Download - RSP Automotive & Industrial

At the end of July we had what
we called a “Super Saturday
Extravaganza”. It was a carnival
atmosphere with many customers
mingling with the five staff from Rare
Spares Head Office. I was lucky
enough to make the trip, and enjoyed
many an interesting conversation
with the customers.
One thing that many customers
talked about were the kitted
products we make, and how they
could be improved with the addition
of screws, nuts, bolts and clips
where appropriate, as many of
the small attaching parts are lost
during restoration. I also had many
discussions on what products need
to be remanufactured and made a
few promises in that area. Suddenly
our product development area has
just become a lot busier. This was
a great opportunity for me to get
some genuine feedback from our
customers and to explain to them
some of the difficulties we have
experienced not only in making
parts, but also in making the decision
to actually make the part in the first
place.
Feedback from customers is one of
the most important things for us as
a company. Over the years we have
made many parts and improved
many parts, because of what our
customers have said. We always
welcome feedback, either positive
or negative. Positive feedback gives
us a good feeling that we are doing
the right thing, negative feedback
tells us we need to pull our socks
up. Hearing negative comments is
probably more important to us as
a company, as it gives us a chance
to correct whatever is wrong. We do
take negative feedback seriously. So
much so, that we recently sent Lance
Corby to Newcastle to investigate
a problem. As it turned out, it was
not the fault of our product as first
perceived, but rather a fitting issue.
After reviewing some negative
feedback, the customer may be
referring to his car that could have
been modified by a previous owner.
This is a matter of getting all the facts
and helping out the customer. I just
recently talked to a customer who
said a certain component had 12
bolts to hold it on, whereas our kit
only had 10. Showing him the parts
book was not enough to convince
him, but when we showed him on
another car it was.
Anyone that runs a business, from
a one man band to a multimillion
dollar enterprise, needs customers
to survive, for without customers
there is no business. We all need
to listen to our customers even if
you think they are wrong, because
in their mind they are right, and
sometimes they are. Many of the
people in the restoration market are
experts, and some are only an expert
in their own garage, but nevertheless
their thoughts are important. I
always try to listen to all the experts,
because I only have a broad spare
parts knowledge, not the hands on
knowledge that the restorer has. At
some time these parts have been
changed but kept the same part
number, and I would only know what
the spare parts book tells me.
As I said, it is good to get feedback
but only if you act on it, otherwise it
is a total waste of time.
Les Mc Veigh
from the desk of the general manager
Recently we tried something a little different
by staging our first 20% off ‘Super Saturday’
which was held in Brisbane, Ipswich and
the Gold Coast. We have 4 Distributors in
Queensland, all of whom are in competition
with one another, plus Queensland is the
state where Rare Spares has the most outside
competitors.
Whilst Rare Spares may have the majority
of the restoration market in Queensland,
assisted by our four established Distributors,
we still need to actively promote our
business both in Queensland and throughout
Australasia for that matter. The original
concept for our ‘Super Saturday’ was for us
to hire the Willowbank Race Track, and make
the day open to all the local car clubs for both
a ‘Show n Shine’ as well as a promotional day
for the four Distributors. We decided against
this in favour of each Distributor staging a
separate local promotion.
One of the hardest tasks we had was to
establish a suitable date that would suit our
Distributors, our customers, and the three
celebrities we planned to help promote the
day. We chose July 31st, which just happened
to be the date for one of Queensland’s many
“Swap Meetings”. Regardless, the date was
set in stone and it was then left up to each
Distributor to arrange for the local car clubs
to come along, show off their cars and also
to arrange their own sausage sizzle. Our job
in conjunction with our Marketing Company
(DBC2), was to arrange all of the advertising
and promotional activity, as well as arrange
to bring up some celebrities and a number of
our staff for the day.
We were lucky enough to have both John
Bowe, our long term Ford ambassador and
Will Davison, our Holden ambassador, and
current Bathurst winner, to help us promote
the event; both of whom proved very popular
with our customers and the kids. We also
had Maurice Fabietti up from Sydney, with
his record breaking Monaro Door Slammer
drag car, complete with the huge transporter.
Whilst all three celebrities were busy posing
for photos, signing posters and anything
people wanted signed including smashed up
V8 Supercar panels, Maurice also allowed his
David N. Rayner
Rare Spares Super Saturday – Queensland
fans to sit in his car for photographs. He also
started the huge engine up and gave it a few
bursts, much to the enjoyment of the crowd.
The sausage sizzles at all four locations were
also most popular and a gold money spinner
for the Clubs involved.
By the time we finished at the Ipswich store
at around 8pm, we were all well and truly
tired and looking for a well earned rest. By
all accounts, the day was a resounding
success and we may consider staging similar
events in other states. These events take an
enormous amount of effort to organise and I
congratulate everyone involved.
David N. Rayner