trade vet

AD.......you could go one better.There is a ex Police guy in Manchester who operates as Altered Images who can generate images to make your unit or whatever look any way you want and he is very cheap.He certainly helped us out .

If it is provisional it works either way.If they come back the next day and not on sale day,you do not have to buy it.In the past I have sometimes said sorry my bid is out of time and then offered them less.Or I might say OK I will take it,but I need a favour on something else etc.

Castrol Hypoy 90 diff oil mixed with tea bags I seem to remember worked on boxes.I don’t think it would now of course,these modern tea bags are not up to strength.

I had forgotten about Glass’s check book,handy for trim fabric names.I think Glass’s guide was posted out in Alphabetical order so if you were called Adams or Brown you would receive yours quicker before the end of the month.Main dealers did not know this of course so you could sometimes offer them ‘book’ for stuff which made them happy.A week later the book might go up so you had bought the stuff at the right price.That may have changed but one thing has not,main dealers remain as dim as ever when it comes to our job.

Yes and no,management buy out several years ago but no longer have any control.Currently have about a dozen cars on the pitch.We have another really good pitch which has come back to us off lease which we are trying to rent out.I will probably finish up reopening that .....after over 50 years agrovation,I must be mad.

I had heard proper traders refer to Brighouse with phrases like ‘den of thieves’ but never believed it.However we are talking about what now would be referred to as insider trading’.The Brighouse guy ( now retired ) explained that he had his own line there.I think he said he used to inspect the entries and mostly select ex company direct stuff.He would give his list to the auctioneer who would bounce them through unsold and he would negotiate for them afterwards.The stuff he bought would then be lined up again and resold in the next sale.In those days there were no vendor reps on the rostrum.Interestingly a Brighouse manager was moved to another sale we used and a similar thing happened and had been discovered by chance.Although at the time I had not yet met the Brighouse guy....It was a long time ago and I am pleased things have changed to the better,I have to say our guys still buy the odd one there although come to think about it our main buyer is from Barnsley !

That would be right...from the Yorkies.However I did OK at CMA Leeds,but Brighouse.....I remember seeing these mental prices there so I sent down a desirable Jag Coupe to sell.Never got a bid,they wanted me to slash the reserve so I rescued it,Years later I met one of the Brighouse heavy tackle kingpin buyers ...full Yorky spec.He told me what went on and it all fell into place.They operated a ‘bounce out system’.

Hi EPV I am unsure what you mean.One thing you may struggle to do is rock up to say Chelmsford,Colchester or B/Bushe on big sale days and expect to buy the most desirable high spec stock.Alternativeley you can do the opposite.As an example,you could buy a cheap poverty model ( that’s entry level to Top Gear fans ) A3 in black or doom blue and shit brown leather trim and improve it with current model new oversized copy Chinese alloys and tyres,some sort of spoiler,chrome w/mirror and rear light cluster covers or similar shit and you have created your own ‘special edition’ and you just have to give it a name.You will still have plenty of margin and the phone will ring. Back down the salt mines....er ....Puerto Portals Mallorca

Brighouse and you didn’t get stitched up,it’s a Yorky closed shop !

Yeah,Alf Roberts bird with the upmarket penthouse.......I have to tell you,in reality that penthouse was a top floor council flat in Gateshead !

To quote the founder of Tesco....’only half your advertising works,but you don’t know which half ‘.

Hi Trident I wasn’t referring to you,you sell vans so you need a bid.Its the others with their steer clear of Focuses bad news advice etc.

Hi Dean I know ‘home traders ‘who only sell Volvo Estates and they have been doing it for years.

In the past I have often created a market in stuff that the trade would not touch,be it Lotus Europas,Ladas,Princesses,Maestro ,90 day blue Sierras and Mondeos and ex Police patrol cars plus a few more I have forgotten.I would say that these 1ltre Focus’s will be a good pensioner buy for those who do 2-3k miles per year because they will be cheap to buy and run and have a newer plate.They won’t all be bad news,you just have to be carefull.

Hi PSJ Just looked on your website.You appear to have a nice operation with nice stock.Try and steer clear of sub prime lenders,it just attracts grief.Looking at your stock,I would say in the first year you would do £250-£300k prime finance.(1 or 2 per week )Then when you establish which is the best stock for finance,you will do more.....Good Luck.

It’s a Focus in silver.....what silver ! nobody wants them !....If it is a proper car and it all stacks up,what’s the problem......I am sorry but if you cannot value a Focus ,some people might say ‘time to shut the doors’.

Yeah Paul Schofield I confused the celebrated Oscar Winning Shakespearing actor who was also Darth Vaders mate in the first Star Wars movie with Philip whose mate was Gordon the Gopher.....Sorry about that.

Net profit up 34%,WEBAC 219,000 cars sold up 15%,However WEBAC profit per car up 30% ( must be Paul Schofield)....................On a nice note on page 17 of the financial statements it reads.....The company would like to thank all their loyal customers who have continued to stick with them over the years despite the ever increasing buyers fees and ongoing issues with BCA Assured complaints...............Sorry guys,that’s a load of bollicks,I just made it up !

Try ‘reserved ‘ tickets instead,it does not generate the same reaction from nosey punters or time wasters.

When it was reported as having brake and over heating problems I would say you had ‘a duty of care’ to advise your customer that it should be transported back to you.If his swapper is a good one,I would not give that back,just give him a refund.

Andy,I think you need to employ a new buyer.

Seaham Motor Company in ‘Get Carter ‘country,they used to sell shed loads of stuff....did they not go ‘tits up’.

I don’t disagree,but if you go to great effort to advertise on line and your punter turns up and finds scuffed alloys and stonechips on the bonnet it makes the job harder.AD from what I can see goes to the extreme and points out various blemishes online so the punter knows what they are getting before they turn up.There are not many traders doing that.However,I doubt this includes scuffed alloys and stonechips on bonnets.I think any trader claiming they are successfull by not presenting descent stock to a high standard are telling porkies.

It’s always been about prep and presentation.The guys who do it best always do business.You can have a super website,nice photos,videos and you could be a good salesman, but if you are leaving stonechips on bonnets and chipped alloys it makes the job a lot harder.When we had an open pitch competing with many others on the same street,the prep and presentation was amazing because you only got one chance with the punters....If you had to get the jumper leads out or put fuel in,there was hell to pay.

1300 in B/bushe tomorrow They are,that is why we are keeping my wife’s old one.