- This topic has 4 replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 13 years, 6 months ago by
.
-
Posts
-
Guys just to keep you in the loop as to whats going on with manufacturers –
Liebherr They are now starting to go through the engineer listing given to them by the negotiating team; taking off those that can do system work and contacting them directly. Take on board that they have some engineers that they used before the ISDAL thing and these will continue to be employed by them.
Rangemaster The first training course will be in November, once you’ve done the training you we be appointed as approved service agents
Foster/V-Zug/Spanish hoods Bryans looking after these
Hoover/Candy To be honest I’m not sure here and if I explain you will follow my drift. When it became apparent that they were having troubles I contacted them and offered our help but stated that we would be looking for between £45-50 a job with extras where appopriate. As you’ll remember I put a post up on the forum indicating we had said hello. On Monday 8th when I was at Defra Susan Biddle left me a voicemail to contact her when I was free. I subsequently contacted her on Tuesday and was informed ‘its OK Ian someone has given me a list of your members and we have contacted them and negotiated a reduced payment deal’ Now what you have to understand is that in doing this they immediately undermined the negotiating team but more importantly the engineers ended up with less money 😥
What is really important to understand is that this network information is worth its weight in gold, for a manufacturer to have all the information that would take months to put together the cost saving is immense. This is why I never give out the information BEFORE the deal is done. So who knows – if we get lucky they may come back if not it was f***** by somone who with perhaps the best intentions in the world didnt think/ask first. :rolls:Re: Manufacturers Update
Cheers Ian
This with GIAS is interesting as Susan contacted me last week after I sent her an email following her post.
I am currently negotiating with her regarding postcodes and rates which are in line with yours stated above not lower rates. TBH and open we are at £48 plus an enhancement for Gas calls.
Area wise we are talking all of Wales, SY, GL, HR and TF postcodes.
At no point have the WTA come up in our discussions so I am curious as to why they aren’t talking straight on this, do you think she is playing one against the other? How has she negotiated a price with all individual agents?
I will keep you updated via PM as matters develop from my end.
Again to be open, I don’t have a list of WTA members to disclose to her or anyone else for that matter.
Best wishes all
Carl
Sent from my iPhone 4s using Tapatalk
http://www.lofra-uk.co.ukRe: Manufacturers Update
Candy have always done this. 😕
They epitomise the “divide and conquer” tactic when it comes to agents, they used to ban us from talking let alone, God forbid, actually meeting.
However, barring the odd bribe (as is the Italian way) they were actually pretty loyal, up to the point where it cost them money. Or, to the point where the “old boys” that were Hoover had their jobs put at risk, even if that cost more.
They will try to screw the guys at every turn for the lowest possible price and they will try to sweet talk you into giving up information for free if possible. If they could, they’d get you to do the work for free and then present themselves to their masters as the greatest thing since sliced bread.
It’s in the DNA of the company.
Having worked with them for fifteen years myself and a number before that having to listen to my old boy, I know what they’re like.
I’ve not worked for them for about ten years now but that doesn’t mean I don’t have a handle on them completely.
So, here’s how this is gonna work…
Where they have cover by their own they will use that.
Where they don’t they’ll use agents.
Where they don’t have the skills, especially gas and refrigeration, they’ll use agents and, they’ve no gas registered agents anywhere, at all. Screw them big time on that if you get a chance.
When they don’t have enough for their own, they’ll send them into areas covered by agents.
Where they have problems, they’ll pass those to the agents.
Where they can screw the agents over to lower costs, they will.
They will not offer any stock at all, the best you might get if you really push it and, they really need you, is to offer you extended credit terms to sweeten the deal.
From my experience which is, admittedly bitter in some respects especially since Hoover took them over… oh sorry, the other way around, they want as much as possible for as little as possible.
These days, there’s nobody there with any experience of running service agents even although the UK is the only country in Europe that Candy have employed engineers. Hell knows if they even have a sensible system to deal with it now but, given my experience with Hoover management, I doubt it in the extreme.
To simply give over the info whether well intentioned or not was, IMHO, an error of judgement in many ways.
The leverage was gas and system, give them that information and you have no leverage on them whatsoever. Laundry agents are ten a penny and they will be offered the idiotic low rates unless they are strategically important, ie, in remote areas.
I haven’t spoken to them and I have no particular desire to do so.
Unless of course they will agree to the rate I offered them on gas and problem calls almost a decade ago of £80 a call. Tony Gaimes declined. Bruno Pino was gone, put to pasture. Dave Highton was… ehm, let go. Chris was dumped. In fact, there were no actual Candy staff at all, just old Hoover spods and, I had to deal with the Muppet Show operated from Cambuslang.
So, they pootled off to ISDAL.
Who then asked me to do it via Richard. I politely declined.
Hell knows who’s been picking up their sh1t for the past (almost) decade and, TBH, I don’t really care. If they were stupid enough to take that on at ISDAL’s rates, hell mend them.
The next time they asked I wanted £85 a call and a two year termination from them, three months from me. They declined. I was pleased with that.
So if the guys are desperate and stupid enough to take it on for £35 a call, good luck to them. I suspect that those that do will end up losing out the deal badly.
I’d just hate to think that they hear the words, “We got your details from the WTA… ” ringing in their ears as the knife is twisted in their backs.
K.
Re: Manufacturers Update
Not me… Susan Biddle did get in touch last week to get my information but was dismayed at the fact that I do not do Gas or refrigeration system work as this apparently is what she is actually hunting for.
She did indicate that it would be unlikely that my services would be required as she had their own employed engineers and agents to cover all what I cover.George
Re: Manufacturers Update
Well I have had Susan on the phone this PM asking if we would do 6 gas jobs and a microwave call for her in the areas we agreed to do.
We have it in writing now, that I am going to get the following rates because I said no to £35.00 across the board which is what she wanted to pay!
Home Laundry £42.50
Refrigeration £48.00 plus £16.00 for system work
Microwaves £42.50
Gas Work £58.00
Floorcare £34.00I dont expect much Laundry or floorcare to be honest as she is only after covering the system work and gas (in particular gas work).
I am waiting the contract she wants us to agree to, to be sent over, which I shall tear apart, and re do properly. 😀
There was absolutely no mention of the WTA whatsoever.
I am a little fortunate that the areas she wants covered, there are nearly NO agents able to cover all the disciplines so I have the advantage.
Just thought I would update you as promised.
Oh yea, she agreed to pay me in full for the outstanding ISDAL work too!
Carl
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.