Zymöl Vintage... what do you charge?

[David Fermani]

Never good point Jake.

[Wise 85]

You can charge whatever you see fit,but unless you are a Zymol licenced detailer i would not fancy your chances of getting your container refilled when it empties.

[Apollo_Auto]

Originally Posted by baseballlover1

congrats bro! How does it compare with SN and migliore?

Dan

Very tight beading, but in the sheeting category Primo takes the cake

Originally Posted by Danase

Why upcharge? I'd be using it up as fast as possible and getting it refilled.

OK but would you buy a pot of it and put it on a Fiesta and a Ferrari and charge them the same price? Don't forget the refills aren't actually "free". I think it costs about $400 for shipping, admin, etc. so basically the big "Z" is getting your money again...

Originally Posted by Jakerooni

What's the Durability of it? If it last longer than most waxes I can see the upcharge for the extra durability. But if it dosen't add something to the mix outside of saying I have a brand name on the paint I'm not entirely sure an upcharge is warrented especially if it's free refills for life because it's really not costing you anything more to put it on. But for that price I just have to assume it does something better than regular $30 waxes.

Not sure about the durability of it, but I'm sure it's got to be longer than the average wax on the market. I mean other than putting an absurd price tag on it they must have something other than a swanky box to justify the price, no? See above comment to Bob about "free" refills . Also, don't forget that there's millions of people out there that still think a Breitling tells time better than a Casio... these are the people I intend to market with this...

Originally Posted by Wise 85

You can charge whatever you see fit,but unless you are a Zymol licenced detailer i would not fancy your chances of getting your container refilled when it empties.

Duly noted, cheers for the head's up (heard that elsewhere too). BUT, for the money that one could possibly make even at a modest upgrade charge with one 22 oz. pot of the "Z"... Let's look at it this way: I can wax (rough estimate) 40 cars with one 200ml tub of wax. 1 tub of this stuff=130 cars... I think one could afford to live without refills .

[Imatk]

I know this may sound simple, but charge what your market will bear.

If you get some rich dude that just HAS to have Vintage on his car and he's willing to pay you an extra $500 for it why wouldn't you take it??

You know a fool and his money and all that

As for durability, looks, etc. that's been LITERALLY beaten to DEATH so lets not start that again for heaven's sake!

[Apollo_Auto]

Originally Posted by Imatk

I know this may sound simple, but charge what your market will bear.

If you get some rich dude that just HAS to have Vintage on his car and he's willing to pay you an extra $500 for it why wouldn't you take it??

You know a fool and his money and all that

As for durability, looks, etc. that's been LITERALLY beaten to DEATH so lets not start that again for heaven's sake!

Cheers mate and you're exactly right, durability is a false icon and looks boil down to the prep... if someone wants ZV they don't expect to pay WalMart prices for it .

[Less]

Originally Posted by Apollo_Auto

I mean other than putting an absurd price tag on it they must have something other than a swanky box to justify the price, no?

With all due respect, don't you think you should know the answer to that question before shelling out $2,100? I don't see how you can justify an additional charge unless you know the answer to that question. I'm trying to put myself in the shoes of a ferrari owner who is being asked to pay more for a premium wax. And I keep thinking that my first question is going to be "What else besides the swanky box justifies the price?" If you can't answer that question, then I really don't see your upcharge campaign going very well.

Now, with that said. Let's look at the economics of the situation. Your 22oz jar cost you $2100, and you estimate that you can do 130 cars with it. So right there, you need to be charging a minimum $16.15. And that doesn't include any of your time, transportation costs, overhead, or supplies.

Also, I don't agree with the other posters who say that you shouldn't be able to charge more because you get free refills. If you do use that logic, then theoritically speaking, you shouldn't charge anything for the wax. As you spread your $2100 investment over more and more cars, the individual cost becomes immeasurably small.

You should calculate your price assuming that EVERY tub of wax costs $2100. Any discounts, or free refills that you get from the manufacturer should be YOUR cost savings. YOU are the one putting up the initial investment. YOU are taking the risk. YOU are doing all the work. YOU should reap the benefits, not your customers.

Also, you can keep the cost savings in your back pocket in case you encounter a particularly stingy customer, or are faced with a competitive bid from another detailer. That way, you'll know that you can safely offer a discount without comprimising too much of your profit.

Here is what I would do.

First, figure out how long you're willing to wait before you make back your initial investment. Then figure out how many cars you'll wax during that time (are ALL your customers going to spring for the premium wax?). After that, it's simple division.

For example, let's say you want to make your money back within a year, and you expect that you'll get one customer per week who wants the Zymol treatment. $2100/52 = $40.38. Start with that number and add costs for your time, supplies, overhead, and some profit. Voila, there's your price.

[David Fermani]

Originally Posted by Less

With all due respect, don't you think you should know the answer to that question before shelling out $2,100? I don't see how you can justify an additional charge unless you know the answer to that question. I'm trying to put myself in the shoes of a ferrari owner who is being asked to pay more for a premium wax. And I keep thinking that my first question is going to be "What else besides the swanky box justifies the price?" If you can't answer that question, then I really don't see your upcharge campaign going very well.

