My two pdq sources must be nearly empty. They may have 1 of something in stock but rarely 2, take an axle bearing for a freaking 8.5" GM rearend for instance, my master has 1! Local hub never has anything. My commercial customers are complaining about their customers bringing in their own parts (i.e. rockauto, partsgeek, amazon). Our competition has customer appreciation days offering free food, all we have to offer is speedperks, project packs, fim, spif, bs and sol. Commercial customers ask us for pens and hats, our budget doesn't allow for that. Advance cares about as much for their customers as they do their employees. Two steps forward and ten steps backward. I expect some drastic changes after the 1st of the year, if not sooner.
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If that's the case, super hubs will be the final nail in the coffin. My hub is so unreliable, they don't know what they have and don't have.
The stand alone PDQs are going away, including Master. This has been going on for years, transitioning to Super HUBS.
The way they stock the former GPI dcs is stupid.They filled them with cheap junk from China,like fuzzy dice,steering wheel covers,chrome this and that.Those items never sold in the independent stores or former JV stores.That crap they can't return so to keep inventory caps they don't order much from the vendors that they may return product to.We had a case of a CQ oil filter that our serving DC sold about 700 a year,but they were only ordering 12 at a time and had over a 100 on backorder to the stores.I'm glad I'm out of this mess.
I worked for Advance, and got tired of all the things you have stated. It would seem all the callbacks and low inventory at the warehouses is a sign the company is watching every penny so closely that they have forgotten sales and solid customer relations are what keeps the company alive. Advance may be the biggest in number of stores, but they are at the bottom for retaining customers and employees and if they keep doing what they have been doing, it is only a matter of time till no one wants to buy from them, or work for them. Their reputation has gone down hill for quite some time now, and nothing they have tried is even close to what the competition has been able to accomplish. Advance is a follower, not a leader, and they can't even follow well.