Compared with the traditional parts & accessories retail market, service providers are currently blazing a trail in developing unique business systems - how they interact with vehicle owners and operators - in ways not available to retailers who operate "dry" stores, those not offering service.

After all, a store's a store, with goods on a shelf, but a repair shop is unique in that it can interact with outside systems to provide services in ways limited only by the flexibility of the computer and the internet.  Just look a the innovations thus far: Retail service shops operating warranty service facilities for car dealerships (Merchants Tire, Manassas VA)... Co-branding (Amoco gas and Midas sharing the same pad) ... an local repair shop operating the service department of a membership warehouse club ... and now, the likes of iCarumba and Autoweb driving motorists to repair shops based on a Zip code.

As we go to press we have learned of a giant motorist membership club with 6 million members who now can shop for services on their home computer, set a repair date and...well, there's more - limited, you might say, only by the imagination.

Another, Mechanicnet launched this year "to create an Internet commerce exchange focused specifically on the unique needs of the automotive aftermarket... to provide the independent, franchised, or dealer repair and service shops low cost, low maintenance, and easily deployed e-commerce capabilities.  (Participating) shops are provided with dialup access to the Internet, custom designed and hosted web pages, free email accounts, and even computers," the California-based firm told us.

"As part of the Mechanicnet service, shops have parts ordering capabilities with our ...chain partners who offer discounts and availability of hard to find parts.  In addition, the company said, "shops are provided with consumer advertising support, conversational diagnostic tools, on-line maintenance reminders, customer feedback forums, interactive maps, on-line appointment scheduling, and other customer relationship improvement tools all within their own shop-name-based URL (electronic address)."

Your local parts store can participate in E-Commerce fulfillment, yes, but we have yet to see in dry retailing anything like the kind of innovation described above.  It's practically unlimited horizons out there for the once-marginalized local repair shop.  How times have changed.

Incidentally, among members of the board of Mechanicnet are two hands-on shop operators, one in the engine tune-up segment, the other in the parts distribution market.  Smart moves!

Copyright 2000 Laverty Publications Inc.