Ask a car salesman anything...anything at all (Vol. 2).
Discussion
papa3 said:
That's a sweeping and baseless statement. It may be true in a given business or group but the industry has never done more to recruit and train young staff nor paid as much to retain those with experience.
The problem lies in the perceived value by the customer. We see posts on here regularly complaining about the cost of dealership servicing but in the same breath criticising the industry for poor staff retention and pay rates.
Our workshop rate has been unchanged since 2020 as we resist passing a certain £/h level. Since 2016 it has only risen 7% BUT remains nearly double the rate charged by the small, non franchised businesses local to us. This difference is cited on forums endlessly but is never considered in light of the massive costs associated with the franchised network.
When I joined the industry in 1997 the aftersales business was expected to absorb 110% of the business overhead. Today that figure averages at 55%. Today a great franchised operator will return 3% of turnover, most manage only 1%.
Despite this we train apprentices to internationally recognised standards, offer (now) normal working hours and provide premises of the highest standards. Our tools and equipment are audited to ensure we comply with the brand standards AND our CSI is monitored in near real time with failures often carrying significant financial penalties.
There are good and bad in any industry and the motor trade has itself to blame for much of the poor reputation it suffers, but, it has progressed as an industry, one which changes constantly, and provides a complex range of services which are cash and investment intensive for low returns.
Good post. I work for a global OEM (in a completely unrelated field) and much of what you say rings true for us as well, apart from the reluctance to increase prices. We don’t, however, deal with Joe publicThe problem lies in the perceived value by the customer. We see posts on here regularly complaining about the cost of dealership servicing but in the same breath criticising the industry for poor staff retention and pay rates.
Our workshop rate has been unchanged since 2020 as we resist passing a certain £/h level. Since 2016 it has only risen 7% BUT remains nearly double the rate charged by the small, non franchised businesses local to us. This difference is cited on forums endlessly but is never considered in light of the massive costs associated with the franchised network.
When I joined the industry in 1997 the aftersales business was expected to absorb 110% of the business overhead. Today that figure averages at 55%. Today a great franchised operator will return 3% of turnover, most manage only 1%.
Despite this we train apprentices to internationally recognised standards, offer (now) normal working hours and provide premises of the highest standards. Our tools and equipment are audited to ensure we comply with the brand standards AND our CSI is monitored in near real time with failures often carrying significant financial penalties.
There are good and bad in any industry and the motor trade has itself to blame for much of the poor reputation it suffers, but, it has progressed as an industry, one which changes constantly, and provides a complex range of services which are cash and investment intensive for low returns.
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