Bulk Supplier

E

eyesack

New member
So funny story about the Corvette meeting; although i have a few prospect-clients, I did meet with a gentleman who was very interested in me. Told me I had an aggressive attitude and he liked that a lot. He owns a company called Auto Trim detailing supply company. Never heard of them. Well, they make detailing chemicals or should I say "detailing" chemicals, and sell them to dealerships and car washes and detail shops. What struck me as most interesting was that they had never heard of Zaino or Menzerna or Klasse, three huge names in our world. Hmmm... Well, to make a long story short, they want very much so for me to work for them.

I visited their facility today and it was pretty neat. I smelled car car products when i walked in the door. I saw Meguiar's and 3m products on the shelf next to their product lines and another product line called Pro, which i've seen locally at Woodbury Nissan.

Now, these guys are nice and everything, but telling me that the products I use are the same that they use totally put me off-kilter. They never even HEARD of Menzerna! or Zaino! ***! I know many products are similar, and some are re-branded, but no. not having this. Those were very bold statements from these guys. And I met their chemist, some crazy german guy, which i was even more surprised that he'd never heard of Menz or Klasse, but that might be my stereotyping. Another thing, they don't even make any paste waxes! they have some polymers and things, but i was not totally impressed. Seems like their spray wax is all fillers, since it said on the label "totally eliminates swirl marks, cobwebs, and scratches"... or something to that degree.



Anyway, I think that i'm going to take the job right now, selling this stuff, since i need the money, But I feel it unethical. They didn't even have any cars on site that had the product on em or anything. like *** is that bs. anyway sorry for venting, and i'm not sure where this thread belongs so i put it here. I just hope this doesn't hurt my business. but hey, i'll at least get some free product? and maybe i'll buy the rest of their meg's and 3m product for cheep. lol
 
You're dealing in a whole different market as production detail shops and automotive dealers need products that are easy to use, cheap and basically do a nice job of making the finish look nice to be able to sell the car, plus they like the service and vast variety of products available from a distributorship such as you describe. This is a whole different clientele than a connoisseur that is looking for that flawless finish and it's a much bigger market. Good luck with the job. What kind of money are they offering?
 
9/hr which i'm going to talk them up to 10 at least i hope, and once i have some clients, it'll be comission at 15% so if i sell 1000 bucks of product in one day, it'll be 150 a day; not too shabby for a college student
 
Ya know, dont knock them until you try it. There is a local company around me called Majestic Solutions and they are the same, cater to large dealers and detail shops. I tried their tire shine and detail spray, they are the best I have ever used. I bought 5 gal of each. So try their stuff before you knock it.
 
Not to knock Autopian style of products, but major bulk manufacturers make up most of the marketshare of the detailing product industry. Companies like Auto Magic, Carbright, Zep, Megs and 3M individually sell more $ in chemicals than all the boutique lines put together and some++. I completely understand why a large distributor may not recognize specialty companies, but I guarantee every one of those specialty companies know who the big boys are and their place in the market. Most of the bulk products out there can and do achieve the same (if not better) results as the specialty/boutique/Autopian products and cost a fraction of the amounts too. If the end result of the product is the same, the cheapest/easiest to use product is the best buy. Paint and tires can only shine so much and the interiors can only get so clean, so if you find a product that works for you and it costs less than the next one, you'll be ahead in the long run.
 
David Fermani said:
Not to knock Autopian style of products, but major bulk manufacturers make up most of the marketshare of the detailing product industry. Companies like Auto Magic, Carbright, Zep, Megs and 3M individually sell more $ in chemicals than all the boutique lines put together and some++. I completely understand why a large distributor may not recognize specialty companies, but I guarantee every one of those specialty companies know who the big boys are and their place in the market. Most of the bulk products out there can and do achieve the same (if not better) results as the specialty/boutique/Autopian products and cost a fraction of the amounts too. If the end result of the product is the same, the cheapest/easiest to use product is the best buy. Paint and tires can only shine so much and the interiors can only get so clean, so if you find a product that works for you and it costs less than the next one, you'll be ahead in the long run.
Click to expand...



couldnt have said it better....a cheap product that does amazing is better than an expensive product that does amazong...think about it!
 
true, i think it was just a bit of a culture shock going from small-ish time private detailing where i use the "boutique" shop stuff that costs an arm and leg, transitioning to "Well, we've got better"...

I'm looking at their website right now and it's actually looking pretty promising! i'm really hoping to get some free supply to test out on cars so until then at least my spirit's up. I'll find out later this week if they want me to work.

They sell a lot of BAF stuff, looks familiar. hmmm... looking through their site it is looking more and more promising. i think i would love to work with these guys.
 
If you are offered the sales position, you should ask them to give you some sample sizes of their products to try out yourself. Tell them that you could probably sell more products if you had a chance to try them out yourself, and see how they work before going out and talking to customers. Most sales people receive training regarding the products they sell. In the case of detailing products, the best training would be for you to actually use the products yourself.
 
eyesack said:
What struck me as most interesting was that they had never heard of Zaino or Menzerna or Klasse, three huge names in our world.
Click to expand...





In the world of professional "detailing" as you put it, the 3 big names are automagic,ardex, and car brite. Those three are not really huge names in the real world of detailing. Heck i never heard of any of them until i started visiting the boards, and i been detailing professionaly for awile now. So don't think cause someone never heard of zaino, they don't know what they're talking about.
 
I agree with Brandon1 and David. It was Brandon that got me to try the cleaner and tire shine from the local company and heck yeah, cheaper and just as good or better. I'm a small time - detailing on the side guy. I really can't afford to make expensive product purchases and then find out that it was a lot of hype and in reality, no better than something cheaper. I've only made a few purchases that I can truely swear at and those were sold to a friend for half price, I know when to cut my losses and move on. I think of the "boutique" brands, Optimum is a fairly good bang for your buck. (polish/compound/sealer) But as I use up other stuff, I may be trying the local products, not dissappointments so far and they will give samples for a few bucks.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top