A
Anonymous
Guest
My solution is to live so far away from a parts store, I have to order everything and have it delivered. I love this internet thingy.
-
Hello there guest and Welcome to The #1 Classic Mustang forum!
To gain full access you must Register. Registration is free and it takes only a few moments to complete.
Already a member? Login here then!
Autozone sucks!
- Thread starter Flysure1
- Start date
JeffTepper
Well-Known Member
The level of "customer service" described in the OP is inexcusable. However, given the marketplace that we have helped to create, it is not surprising.
Back in the day, the counter guys (even at Kragen's) were first and foremost car guys and, to a much smaller extent, car gals. That has changed significantly. As a culture, many modern day auto parts store customers are driven by price alone so, in the dog-eat-dog world of retail commerce, the cheapest survives..... (ie: the Walmarts of the world);
Modernly, price has become the only criteria for many folks. Part of the low pricing involves keeping a tight lid on overhead expenses which for many businesses, the largest line item expense is the cost of labor. It costs more to hire and retain knowledgable, competent, counter people. By and large, you get what you pay for;
When I grew up, the local business owners were my neighbors. It went without saying that you patronized the local businesses to keep the local economy healthy and they treated you properly because they understood the idea of not biting the hand that feeds them;
Part of the mainstream auto parts industry seems to have migrated toward the owners of what I will call "mid range" cars (10-25 year old daily drivers) , many of whom are less picky about quality than more traditional old car hobbyists;
Old car hobbyists are more likely to search out parts on the internet and bypass the more traditional brick & mortar auto parts store further eroding the demand for many hobbyist parts at the local store;
In the retail world, it's all about moving the merchandise, and products that gather dust on the shelf do not contribute to the bottom line;
The free market, (which answers to Wall Street), consisting of large corporate conglomerates that include auto parts divisions, seems to have concluded that old car hobbyists are not a large enough segment of the local auto parts business to bother with. Continuing forward, eventually the old school local auto parts places will be forced out of business because they can't compete price wise with the Walmart mind set.
At the end of the day, it isn't about price, it's about value. A cheap part from a rude, incompetent, counter guy/gal that doesn't t fit, doesn't work properly , or doesn't last can hardly be called a good value. Next time you bypass an old school auto parts store to save 0.25 cents on a $10.00 part, consider the long term effect of that decision...........................
Back in the day, the counter guys (even at Kragen's) were first and foremost car guys and, to a much smaller extent, car gals. That has changed significantly. As a culture, many modern day auto parts store customers are driven by price alone so, in the dog-eat-dog world of retail commerce, the cheapest survives..... (ie: the Walmarts of the world);
Modernly, price has become the only criteria for many folks. Part of the low pricing involves keeping a tight lid on overhead expenses which for many businesses, the largest line item expense is the cost of labor. It costs more to hire and retain knowledgable, competent, counter people. By and large, you get what you pay for;
When I grew up, the local business owners were my neighbors. It went without saying that you patronized the local businesses to keep the local economy healthy and they treated you properly because they understood the idea of not biting the hand that feeds them;
Part of the mainstream auto parts industry seems to have migrated toward the owners of what I will call "mid range" cars (10-25 year old daily drivers) , many of whom are less picky about quality than more traditional old car hobbyists;
Old car hobbyists are more likely to search out parts on the internet and bypass the more traditional brick & mortar auto parts store further eroding the demand for many hobbyist parts at the local store;
In the retail world, it's all about moving the merchandise, and products that gather dust on the shelf do not contribute to the bottom line;
The free market, (which answers to Wall Street), consisting of large corporate conglomerates that include auto parts divisions, seems to have concluded that old car hobbyists are not a large enough segment of the local auto parts business to bother with. Continuing forward, eventually the old school local auto parts places will be forced out of business because they can't compete price wise with the Walmart mind set.
At the end of the day, it isn't about price, it's about value. A cheap part from a rude, incompetent, counter guy/gal that doesn't t fit, doesn't work properly , or doesn't last can hardly be called a good value. Next time you bypass an old school auto parts store to save 0.25 cents on a $10.00 part, consider the long term effect of that decision...........................
