BIKEGEARWAREHOUSE concern

[Lurch]

The lesson here is, don't buy stuff that isn't in stock.

[Robert Taylor]

Pffft. I'm still trying to get money back from motorcyclegear.co.NZ from a month ago on an item not in stock but on the companies front page, it was still on the front page 13 days later.

My only bad experience with an internet transaction and it was local. Oh and it's been the worst communication ever too. Literally 7 days for a reply at times. The 0800 No. does'nt even exist and good luck ringing the other no. it will ring for days....... I have about 10 different emails to and from and am close to using the diputes tribunal. I always from overseas companies have had a reply within a day, and i'm pretty sure they are far busier than this N.Z shop, which for christs sake is in the same damn City...... Which also funnily enough is actually listed under the new Yamaha shop in Glenfield. So here's your warning away from them all of you if this is how they run their business! Fuck that. I seriously would'nt reccommend it, they are really a hastle.

Even after explaining how the shitty communication is really pissing me off, I still have an un-answered email from 3 days ago.......

So much for local huh?

(I usually do buy local when it's economically viable or I need expert/technical help)

In no way am I an apologist for shonky service but there is one thing I can relate to, keeping on top of answering e-mails.

Sometimes it will be 4 or 5 days before I can answer e-mails, especially if I have been away at an event for 3 days and it has absolutely trashed me.

Big overseas companies have enough turnover that they have a better ratio of staff to enquiries, or someone dedicated to e-mail. Its simplistic to think that companies in NZ are slack, often its because they have to run on a shoestring and cannot afford the extra cost in staff to answer enquiries more quickly, FACT.

[Robert Taylor]

I've read your posts on a couple of threads now and you come across as a reasonable voice in the NZ bike industry.

But, the whole premise of prices in NZ is a bit eschewed.

In simple business terms:
Wholesalers should theoretically be able to purchase items for the cost of the manufacturers price (which is the manufacturers cost plus a premium).
Retailers should theoretically be able to purchase items at the wholesalers price (which is the wholesalers cost plus a premium).
Consumers purchase at the retailers price (which is retailers cost plus a premium).

What we see time and time again is consumers being able to purchase, by importing, the EXACT same items for far less than the the local retail price.

This would allude to the retail/ wholesale margins being too high or just sloppy wholesale importing by wholesalers. But, if it was the later, the consumer generally doesn't see the flip side (reduced local cost versus import cost) when the wholesaler has imported at a favorable (versus present) exchange rate.

It's all a bunch of bull when it gets down to it. Something is amiss if the consumer can consistently import at a lower cost than the local retailer.

NZ exporters (which are mainly dairy) moan to fuck when the exchange rate goes against them and put up the price of butter/ milk etc in the local market to cover costs (as if it is somehow subsidising local prices which is also bull but that is a side issue). But you never hear a word when a beneficial exchange rate movement goes in their favour.

Switch the positive and negatives around and you have wholesale importers.

What is truly happening is that NZ consumers are becoming savvy to the rort of wholesalers charging when they lose out but not discounting when they make gains. This is the true reason of why you are seeing more and more of the consumers bypassing both the local retailers/ wholesalers and sourcing direct either from the manufacturers or off-shore retailers.

For me the whole NZ retail/ wholesale model needs an overhaul or it will just fade away. I started another thread on trading hours and was quite simply amazed at the push back of industry people who (in my mind) are unable to grasp the concept of modern business practices.

iI hear what you are saying and can see both sides of the coin. There are some shocking realities and Ive done these to death in previous posts, including;

Wholesalers in big economies such as the US have better buying power and often get better prices off the manufacturers

They operate on very thin margins and high turnover, a far fetched dream for NZ distributors

The exchange rate against $US makes it rather too easy for offshore purchases

Many privately imported goods come in under the radar and dont attract GST on the fob value of the goods, EDR fees, MAF fees, port fees etc and GST on all of those
And then theres also the matter of invoice falsification....

Legitimate distributors have advertising costs to promote the product ( and the parasites effectively feed off the profile created ) They also have compliance costs, infrastructure costs and stocking costs etc. Ad infinitum. They also pay all clearance costs and gst. Hardly a level playing field...........

A jerk ( and I make no apology for saying that ) had the temerity to say ''wanking on''. It really illustrates how much ignorance there is out there about the real cost of running a business in this country.

In a small economy the ratio of business running costs is really not that good against returns, compared to a large economy with infinitely more customers, FACT.

In reality the whole wholesale and retail etiquette thing is seriously under threat, the negative by product being that its going to erode the convenience of popping down to the motorcycle dealer just around the corner. If you need technical help its not going to be on your doorstep.

What will ''Kiwi bleaters '' make of that???

[98tls]

Fwiw on the Customs thing posted a few posts back these days customs are well onto things and the implications for both the sender and receiver if caught are fairly hefty,cant say that over the years i havent been happy to accept the mucking about with value thing but these days dont be surprised if whatever dealer you buying off refuses to do it.I chose to pay the GST on a set of Carrozzeria rims i received recently despite the offer of mucking about with the value,Customs fuck about enough already i can only imagine how long it would take (if at all) to get stuff which they discover has been de-valued not to mention a hefty fine for someone if not both ends.

[Robert Taylor]

Took three weeks for my TBW exhausts to be manufactured in US, packed, shipped to Auckland and then shipped to me. That time frame you have been told is utter crap and should never take that long.

