A little annoyed with Repco

[sleek_vp]

well her in north brissy i go to repco &supercheap both in the same street in Enoogera and they seem to be alright iv never had a problem and autobarn at virginia and they also seem to be alright and iv also been to conventry's at stafford& geebung and they to were very good, iv never received bad customer service or that i can remember

[Shounak]

Each store is different.

Supercheap - good for cheap quality tools, specials on oils and things, pretty much anything of crap quality and low price. It can come in handy when you you're doing something and need something cheap and quick to finish the job. The oil's and things are only cheap on special.

Autobarn - Like WW said above, good for audio stuff and the bigger stores have a huge range of products. Autobarn's also I think the best for car accessories, ie seat covers, gear knobs, etc. The Autobarn's with spare parts counters are just as good as Repco, Autobarn in Narre and Dandy are awesome stores.

Repco - Generally trade quality tools and products. Every tool I've bought from Repco has served me beautifully and their spare parts counter is a treat. Also it's pretty bang on with the Autobarns with them.

Bursons - The best prices, the biggest range (except they don't stock Penrite) and bloody fast delivery. The catch is that you need to know someone to get trade prices. Even the quality of their own products is pretty damn awesome. Plus I've just found out that Bursons give preferential pricing to different customers, so it's possible to get things a **** load cheaper than trade price, as I have quite happily found out.

The quality of the staff can be ranked in the order above. Supercheap generally employ 16 year olds whereas Burons/Repco have much more knowledgable staff. Bursons are a mile ahead of even Repco though.

Autobarn is somewhere in between, depending on the store.

Secret to buying parts cheap. Get all your oil's when the parts places have 20% off storewide. It usually works out cheaper than trade.

[Scooter79]

When I started this thread I never intended to question the quality of products stocked by various stores. It was to voice my frustration over what I strongly believed was false advertising by Repco. The good thing about Repco is you can get pretty much buy any hoses or hard to find parts over the counter. But if there's one thing I hate it's false or misleading advertising. I only ever saw that ad on tv twice. It would be no surprise if they pulled it due to complaints.

[STEALTHY™]

Late to the party, but i found a post on the first page really funny - i cant see why you would want them to lose $70 just so that you didn't have to walk around the corner.

They aren't selling below their cost price. Those speakers mentioned would cost from a supplier about $80 (before GST etc)

They just have such a high mark up. At $119 they are selling at near their lowest min price. The only time these companies sell below cost, is if the product has been discontinued.

[Cordelia calais]

It is frustraiting! What happens is if nothing is on sale at any store and one company has an item cheeper than some one else they are supposed to price match so long as the cheep store has not sold out. If an item is on sale at one place and not at the other then they dont have to price match, if they are both on sale they price match so long as the store has not sold out, in some cases if an item is on sale at one store eg mitre 10 and you want it at bunnings they will give you 10% off the ticketed price not what the sale price is from the other store. Also if you are buying something in a centre some places wont match if the store is outside the centre. It is all open to interp and for people to not know the policy is crap! I worked at super cheap in nsw b4 I moved to melb and new not a darn thing about cars but that was ok because we did a two week course on how the FIND things and what a policy was so if you did;nt know something you just said " I will see if we have that in stock" and then get the info off the computer all the while looking very cool!
Next time just get the manager right away!!

[klampy]

hi guys, i work at repco, and to clear this up, if you can prove a cheaper price full stop, we will beat it by 10 percent of the difference... hope that helps. you just have to be able to back it up.

[STEALTHY™]

hi guys, i work at repco, and to clear this up, if you can prove a cheaper price full stop, we will beat it by 10 percent of the difference... hope that helps. you just have to be able to back it up.

LOL, thats hardly worth it. I'd rather my custome go to the business with the cheaper item.

[klampy]

if i ever get a customer that tells me a certain price all it takes is a phone call to the particular buisness, if their a good patient customer wating for a good deal then theyll wait.

[Grennan]

See its so much easier where i work. If a customer comes to me at bunnings and says oh i saw this for a certain price somewhere else. If its under say 50 bucks ill just let it go. Same goes with really any item within reason.

As my managers say, its better to loose 10 or 20 bucks than to loose a potential returning customer, as well as having bad customer service stories pop up, such as this thread.

[TVR-190]

about the guys not knowing about t&c

at my work we brought in a loyalty system and we were given very basic details about it so customers ask questions and we wouldnt have a clue. gotta love poorly run businesses

[Wagon_Wheel]

hi guys, i work at repco, and to clear this up, if you can prove a cheaper price full stop, we will beat it by 10 percent of the difference... hope that helps. you just have to be able to back it up.

Which repco are you at man? Im a repco boy myself

[Calaber]

I hope the young blokes on this forum aren't offended, but I find that most places like Supercrap and Autobarn employ junior staff who don't have any product knowledge. How much will a 17 or 18 year old know about parts interchangablity for early model Holdens, or even know what I am talking about if it isn't spelt out on their computer for them?

Generally, I find the young (that is, under 20 or so) blokes are pretty vague and have to rely on dogalogues for every purchase that isn't on a shelf in front of them.

