comment: Retra


“It will only affect smaller electrical


I


t appears that it won’t be levied against retailers large enough to order by the


container load, so will only affect smaller electrical retailers. A short time afterwards they are planning a


price increase. Whether you are a consumer or in business, we all know that prices have gone up substantially in recent months and look set to continue to do so for the foreseeable future. I don’t think any of us would argue that manufacturers need to increase their prices at times like this and those increases are then reflected in the selling price. The difficult thing to understand here is that the £3 per box appears to only be going to be levied against smaller retailers – why not just put the price of goods up to all retailers? Consumers do understand that prices going up is inevitable. Talking to Retra members, many are very


angry about this move from Whirlpool. It is seen as yet another way of extracting money from independents. It makes the channel less competitive or will effectively come straight off the retailers bottom line. One member reminded me that many big brands effectively launched their wares through the independents channel and wouldn’t be where they are today without the support of independent electrical retailers. With so many brands now actively promoting B2C it begs the question as to what the future holds for our sector? Are we to be used as free showrooms for the big brands only for the consumer to then purchase their goods direct? I suspect that other manufacturers will look at


the Whirlpool move and possibly see it as a new revenue source themselves. Is the £3 a box just the starting point? Once established as part of the cost of business, will this later be reviewed? I think we all know that it will only go one way from here.


Retra Conference 2023 We have recently announced the date for the Retra conference for this year. It will be held on October 17 in Coventry. There will be a welcome dinner the night before. The day will be hosted by the popular journalist Declan Curry and will feature both


10 | www.ierdaily.co.uk


retailers” Howard Saycell, chief executive of Retra, gives his views on news that Whirlpool is to introduce a £3 per item delivery charge


industry and guest speakers. The theme is “A Sustainable Industry”. It is a theme dear to many of our hearts. There are a limited number of free places


available to Retra members, so please book early if you would like to attend. Details are available on the Retra website. I think the whole B2C drive is likely to be a hot


topic on the day. It is my honest belief that in the long run this is not in the interest of either the consumer or the manufacturers. We are all consumers and will ultimately decide where and with whom we spend our money. As an example, I recently purchased a new


lawn mower. My old petrol one was over 20 years old and was getting expensive to service. I decide it was time for a change. I also wanted to embrace ‘sustainability’ and decided I would go for an electric one. Having done my research, I then visited my local independent mower retailer. The choice was excellent, and a friendly sales assistant explained all the different models available. After the conversation I realised the one I had been looking at was bigger than I required. This alone saved me about £200 on the purchase. The model I purchased was on offer, saving


me another £50. I arrived at the shop around lunchtime and my new mower was delivered (for free) the same day. It was fully assembled, and the batteries were charged. They even took my old one away for nothing. The reason I’m telling you all this is that I don’t


believe any of the big boys could have come anywhere close to the service I got from this local independent business. If I’d purchased off the internet, I would have waited a few days for delivery, bought the wrong machine for my needs (and paid extra), had to assemble the mower and then dispose of the old one. I know that many of our members offer a similar service to my local mower shop but with vital items such as washing machines and refrigeration. