Napa , parts delivery

[CourierDriver]

So, I got bored and got me a job delivering parts for a Napa store here.A few of us are previously retired . Lots of part timers there.

No one talks about oil changes, viscosity, add packs and so on. It is not even in our daily discussions. Why, we are to darn busy delivering parts--6 small trucks, busy 8 hours, mostly commercial, very few walk ins like Auto Zone .

Were is all this stuff made, Mexico, Taiwan, and so on for the majority of it. We sell many 55 gal bbls of 5w30 to mom and pop auto repair shops and tons of Napa gold filters . The filters are not in the gold boxes, but in plastic sealed bags sort of, usually for 2 bucks to the shops, but not all are that cheap. We are selling some oil filters now that are plastic or some kind of hard grey plastic grey case, but most are still metal casings for the moment. Well 10 days does not make me an expert on Napa. Maybe some new stories soon...

 

[Rick in PA]

Years ago when I worked at a service station, I came in one Sunday and there was a stranger in our storage room. He seemed to be taking inventory and I was a bit confused. I asked my boss who the guy was and he replied that he was a salesman from NAPA (darn, I wish I remembered his name). Anyway, he was a nice guy, making sure we were properly stocked with oil filters and whatnot. We had two NAPA stores serving us, my boss orders parts from both of them. I suspect the salesman was just making sure his NAPA store got the sale. But that's OK, I liked his initiative. I guess he just wanted to get out of his house on a Sunday. I remember he had a favorite saying "You can't sell from an empty cart".

That's all I got, good luck in your new job.

 

[oilpsi2high]

I worked for a NAPA warehouse delivering parts for about a year while I was in college. That was a fun job, just driving around all day delivering parts to places around the region. I had a brand new Chevy Sonic hatchback that was surprisingly fun to drive. There's zero chance of moving up within the company but for a PT/temp gig it was great!

 

[EdwardC]

I always felt the counter service model at NAPA made it less conducive for a DIYer like me. I still go there sometimes, but I typically first think of AZ, AAP or PB. I usually only go for specific parts or a good deal.

 

[CourierDriver]

Week 2 ends. From my observations so far, this store is about 90 pct sales to shops, state maintenance and other commercial entities. There are usually 4 or 5 counter guys selling parts to shop call ins and we are busy. 4 Toyota pickups , 2 s10 chevys.

So far, it is not rocket science, am not looking for any science...lol

 

[Warstud]

They lost my business when I went in there a couple months ago and couldn't get any help as I waited at the front desk. Two employees seen me and never said a word. So I walked out.

 

[dlundblad]

Funny you mentioned the country of origin. Napa seems to be the #1 parts store no matter who you talk to, but the parts all come from the same places that AAP, Oreillys, AZ etc. get theirs from.

Locally our store seems okay I guess, but I still prefer Oreillys or AAP.

I briefly worked for Oreillys and got little to no oil discussion either. My boss pushed Lucas, said going from syn. to dino hurt the bearings etc. ,but car repair wise he knew what he was talking about.

 

[CourierDriver]

We sell bulk oil frequently, but the other name brands do not move much. Engine parts, brakes, transmission stuff, electrical is huge here. The main line shops are not big on oil changes, more money in the big stuff, well thats what I over hear them saying. We sell a great quantity of airconditioner compressors and parts to go with that system and steering components.

 

[bdcardinal]

My department sells a ton more wholesale than front counter. I do mostly back counter (techs in our shop) and wholesale. A bunch of shops will ask for me when they call and want to be put on hold to wait for me, which is a cool feeling. The techs in the shop always come to me on the competitive make cars because as they put it "you go to that webpage that tells you the right fluids to use."

I very rarely do front counter, maybe 2-3 times a day at the most, I could not do it full time as I hate having to literally pry information out of people. I am constantly amazed that people don't know the year or engine of their vehicle, and when I ask for a VIN they act like I want their social security number and credit card number.

Besides there is very little money on front counter (public sales) it accounts for maybe 10-12% of our business, back shop is around 50-60% with wholesale making up the difference.

 

[Vern_in_IL]

Originally Posted By: Warstud
They lost my business when I went in there a couple months ago and couldn't get any help as I waited at the front desk. Two employees seen me and never said a word. So I walked out.


NAPA has stools, at least you are sitting!!! I love the NAPA front counter, sit and have a talk. If you are in no hurry.