Status of Everything Attachments

[workinonit]

It's part of selling products months before you can deliver them. It's just a bad business model.

 

[rbstern]

It's part of selling products months before you can deliver them. It's just a bad business model.

It's not a bad model. It's just missing a key leg: The standard approach to make that model work is commodities hedge contracts.

The airlines do it with fuel, to make the cost predictable, since they are selling tickets well in advance of providing service, and fuel costs are the biggest uncontrolled variable in providing the service.

 

[Fuddyduddy1952]

How many people would eat at Waffle House if they said "Pay in full now and you'll get your pancakes & coffee next Thursday".
People would be so outraged they'd be calling S.windle, S.windle, Shyster & Steele!!!

 

[shooterdon]

How many people would eat at Waffle House if they said "Pay in full now and you'll get your pancakes & coffee next Thursday".
People would be so outraged they'd be calling S.windle, S.windle, Shyster & Steele!!!

A bit of reversal. "I'll gladly give you a hamburger Tuesday, if you pay me today?

 

[3 Horse Ranch]

It's not a bad model. It's just missing a key leg: The standard approach to make that model work is commodities hedge contracts.

The airlines do it with fuel, to make the cost predictable, since they are selling tickets well in advance of providing service, and fuel costs are the biggest uncontrolled variable in providing the service.

It's a bad business model for a small business that doesn't have the leverage to demand a hedge contract.
EA only started this model during and because of Covid. The photos of their original site shows a yard full of completed attachments awaiting orders so they could ship. Moving to Emmanuel Church Rd was likely a sound idea, but that building had to cost a few bucks. He may have paid cash for it, who knows, but likely he had a business loan to buy it. There about two years and he decides to build a new building 3 times the size based only on Covid sales spikes, not long term sales. Somewhere between the move which was apparently in 2019 and now, EA totally lost their way.

 

[MoKelly]

A bit of reversal. "I'll gladly give you a hamburger Tuesday, if you pay me today?

Not quite the same but I see this at many bars—- “free beer - tomorrow”!

 

[34Willys]

someone posted here that Ted was considering a run for Congress

Seems to me he would make an awesome typical Congressman:

1. He lies to his customers/constituency
2. He syphons off customer down payment/taxes for his own personal use and wealth building
3. Spends way more money than was paid/confiscated from the people he supposedly serves.
Basic politics 101

Patrick

 

[Gator6x4]

The pay up front became common place as more and more people did not come back for the product they ordered and the dealer had to either stock a part not needed but once every 4-5 years or return it to the distributor and pay a restocking fee.

Let me share a personal experience with this.

I had a neighbor (Deceased Now) he called me one night and said one of the other neighbors had told him I knew and had a friend that ran an automotive parts house. I told him that was correct. He advised he needed a part for a vehicle and gave me the make and model number.

He questioned my asking him for the serial number. I advised him he was looking for an engine part and most parts houses used the 8th digit of the vin to insure the correct part was ordered. He provided the serial number. I called my friend the next morning and he said that was a slow sell part and most people including him did not stock the part.

He advised he had entered the part number in the parts locator network and if one was available he would be alerted. He called back that afternoon and said a dealer in a town 35 miles away had the part and provided me the phone number to call. I called and the gentleman that had the part. I asked him to hold the part for me and I would pick it up the next day.

I called the neighbor and told him where the part was at. He advised he could not go after the part and asked me if I could go. I told him I wasn't doing anything that day and would go.

The next morning I got up, the wife and I had breakfast out and I went for the part. The gentleman at the parts house informed me there would be a 25% re-stocking fee if I brought the part back.

I brought the part home with me and stopped at the neighbors gave him the bill and the part and he grumbling and mumbling paid me. Two days later he called and advised he had been discussing the parts purchase with others and they were telling him that I and the Parts House had ripped him off and he wanted his money back.

I gave him his money back and the next day took the part back to the Parts House paid the 25% restocking fee and told the Part person what had happened. He advised the part was the only one within a several hundred mile radius and asked for the gentleman's name. He advised if he or his friends called he was going to tell them the part was no longer available.

I came home. Three days later the neighbor called and wanted the telephone number of the Part House that had the part because he could not find one. I gave him the number. Two days later he called me up shouting and cursing because I instead of selling him the part at a price he and his friend thought was enough for the part had taken it back and now he could not find the part to fix his vehicle.

I told him I hoped he never found the part because I had done him a favor and drove 35 miles to get the part and paid a 25% restocking fee to take the product back and my suggestion for him was instead of calling me, to call his friends who told him the Parts House and I had ripped him off and have them to find and buy the part and then give him the part if they could or would.

I know this was long. But gentleman that is exactly why today when you go to buy something and it is not setting on the counter in front of you, you are being asked to pay up front for the product. There are too many people in the world today like my ex-neighbor.

 

[3 Horse Ranch]

The pay up front became common place as more and more people did not come back for the product they ordered and the dealer had to either stock a part not needed but once every 4-5 years or return it to the distributor and pay a restocking fee.