That's another reason I love shopping at trade price at my local Holden dealer. A spare parts bloke who respects me as a customer and knows his stuff, plus I get a good deal on the price

[stocky]

I hope the young blokes on this forum aren't offended, but I find that most places like Supercrap and Autobarn employ junior staff who don't have any product knowledge. How much will a 17 or 18 year old know about parts interchangablity for early model Holdens, or even know what I am talking about if it isn't spelt out on their computer for them?

every supercheap ive been into has employed morons that wouldnt know a thing about cars.

[Fr3ak+--]

The only time these companies sell below cost, is if the product has been discontinued.

thats a load.. autobarn and supercheap do it on a regular basis..

you ever seen the castrol gtx promotion at autobarn? where they sell it for $12 for five litres?

that is below cost price.. they do it to get the customers in the door so they purchase other stuff while they are there

[FusionX]

Generally, I find the young (that is, under 20 or so) blokes are pretty vague and have to rely on dogalogues for every purchase that isn't on a shelf in front of them.

I would have to agree. 2 weekends ago I went in chasing a set of belts. Went in with the exact sizes. Told the young guy behind the counter and he goes "What car is it for?". Now I'm not running the standard belts, so telling him the car would of been useless. Eventually he had to go get his boss who found the belts straight away. Can it be that hard to go out the back and get the required belt sizes?

Not saying all young employees are like that.... but most seem to be.

[jas98]

im 18 and have to agree that the supercheap store here has a bunch of young (18 and less) people that know **** all!!! u ask them a simple question (that i already know...just to see if they know :P) and they stare at ya like..... WTF is a car!! lol auto barn here know there stuff....not a great deal but they do know a hell lot better then the others.....and repco well there the knowledgeable bunch out of teh lot.......they know exactly what your after.....then again they hire people that know there stuff about cars....they hire some (nice looking) chick a while ago.....u would think she knows **** all but dam she knows more then all them put together hahhah

[stocky]

im 18 and have to agree that the supercheap store here has a bunch of young (18 and less) perople that know **** all!!! u ask them a simple question (that i already know...just to see if they know :P) and they stare at ya like..... WTF is a car!! lol auto barn here know there stuff....not a great deal but they do know a hell lot better then the others.....and repco well there the knowledgeable bunch out of teh lot.......they know exactly what your after.....then again they hire people that know there stuff about cars....they hire some (nice looking) chich a while ago.....u would think she knows **** all but dam she knows more then all them put together hahhah

ive noticed that too. id go into supercheap and the chick would know more than all of the other guys. the guys looked and acted like stoners. asked them if they had a T-piece for an oil pressure switch, and they showed me the section with the nylon t pieces for small rubber hoses. i didnt bother clarifying what i was after, just said yeah....thanks

[50LTRv8]

I have been buying a few parts here and there and I have experienced the same issues as all of you. There has been some comments on here that Holden were the place to go for some parts.

The bushes/regulator unit on my alternator needed replacing so I went to holden. They needed a VIN (I am like, I don't have it with me, the car isn't working which is why I need the part)and told me there were 2 different alternators and needed to know the correct one. At this point I am thinking this is just too hard, will try somewhere else.

I then went to Autopro in phillip (in the ACT) and within 5 min I had the part in my hand as well as some info about how to install it. I have been back to these guys a few times for oil/filter, battery, thermostat and gasket and a few other things and they win on price and service. Anyone reading who is in the ACT I recommend them.

There is also a chick on the counter and within 5 seconds I knew that she knew her stuff and had been trained by the guys at the shop. It makes such a difference when you get great service by people who know what they are doing.

I have used Repco a fair bit and their tools are excellent, have not had one fail yet. They are a little bit more expensive for other stuff than the supercheap/autobahn.

Another Story

I went looking for a light bulb for my ef falcon and was after the right one. There was no spare parts book near the globe rack so I asked the parts guy. He said he didn't know and didn't bother to look it up for me. I went across the driveway to supercheap and had the part in 5 min.

I then went back across to autobahn and a different guy was at the counter and told me everything I wanted to know and was a pleasure to deal with. So even in the same store it can be different.

[jas98]

I then went back across to autobahn and a different guy was at the counter and told me everything I wanted to know and was a pleasure to deal with. So even in the same store it can be different.

i do have to agree with this as at teh super cheap here there is only one person that knows a little and thats the manager (original guy from when it started) he knows a fair bit ...at auto barn theres only 2 that know some stuff (one is teh original from when it started and the other used to be a car sales man) i guess it comes down to training......tell ya one thing though i only shop at super cheap for the price. If they don't have it on the shelf i don't bother asking anymore, its just a wast of time (unless manager is there)

hell i aint saying i know everything but i think i (and a hell of allot off noobs on here lol) know more then most of the guys they hire. its funny how they hired some guys i know of that have never worked or been interested in cars and they put then on teh spare parts counter...like wtf lol. I did apply there once and they were like meh....then these clowns came along!!...stupid lol

[crazyspoon05]

Sounds like when I was trying to get a coolant temperature sensor for the wagz, a couple of the staff at big chain stores were trying to tell me VN's don't have them, one was insisting the oxygen sensor was the one i was after