I do not fault the Autozones of the world for a number of reasons. Most of us here seem to be mid forties plus. Back when we were teens and young twenty somethings we drove and worked on cars that actually required maintenance of which we were taught by our fathers, or others, how to perform. The younger generation of today grew up with cars that when needing service were taken to a shop somewhere. There were no carbs to tune or ignitions to be timed. The vast majority of people don't do their own brake jobs or even change a belt. Working on a car today for these kids means taping on a fart can muffler or spray painting the Honda's calipers yellow. The pool from which to find quality gearhead counter people has dried up. Those that may remain can find jobs for better pay in other lines of work.
If you go into one of these places expecting to find an expert you have your self to blame. You should, however, be given a decent level of service and even respect. The times I have had to go into the local Autozone I got a kid who didn't know everything but was more than willing to let me help him figure it out. If that occurrence plays out a hundred more times with a hundred more cusotmers, that kid will end up being pretty good at the job.
If you go into one of these places expecting to find an expert you have your self to blame. You should, however, be given a decent level of service and even respect. The times I have had to go into the local Autozone I got a kid who didn't know everything but was more than willing to let me help him figure it out. If that occurrence plays out a hundred more times with a hundred more cusotmers, that kid will end up being pretty good at the job.
Growing up in the neighborhood I did in Philly back in the 70's,we had what amounted to the Big box stores(Pep Boys and Pen Jersey) along with Morris Auto parts which was open 364 days a year(closed on Christmas) and a place called Advance(mom and pop). The 2 mom and pop places could not only tell you how to do the job,but if they couldn't would send you to a place that could. The only thing I would go to Pep Boys or Pen Jersey for was wax and car wash as the mom and pop didn't really sell that stuff. Hell,even oil,filters and air filters I would go to the mom and pop for. When the transmission in the Mustang went, the lines got screwed up trying to loosen them,not only did Advance have the line,but had the pre-bent ones in stock. They always got my money even if there was a "BIG SALE" with mega savings. Damn shame that their slowly disappearing over the course of time.
I find my vintage Mustang parts at large Mustang shows. I simply get out my tool box, take whatever I need from a car at the show, and fix my car.
Our local independant Napa has a couple of really good young guys working the counter... their #3 guy doesn't seem to stick around long as I think most customers only want to deal with the knowlegable counter guys. Just the other day I went in for a part, he looked it up and said we don't have it...Sorry.
Never mentioned they had it at the warehouse and could have it in a few hours. Walked out to the parking lot and ordered the part at advanced and picked it up 10 minutes later $8 cheaper.
Lately I've been using Advanced mainly because of the discounts you can get when you buy online. I get 20% to 40% (averaging 31.9%) off most orders with their online codes. Orders over $75 get free shipping.
Never mentioned they had it at the warehouse and could have it in a few hours. Walked out to the parking lot and ordered the part at advanced and picked it up 10 minutes later $8 cheaper.
Lately I've been using Advanced mainly because of the discounts you can get when you buy online. I get 20% to 40% (averaging 31.9%) off most orders with their online codes. Orders over $75 get free shipping.
Unfortunately, this is the mindset of many modern counter-dweebs. I even have this problem with the people in the store I work at. The problem is that they just don't care. They show up to bring home a paycheck, but they don't understand that customers (especially repeat customers, who care a great deal about customer service) are what keep the doors open and the paychecks coming. They can't be bothered to go out of their way to find something that takes more effort than typing in the make, model, year, and part description. I've even heard some of my coworkers send people across the street (literally) to the competition."stangg" said:
If you walk in and ask me to look up a part and I find that it's not in stock, the instant next step is to figure out where it is and ask if you want to order it, or figure out where to get it from. Not something we carry in the warehouse? No problem, I've got a box full of 3x5 cards with contact info for specialty parts suppliers I can get stuff from. The basis behind auto parts customer service is to try to never say 'no' to the customer. Sometimes it's unavoidable, but I've found that those times are much more rare than most people think.
scedd
Well-Known Member
"Midlife" said:
Thats all right for you, but what about those of us with Non Standard colours?
