the regular workers have some kind of right to. On top of that, I highly doubt he/she has taken any business courses and understands the difference between things like revenue, profit, gross profit, cost of goods, EBITDA, etc. If this dealership sells over $300,000 a month in over the counter parts, I'd love to know what the name of this dealer is.




Believe what you want, you have obviously never worked in fixed ops at a dealership.
I'm not going to post the name, or actual numbers, but we are a very high volume dealership parts department. We have 8 employees and 2 full time delivery drivers, on top of shipping parts all over the country. I have worked at other dealerships and no others have been set up like this with the $30k "bogey" as we like to call it.
And yes, I have seen the doc sheet, our manager is very open with the numbers. The expenses are paid before the 30k is taken, and we are paid on whatever comes after that.
We have been thru 3 parts managers in my stay here all have scratched their heads how the profit is calculated, but those are the numbers they show us. Every dealership has their own form of creative accounting, this one may be a little more creative I guess.
But to suggest that I am looking for anything for free is quite offensive. I work more than my scheduled hours almost every week for no additional pay. Why? Because I do what needs to be done, and don't leave without finishing what I've started, or stay to help someone else that is behind so we can all get home to our families. I ask for nothing for free, but I do ask that I be compensated for my time, and have the powers that be recognize that gas, food, kids, etc. and not say that things are to tight to consider pay increases. (Same story every year avan though sales steadily have increased since 2008)
Yes, I know, his money his choice and if I don't like it I can go somewhere else.
If only it were that easy.....

 

[82DMC12]

Well if he is really raking in that kind of profit while selling a ridiculous amount of parts, then I hope he is driving a Ferrari with a Maserati for the wife. He deserves it.

I too would expect reasonable compensation from such a successful employer, but it is people like you who lay some kind of claim on profits as if you are the one who bestows sales upon the owner - people like you who didn't put up one penny or made one tough investment choice - people like you who didn't put any thought into the last tv advertisement or the last radio spot - the same people who think the owner would be nothing if it weren't for them - they are the ones who never advance in their career because management is sick of their attitude and you eventually get pushed out or fired.

I know because I have fired people with your exact same attitude. We call them union organizers. They find some kind of thrill by riling up hard working employees and convincing them they are getting screwed while the owner goes home every day at 5 to his billion dollar mansion, his jet planes, his vacation in Prague, all while happily smiling down at you and taking "your" money.

No, the people who get what they deserve do their job, they shut up, they work hard starting from the bottom, and apply for every promotion they can get their hands on, and when they don't get it, they work harder. They work at a quick pace, they don't take smoke breaks, they don't leave for lunch for 2 hours on a Friday, they don't call in sick every other week, and mind their own business when other employees have a dispute.

All the while, people like you accuse others of 'creative accounting'.

 

[rat]

Originally Posted By: 82DMC12
Well if he is really raking in that kind of profit while selling a ridiculous amount of parts, then I hope he is driving a Ferrari with a Maserati for the wife. He deserves it.

I too would expect reasonable compensation from such a successful employer, but it is people like you who lay some kind of claim on profits as if you are the one who bestows sales upon the owner - people like you who didn't put up one penny or made one tough investment choice - people like you who didn't put any thought into the last tv advertisement or the last radio spot - the same people who think the owner would be nothing if it weren't for them - they are the ones who never advance in their career because management is sick of their attitude and you eventually get pushed out or fired.

I know because I have fired people with your exact same attitude. We call them union organizers. They find some kind of thrill by riling up hard working employees and convincing them they are getting screwed while the owner goes home every day at 5 to his billion dollar mansion, his jet planes, his vacation in Prague, all while happily smiling down at you and taking "your" money.

No, the people who get what they deserve do their job, they shut up, they work hard starting from the bottom, and apply for every promotion they can get their hands on, and when they don't get it, they work harder. They work at a quick pace, they don't take smoke breaks, they don't leave for lunch for 2 hours on a Friday, they don't call in sick every other week, and mind their own business when other employees have a dispute.

All the while, people like you accuse others of 'creative accounting'.



