If the customer is scowering the net, it is going to be hard to beat the price they are given, most of the time
Why merchants and manufacturers still use these stupid generous retail prices ,I do not know, most obvious one is radiator prices.
I get my merchants statements through at the end of the month and it shows retail price, massive discounts given and then my trade price, it is a complete joke
I find a lot of the prices you get from local merchants can be beaten, easily on the web and I often get stock form the internet
Where you can gain ,is on offers, a few times when I did bathroom suites, I would shop about, as if a suite has been in stock a while or clearing stock, you can get special offers, obviously this does not apply on new stuff just out and the problem now ,is a lot of wholesalers and merchants order straight from the manufacturer or importer as and when needed
If you do not get a big enough profit ,it is not worth supplying and having to manage the guarantee on the product, may as well let the customer have the hassle, if anything goes wrong and have to pay your labour on top to correct
(I do not like breaking quotes up to much and listing all the differant prices,I give a complete price,if they ask for it to be broken down,just say the bottom line will remain the same,so why,you may get this bit cheaper,I may get that bit cheaper,I like to supply everything myself as I know quality is good and all material is on site when needed,so thats the price)
Also maybe find out what is on special offer this week or month and try to push that
Compared to Plumb centre anywhere is cheap, however, after saying that, each branch manager has a great deal of leeway on prices and you can negotiate some good prices, if he is just looking to push his monthly figures over his target.
Generally merchants now try to get as much as possible, when they can and often do not pass on any further discounts or promotions unless they have to, if you want good prices you have to ask, go in with quote and internet price print out and see what they can do but if you negotiate a good price do not expect this to be the future norm,you will have to do this each time
I got some thermostatic valves ,the other day, from my regular merchants, as I was invoicing same day, asked for price, they said £ 91.76,joking I said, thought I was quoted around £ £89.76,tell you what he says, I will do them for £80,he thought he was doing me a favour, just got my back up really, why not give me that price anyway
Do not feel so guilty ordering stock valves from net now though
Only trouble is, the more I order from the net, the less they sell, the more the prices go up to cover there over heads but that is another story
Would mention ,I never get electric showers ,integrated shower mixer pump units from plumbers merchants, always electrical wholesalers as always alot cheaper
If I am doing a job, with a lot of materials or expensive materials were I maybe am able to improve my profit margins, I always plan ahead and shop around for materials and give enough time for them to be delivered, no longer do I just walk into my merchants and order over the counter, to many plumbers do this and loose a fortune over the year
You should this if the quote you get accepted from the customer is tight and also when good, as on a good priced job, there is more profit to be had if you get your costs down, just because you are being paid well does not mean you have to share it with greedy or uncompetitive suppliers
But then again.............
imho
