I remember when....... (PAH)

Dave Yates (PAH)

I remember the day I lost a Kohler one-piece water closet sale to Lowes. Man I was pissed. They were selling that WC BELOW my costs! I was stunned. I mean, here I was a strict Kohler contractor and now I was being undercut and undersold. I thought my world would crash around me.

But time moved on, as it has a penchant to do, and I learned that those loyalties I had come to expect were undermined by the need to boost sales. So, I grew up and accepted that this was to be the coming trend and I also watched and learned.

It's sales, that's what drives the market. Get over it and move on. If you don't like the WM deal at HD, don't get involved. Sell something else. Promote yourself and let the chips fall where they ultimately will. If HD runs this program like the water heater sales & installation methods employeed by all of the big boxes, you've got nothing to sweat. Low ballers will get the work and cycle themselves in and out of business.

I'll take a look at this new program, if for no other reason than to get the inside scoop on how it is to be run. If by some wonderous fluke of nature HD allows the installers to make a profit, and I mean an actual numbers crunching decent profit, I might consider being a part of the process. But the reality will be that only HD will be ensured a profit by skimming off a percentage, which is ok by me if we find we need to compete against them in the marketplace. Just one more layer of mark up that we don't have.

Prices seldom are the defining element in a well presented sales pitch anyway, especially when it comes to hydronics. Who knows, they might just force me to be a tad sharper in my presentations.

Guess what's next (IMHO)? Direct sales (bypassing wholesalers) to the trades! It's already begun & I'm not thrilled by the long term prospects. We've refused to participate so far. I need my local suppliers to remain profitable and responsive.

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Mark Eatherton1

Here Here!!

Profitable AND responsive.

Good words to live by Dave.

I'm a firm believer in the 5 tiered system.

Manufacturer>Rep>Wholesaler>Contractor>End Use Customer.

It has worked well for a couple a hundred years. Don't fix what ain't broke, and quit trying to re-invent the sales wheel.

ME

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Brian (Tankless) Wood

What a coinkydink

I just happened to be in the hood of an old "friend" plumbing contractor who I turned on to the Tankless concept about 7-8 yrs ago. He really took to it like he'd found a bunch of new toys that he could afford, and make a profit from. I educated his tech's, spent time at his shop, talked with his customers. And showed him how these babies could jump through all kinds of hoops (applications). He bought lots of these from me, then it kinda dried up.

I actually dropped in to show him another profit-generating techno-gem. But while I was wondering what the sheepish look on his face was all about, I looked in the corner of his office and saw one each of the gas & electric units he'd been buying from me. Money's thicker than water eh?

Oh, the literature I left on his desk. I picked it up on the way out.

It's ok, I sleep very well at night, no concience problems here.

Y'all have a great weekend fella's, and what's that golden rule again )

Brian in Swampland.

hr

I'll bet if you

spent a few years in an area where the " holy chain of distribution" doesn't link your view would change.

Be thankful you live and work in an area with competent, connected, links. It certainly isn't like that everywhere

hot rod

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Dave Yates (PAH)

We're very lucky

to have several very responsive supply houses that go the extra mile with customer service. There's a larger number of ones that are stinkers and if that's all we had, I'd have an account at Lowes and HD! There's one in particular that if they were the only way we could get materials, I'd find a different line of work

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