twistedtree
ArboristSite Member
My profession is high-tech. I'm just a weekend worrier with saws and forestry. But in the tech business, this issue of box stores undercutting smaller shops (Dell, CompUSA, Best Buy, etc.), paying more for access to qualified support (your local computer store), etc. is an old story. Some companies have managed their way thru the transition well, others have not. It's a real lesson in Dawin at work.
So, I'm real interested in how this is evolving in the chainsaw industry, including Stihl's approach, and Husky's approach. Both models have been shown to work in other industries, but they are oviously very different.
To try to understand this, I've got a few questions for those of you who are dealers.
1) What percentage of your revenue comes from saw sales, and what comes from parts and service?
2) What percentage of your NET comes from sales versus service and parts?
It's very interesting to me that dealers are resistant to separating saw sales from service. Is it economically driven? Do you make more money selling than servicing? My guess would be that there is just as much margin in service as in sales, if not more, but I don't know.
It also seems to me that as a small shop with service capabilities, you have something that the box stores don't, and never will have, and that you can take advantage of that. Isn't there money to be made servicing all those saws sold by box stores? If I were a saw repair shop, I'd be looking to work a deal with the local box stores to refer all their customers to me for that service/checkup after the first few tanks of gas, and I'd charge the customer for the checkup. I'd make those customers feel welcome in my shop, not shunned, so every time they screw something up, I can charge them to fix it. Over the life of the saw, I'd expect to make more $ off that customer than the box store. It seems like a great opportunity, but I must be missing something. Is this just resistance to change?
So, I'm real interested in how this is evolving in the chainsaw industry, including Stihl's approach, and Husky's approach. Both models have been shown to work in other industries, but they are oviously very different.
To try to understand this, I've got a few questions for those of you who are dealers.
1) What percentage of your revenue comes from saw sales, and what comes from parts and service?
2) What percentage of your NET comes from sales versus service and parts?
It's very interesting to me that dealers are resistant to separating saw sales from service. Is it economically driven? Do you make more money selling than servicing? My guess would be that there is just as much margin in service as in sales, if not more, but I don't know.
It also seems to me that as a small shop with service capabilities, you have something that the box stores don't, and never will have, and that you can take advantage of that. Isn't there money to be made servicing all those saws sold by box stores? If I were a saw repair shop, I'd be looking to work a deal with the local box stores to refer all their customers to me for that service/checkup after the first few tanks of gas, and I'd charge the customer for the checkup. I'd make those customers feel welcome in my shop, not shunned, so every time they screw something up, I can charge them to fix it. Over the life of the saw, I'd expect to make more $ off that customer than the box store. It seems like a great opportunity, but I must be missing something. Is this just resistance to change?