I think you should develop an understanding of manufacturing before you shoot from the hip.....

mazz1972 has clarified parts of the issue very well. Especially the bigger manufacturers have to schedule production months in advance as no manufacturer has unlimited production capacity. Especially when there are hundreds of product lines. You cannot just rejig the production line at the snap of ones fingers because there is a guy bleating from an insignificant market at the bottom of the world ( well thats how they might look at it ) Many manufacturers also have subcontractors that make specialist parts and its dependent on those subcontractors supplying on time, and also those subcontractors being supplied suitable material on time. And a manufacturer of high quality products ( such as Ohlins ) have a quality inspection department inspecting incoming components from subcontractors. For example for many months last year we werent recieving MX steering dampers from Ohlins and many customers were screaming at us for them. The reality was that Ohlins were constantly unhappy with the stability of the tolerance of the main body parts they were recieving from the subcontractor. In turn the subcontractor was having very real issues sourcing high enough quality material because of a worldwide shortage of same. Created by China!!!!!!!!!! Lesson, it only takes one cog in the machine to fail and it all turns to shite.
It also makes good economic sense to slightly underproduce, then you dont have to discount off excess stock at the end of season, negatively impacting on your balance sheet

[jellywrestler]

who live in glass houses and throw stones.

.

isn't it "people who live in glass houses should have sex in the basement..."

[Robert Taylor]

isn't it "people who live in glass houses should have sex in the basement..."

Especially if they are ugly and cannot sell the video rights, yes.

You know its funny, I get asked if fitting Ohlins suspension makes a bike safer. I then answer ''well yes, but it then allows you to crash at a higher speed'' Thats worth the humour of looking at the expression in response....

[Robert Taylor]

I think you should develop an understanding of manufacturing before you shoot from the hip.....

mazz1972 has clarified parts of the issue very well. Especially the bigger manufacturers have to schedule production months in advance as no manufacturer has unlimited production capacity. Especially when there are hundreds of product lines. You cannot just rejig the production line at the snap of ones fingers because there is a guy bleating from an insignificant market at the bottom of the world ( well thats how they might look at it ) Many manufacturers also have subcontractors that make specialist parts and its dependent on those subcontractors supplying on time, and also those subcontractors being supplied suitable material on time. And a manufacturer of high quality products ( such as Ohlins ) have a quality inspection department inspecting incoming components from subcontractors. For example for many months last year we werent recieving MX steering dampers from Ohlins and many customers were screaming at us for them. The reality was that Ohlins were constantly unhappy with the stability of the tolerance of the main body parts they were recieving from the subcontractor. In turn the subcontractor was having very real issues sourcing high enough quality material because of a worldwide shortage of same. Created by China!!!!!!!!!! Lesson, it only takes one cog in the machine to fail and it all turns to shite.
It also makes good economic sense to slightly underproduce, then you dont have to discount off excess stock at the end of season, negatively impacting on your balance sheet

Lead times for product are if anything going to increase. Manufacturers operate on very tight single figure nett profit and to that end manufacturing is always a big risk. Now more so in a recession hit world where operating costs have to be trimmed. To that end many manufacturers have cut staff and so have their supplying contractors. Lowering capacity to supply quickly even further.
Dont bleat because there aint a thing you can do about it, get used to it.

[AllanB]

Big overseas companies have enough turnover that they have a better ratio of staff to enquiries, or someone dedicated to e-mail. Its simplistic to think that companies in NZ are slack, often its because they have to run on a shoestring and cannot afford the extra cost in staff to answer enquiries more quickly, FACT.

I agree 100% with you here.
I often get numerous e-mails daily that do not get responded to immediately - often several days.

Why?

Simple, you could easily spend a half day responding to them at the expense of your core business and consequently miss established deadlines.

Because e-mails pop-up on the spot and are often read immediately they often gain an importance well beyond their content. You need to train yourself to prioritise them and respond when required.

[Robert Taylor]

I agree 100% with you here.
I often get numerous e-mails daily that do not get responded to immediately - often several days.

Why?

Simple, you could easily spend a half day responding to them at the expense of your core business and consequently miss established deadlines.

Because e-mails pop-up on the spot and are often read immediately they often gain an importance well beyond their content. You need to train yourself to prioritise them and respond when required.

Yep, and if people are so urgent telephone is also another option, as long as they are coherent in the language.

[Renegade]

emails can be answered anywhere in the world via a cell phone these days aye...

[The Pastor]

Not blanketly true and very symptomatic of the emotive simplistic nonsense posted on this site. Ive explained some of the problems with supply from the manufacturers themselves, did you not understand or do you refuse to believe it? Being a national distributor I think I have a reasonable understanding and took the trouble to explain some of the reasons why things like this happen.

nah, you don't know shit aye......

[Robert Taylor]

nah, you don't know shit aye......

Apparently, everyone complaining on here is an expert and knows all the fixes.

[Robert Taylor]

emails can be answered anywhere in the world via a cell phone these days aye...

Indeed they can, sometimes I curse my blackberry, sometimes its a blessing.

[Headbanger]

Because e-mails pop-up on the spot and are often read immediately they often gain an importance well beyond their content. You need to train yourself to prioritise them and respond when required.

You still need to respond to them (all) in a timely manner, If I don't get a response within a day then the company is off the list. They are certainly less immediate then a phone call but we all know how bad form it is to not answer the phone.