Let me share a personal experience with this.

I had a neighbor (Deceased Now) he called me one night and said one of the other neighbors had told him I knew and had a friend that ran an automotive parts house. I told him that was correct. He advised he needed a part for a vehicle and gave me the make and model number.

He questioned my asking him for the serial number. I advised him he was looking for an engine part and most parts houses used the 8th digit of the vin to insure the correct part was ordered. He provided the serial number. I called my friend the next morning and he said that was a slow sell part and most people including him did not stock the part.

He advised he had entered the part number in the parts locator network and if one was available he would be alerted. He called back that afternoon and said a dealer in a town 35 miles away had the part and provided me the phone number to call. I called and the gentleman that had the part. I asked him to hold the part for me and I would pick it up the next day.

I called the neighbor and told him where the part was at. He advised he could not go after the part and asked me if I could go. I told him I wasn't doing anything that day and would go.

The next morning I got up, the wife and I had breakfast out and I went for the part. The gentleman at the parts house informed me there would be a 25% re-stocking fee if I brought the part back.

I brought the part home with me and stopped at the neighbors gave him the bill and the part and he grumbling and mumbling paid me. Two days later he called and advised he had been discussing the parts purchase with others and they were telling him that I and the Parts House had ripped him off and he wanted his money back.

I gave him his money back and the next day took the part back to the Parts House paid the 25% restocking fee and told the Part person what had happened. He advised the part was the only one within a several hundred mile radius and asked for the gentleman's name. He advised if he or his friends called he was going to tell them the part was no longer available.

I came home. Three days later the neighbor called and wanted the telephone number of the Part House that had the part because he could not find one. I gave him the number. Two days later he called me up shouting and cursing because I instead of selling him the part at a price he and his friend thought was enough for the part had taken it back and now he could not find the part to fix his vehicle.

I told him I hoped he never found the part because I had done him a favor and drove 35 miles to get the part and paid a 25% restocking fee to take the product back and my suggestion for him was instead of calling me, to call his friends who told him the Parts House and I had ripped him off and have them to find and buy the part and then give him the part if they could or would.

I know this was long. But gentleman that is exactly why today when you go to buy something and it is not setting on the counter in front of you, you are being asked to pay up front for the product. There are too many people in the world today like my ex-neighbor.

Interesting story, but it is apples an oranges to the subject of this thread. There is nothing that EA made that was so unique that it couldn't be sold the next day or the next week.

 

[tradosaurus]

The pay up front became common place as more and more people did not come back for the product they ordered and the dealer had to either stock a part not needed but once every 4-5 years or return it to the distributor and pay a restocking fee.

Let me share a personal experience with this.

I had a neighbor (Deceased Now) he called me one night and said one of the other neighbors had told him I knew and had a friend that ran an automotive parts house. I told him that was correct. He advised he needed a part for a vehicle and gave me the make and model number.

He questioned my asking him for the serial number. I advised him he was looking for an engine part and most parts houses used the 8th digit of the vin to insure the correct part was ordered. He provided the serial number. I called my friend the next morning and he said that was a slow sell part and most people including him did not stock the part.

He advised he had entered the part number in the parts locator network and if one was available he would be alerted. He called back that afternoon and said a dealer in a town 35 miles away had the part and provided me the phone number to call. I called and the gentleman that had the part. I asked him to hold the part for me and I would pick it up the next day.

I called the neighbor and told him where the part was at. He advised he could not go after the part and asked me if I could go. I told him I wasn't doing anything that day and would go.

The next morning I got up, the wife and I had breakfast out and I went for the part. The gentleman at the parts house informed me there would be a 25% re-stocking fee if I brought the part back.

I brought the part home with me and stopped at the neighbors gave him the bill and the part and he grumbling and mumbling paid me. Two days later he called and advised he had been discussing the parts purchase with others and they were telling him that I and the Parts House had ripped him off and he wanted his money back.

I gave him his money back and the next day took the part back to the Parts House paid the 25% restocking fee and told the Part person what had happened. He advised the part was the only one within a several hundred mile radius and asked for the gentleman's name. He advised if he or his friends called he was going to tell them the part was no longer available.

I came home. Three days later the neighbor called and wanted the telephone number of the Part House that had the part because he could not find one. I gave him the number. Two days later he called me up shouting and cursing because I instead of selling him the part at a price he and his friend thought was enough for the part had taken it back and now he could not find the part to fix his vehicle.

I told him I hoped he never found the part because I had done him a favor and drove 35 miles to get the part and paid a 25% restocking fee to take the product back and my suggestion for him was instead of calling me, to call his friends who told him the Parts House and I had ripped him off and have them to find and buy the part and then give him the part if they could or would.

I know this was long. But gentleman that is exactly why today when you go to buy something and it is not setting on the counter in front of you, you are being asked to pay up front for the product. There are too many people in the world today like my ex-neighbor.

I would have had the neighbor give me the money for the part before I left to the parts store.
And certainly wouldn't have brought the part back and paid the 25% restocking fee. I would have told the neighbor to pound sand.