[naz]

P-51,Feb 15 2008, 02: Wrote:It pretty much exactly ties into how this would have to work. It would have to be more than just a parts shop.
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But a vet can work on pretty much any mammal, and that's the way it is with cars.
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Sure, I may not know off the top of my head all the details on every car instantly.  But, I'm able to find that out quickly, and accurately.
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i don't know the biz model of a parts/'tuner' shop in detail but i strongly suspect that revenue is mainly driven by professional service fees (labor for installs, tuning etc)

so i'll generalize that and say that you are basically going to open up an independent consulting shop.. if you don't agree with that generalization i guess the rest of my post will be garbage...

in my experience in mgmt consulting it is very difficult to convince new customers you have expertise based off generalist experience only.. for example.. if i have sized a sales force for pharma before... i *should* be able to size a sales force for biotech.. its almost the same thing (both promote drugs to MDs).... right? that's the same argument that cat=dog=horse=mammal.

the key difficulty is convincing ppl to see that *should* in the same way that i do. ie i know that i can do biotch based on my pharma experience.. and a vet knows that they can work on a cat based on working on a dog.. but will customer agree? that's the million (or in this case, tens of thousands) of dollar question.

that's why i think it could make sense to specialize the parts that you sell.. to give the perception of being a specialist and then branch out as appropriate.. ie.. maybe its better to leverage your ex ford tech and be a stang/focusghtning guy.. and once those guys see you do good work.. they will bring their buddies in who have vettes, porsches etc.. and that could be how you move from being a specialist to more of a generalist.. i think starting off generalist will not be as effective in terms of getting customers/driving revenue

$.02 hope its helpful. i do sales/mkting strat for a living i'd be happy to chat more with you (for free cuz i think auto industry is interesting) if you like

regards,
nick