You really just don't get it.
I don't smoke, and rarely take any breaks. I often skip lunches or take a short lunch because things are getting backed up. Called in sick once in the last 3 years.
I don't get anyone "riled up" at work talking about any of this. I simply saw an opportunity on the forum here to let out a rant and for some reason you assume that I expect something for nothing. That simply is not the case no matter what kind of spin you attempt to put on it. I'm sorry you have had bad luck with employees, we have had some like that here too over the years. Let me ask you this, if you are a business owner, and the business is doing great, how would you treat your employees?

 

[82DMC12]

I would institute a bonus program for parts dept workers based on customers survey results, minimizing inventory loss and theft, correct staffing levels that minimize payroll while providing adequate service, minimizing parts returned, and demonstration of knowledge of parts and pos system. All things that improve profits.

Your dealership's bonus program rewards employees based on revenue which inevitably leads to recommending more expensive or extra parts, marking up parts arbitrarily, and generally taking more money than necessary from customers.

 

[rat]

Now see, your plan sounds great. I wish more employers had the same outlook.

 

[82DMC12]

Originally Posted By: rat
Now see, your plan sounds great. I wish more employers had the same outlook.


Then my advice is for you to take my idea, present it to the owner as if you came up with it and explain how it will help everyone make more money while improving profits (more important than straight up revenues ) and improving the customer experience. When he sees how much sense you make he might just come to appreciate you more.

 

[mechanicx]

Originally Posted By: 82DMC12
Your dealership's bonus program rewards employees based on revenue which inevitably leads to recommending more expensive or extra parts, marking up parts arbitrarily, and generally taking more money than necessary from customers.


But it is OK if the owner takes any size profit he wants and takes more money than necessary from the customers (and employees) but not OK for the employees to get the reward. I got it.

And stop saying the owner invested and the employees haven't. Rat said the owner inherited the business. The dealership employees invested in education, tools, transportation to get to work, their time and everything else that is required to be a presentable and productive worker. And if the business goes under they have if anything more to lose than the woner with more resources. I'm not saying the owner can't control the finances as he sees fit, but you sure paint a one-side view and stick up for the owner. Not that I always agree with it but people call dealerships "stealerships" but it's the owner who normally puts the "stealer" in stealership.

 

[82DMC12]

Originally Posted By: mechanicx
Originally Posted By: 82DMC12
Your dealership's bonus program rewards employees based on revenue which inevitably leads to recommending more expensive or extra parts, marking up parts arbitrarily, and generally taking more money than necessary from customers.


But it is OK if the owner takes any size profit he wants and takes more money than necessary from the customers (and employees) but not OK for the employees to get the reward. I got it.

And stop saying the owner invested and the employees haven't. Rat said the owner inherited the business. The dealership employees invested in education, tools, transportation to get to work, their time and everything else that is required to be a presentable and productive worker. And if the business goes under they have if anything more to lose than the woner with more resources. I'm not saying the owner can't control the finances as he sees fit, but you sure paint a one-side view and stick up for the owner. Not that I always agree with it but people call dealerships "stealerships" but it's the owner who normally puts the "stealer" in stealership.


So this guy inherited the dealership and he never has to make a capital infusion? He never has to sign his name to get a loan for car inventory? He never has to finance the 3.6M in parts they sell a year? Apparently this wonder-dealership is a gift that keeps on giving with zero risk on the owner's part. He really found the golden goose, didn't he? I'm positive he has put some money into it or at the very least has risk in the dealership's failure.

As for the mechanics' investments..... that's totally irrelevant. Their investments have been in themselves, their own education, and their own livelihood. If the dealer goes under they pack up their tools and find another dealer to work for. They don't lose their tools and they don't lose their education. They made zero investment in the dealer; they invested in themselves. So no, that is not the same thing.

Yes, I am sticking up for the owner because it's unbelievable the things lower level employees assume about what it takes to run a business. Laughable.

 

[mechanicx]

I just think you are too biased. Not every business owner is investing their own personal money. Often they are just paying bills with loaned and sometimes inherited money or revenue and not even using personal credit at stake. That's not any superior to how anyone else pays their bills, maybe even their mechanic tool bills that they could lose and wreck their credit over. If the establishment goes under the owner is not necessarily ruined, he may have substantial personal wealth or still be able to open another business, and he can go get a job just like the employees can. A lot of owners don't know what their employees go through either.