A
Anonymous
Guest
"Midlife" said:
At your next show, how about stealing a new driver side rear leaf spring?
What year, engine, transmission, and model do you want to match? You want driven concours, trailered concours, daily driver, occasional driver, or unrestored?
A
Anonymous
Guest
"Midlife" said:
I was thinking more for yourself. To get rid of that port side lean
That's due to the camera angle. I lean to the left...heh heh.
Ponyman66
Yak, yak, yak
"Flysure1" said:
If you want to take this up the ladder, call the store and get the contact info for the AA (Area Advisor). That's the store manager's boss. Believe me they DON'T like getting complaints about poor customer service and usually address it pretty quickly.
I used to be a sales manager for them in another state when I first got out of the service. It does seem no matter where the store is, the counter sales people don't know diddly. My last trip to an AZ was several years ago...and it was literally my LAST trip! When the kid couldn't find the battery I wanted I told him to look it up in the catalog. He replied they didn't have catalogs. I asked him if he saw the big black binders underneath the counter at the far end, to which he said he did. Those are catalogs young man! We have NO independents left anymore around here. The largest one sold out to Federated..and also has some of the highest prices now. I usually shop O'Reilly's or Advance and get good service. I only frequent one Advance, which is also their newest store in the area, due to having a good customer relationship with the manager. The O'Reilly's around here have a lot of older and competent counter folks. Same for the closest NAPA.
"cmayna" said:
:stu
Locally the O'Reilly's used to be really good and had some guys behind the counter that knew what they were talking about. A year or two ago most of those guys disappeared and now they have people who do not know a spark plug from a radiator. I got really frustrated one day with a newbie who had no clue what I was talking about when all I wanted was an exhaust doughnut. Pretty sure the guy had never even changed his own oil and he's selling auto parts?
I've had pretty good experiences buying from Advanced Auto lately.
Auto Zone still wins the prize however in my neck of the woods...I went in there one day because O'Reilly's was packed and I just needed basic stuff like windshield washer fluid, etc. I walked up to the front and put my stuff on the counter...the teenage girl behind the counter did not acknowledge me in any way and made me wait while she finished texting...really? You're texting on the job with a customer standing right there waiting on you to get a free moment to do your job? I've never been back.
Ponyman66
Yak, yak, yak
"RustyRed" said:
That's the kind of service I got tired of and combined with the idiot sales guy (boy) mentioned above, was the straw that broke the camel's back. As I stated I had worked for them. Company policy is a program called "stop, drop 20/20" (IIRC the title). What that meant was you either helped or at least greeted a customer within 20 feet or 20 seconds of their entry into the store. If you weren't helping another customer it meant you WOULD help that new customer within the 20 ft or 20 seconds. My experience was walking in and standing at the counter waiting for help for 15 minutes while employees wandered around eating a sandwich (a strict no-no by company policy!), or BSing with each other in the parts aisles behind the counter. Since I knew what company policy was, it ticked me off even more. :rant
guruatbol
Always on vacation!
"Ponyman66" said:
My issue with the Zone and the Zoneheads that work there is simple. When I walk in I don't want to be bothered in 20 seconds or 20 feet. I want to get what I need go to the counter and pay. When I stand at the counter and need help I don't want to be after some text or personal call to Mom. (Ace Hardware the other day) When the part is brought up to me I don't want some crap part that is going to break in a month or two, I want a quality part, which the zone seems to lack. even their lifetime parts are not good for a lifetime!
When I get what I came for I don't want to have to wait for someone to free up and cash me out. How about the guy who got my part cashes me out? No, Instead I have to wait for some idiot to finally come to the register to cash me out and then it is always to the other register and I have to move all my parts to a new one.
It is so much easier to call the people I dealt with at Big-O for parts and have them pull it or order it and when I am in St. George I just pick them up. I can pay over the phone before I even go there. Besides they know what the heck they are talking about.
Mel