You bring up a very valid argument. How many people with high end vehicles even know what Zymol is or can even distinguish this product from anything else? I'd love to hear the sales pitch trying to up sell a wealthy client an expensive wax. How anyone can justify something exorbitant like this without any real tangible benefit is beyond my perception. Maybe customers(or forum peers) perceive detailers that utilize these expensive products as more knowledgeable than the mortals in the industry that only use basic LSPs?

[Apollo_Auto]

Originally Posted by David Fermani

You bring up a very valid argument. How many people with high end vehicles even know what Zymol is or can even distinguish this product from anything else? I'd love to hear the sales pitch trying to up sell a wealthy client an expensive wax. How anyone can justify something exorbitant like this without any real tangible benefit is beyond my perception. Maybe customers(or forum peers) perceive detailers that utilize these expensive products as more knowledgeable than the mortals in the industry that only use basic LSPs?

I think a lot of it has to do with the placebo effect. I mean after all is IS just a wax and when all the exotic oils and this and that are dried up and gone, well the wax remains (and maybe other stuff but that's not the point). The presentation of the wax itself is quite alluring, you have to admit. Now, if you're the kind of person that has enough money for a "high caliber" car, chances are you feel that it's one of the "best" (popular belief, placebo effect, (over)price all come into play here) that money can buy, therefore you would probably opt for the "best" products to take care of it. Sure there's a lot of things that could be said about it's durability, protection which could also be said about a lot of waxes but the price, prestige, history of the "Z" is probably what convinces most people to buy it. Though marketing has made it as such, it's still one of the most elite waxes in the world and that fact alone will sell...

I'll refer back to the watch analogy that I used before. There's a million different brands of watches in the world and (in most cases ) they all tell the same exact time, but the feeling of having a high-dollar watch on your wrist is much different than pimping a Seiko. I had a Rolex many years ago and have a Breitling now so I can say that mentally there is a difference; it doesn't tell the time any better than my other watches. OK they also look fantastic, but that's hard to see with a wax. This is why the thought of having a high-dollar wax on your car makes it look better .

[bufferbarry]

I think personally if I ever get the money to afford one of those cars your working with Jesse. Here is the thing, we are all men. Maybe in general most of us want something that we can't have. If you can't get it you want it. Now I think about this, I got enough to afford a 250,000 dollar car, sure I'm gonna want to put the best on it. If someone can provide me a wax that is x amount of dollars do i really care what the wax is. Its kinda like how i feel. YOu see me you may not know i got a 19 inch penis, but i feel good about it lol Its bragging rights. thats all. Same concept you see a guy with a ferrari he has no clue its the craftsmen ship. He thinks he got a 2000 wax. It makes him feel like me great! lmao I'd tell ya to market that **** like its a 18 year old virgin saying come take!

[Apollo_Auto]

Originally Posted by bufferbarry

I think personally if I ever get the money to afford one of those cars your working with Jesse. Here is the thing, we are all men. Maybe in general most of us want something that we can't have. If you can't get it you want it. Now I think about this, I got enough to afford a 250,000 dollar car, sure I'm gonna want to put the best on it. If someone can provide me a wax that is x amount of dollars do i really care what the wax is. Its kinda like how i feel. YOu see me you may not know i got a 19 inch penis, but i feel good about it lol Its bragging rights. thats all. Same concept you see a guy with a ferrari he has no clue its the craftsmen ship. He thinks he got a 2000 wax. It makes him feel like me great! lmao I'd tell ya to market that **** like its a 18 year old virgin saying come take!

Cheers buddy! After all these cars are just "extensions" anyway so why not extend it a little more with a $2000 wax?!

[bufferbarry]

LMFAO and people wonder why i drive a pinto.

[MuttGrunt]

i totally understand having a product like ZV when you not only have clients like jesse does, but also the skills to provide the best of services to those clients like jesse does.

I think 99% of the pro-style detailers here will agree ZV isn't going to give a better look then the other nice waxes out there. Surely it has a unique and nice look, but better?
I think 99% of the world's population will agree a Ferrari isn't going to get you from point A to point B "better" than all the other cars out there. Surely it will help you arrive quickly, in style, and make you feel good, but better?

Jesse's idea is to market a high-class item to a high-class crowd. A crowd which already wants "best of the best" type of products. Based off of cost you pretty much posted yourself, if you AT LEAST charge $50/coat then you're at least even. At $100 you make double of what you spent, at $150 you make triple off your investment, etc, etc. If I had a client list like Jesse, I'd buy ZV in a second.
How do you justify the additional cost to the owner? "You're looking to pay me $xxxx to work on your vehicle that's already worth $xxx,xxx. If you want the rarest, most expensive, and most sought after wax I have to be used, it'll only be another $xxx."
Will ZV last longer / provide a better durability / fight nature (acid rain, bird poo, etc) better than other high class waxes? I doubt it. But in the same breath, I didn't buy Dodo Juice SN because I thought it would either.