Down here to get Briggs wholesale license I have to do a Briggs training course $ 1300 and keep a $20,000 inventory of Briggs parts ( mostly dead money ).
Kohler were happy to give a certificate on the strength of an internet test but they too require I keep a $ 20,000 inventory and have a $ 3,000 minimum order and a $12,000 minimum annual parts turn over if I want to become a Kohler agent
So there goes the better part of $ 50,000 just to hang 2 signs in the window.
OTOH the aftermarket suppliers , Stens & Gripskies are happy to have me on their books.
I finally got "trade" pricing from Jacks which is between 10% to 20% off their list price which effectively covers the shipping and the retail price from the USA is almost the same as the wholesale price I would get from Briggs and a lot less than the wholesale price from Kohler.
If you have a tax number you should be able to get a trade account with Oregon, Prime Line, Rotary & Stens and trade discounts from Jacks, Barretts , ME warehouse, E replacements etc so apart from plastic you should be covered for most parts.
The mower mechanic I know who makes the most profit does fixed cost annual servicing of push mowers at the customers home.
He does 15 to 30 services @ $ 45 each per day, no repairs at all.
He has a small van and because he knows exactly what he will be servicing just loads the parts required for that days work and of course has the runs organised to be very compact.
Because there is no repairs, just servicing, each job is very quick and because he buys blades in bulk packs ( 100 to 1000) he pays $ 0.75 for a blade& bolt set I pay $ 4.50 for and retail for $ 7.00.
The customer of course sees themselves getting $ 50 ( retail ) worth of parts fitted for $ 45 so think they are getting a bargan.
HE passes a few repairs on to me that are near enough to my service footprint.
SO there is a slightly different approach and all that will cost is a slick web page and face book equivalent.
And as Rod says, it is a regular run so he organises to have 9 free weeks a year so he gets holidays without cost and is available for birthdays, anniversaries etc
My special service is a gate key service for all the local contactors so they drop their gear off on the way home , I repair / service it overnight and they pick it up in the morning on route to their first job which could be anything from 3am to 9am, a service they can not get from any other mower service or shop.
Those who I can trust will also pop in and pick up stuff in the morning like spare blades, oil, chaps, earmuffs etc etc. again some thing they can do with any other retailer ( and yes I do have cameras in the store room ).
The contractors do not get discounts on this service ( 10% off spares ) and are happy to pay full price to avoid having equipment in a repair shop for a week or having a crew hang around to 8 am so they can drop it off to a regular shop.
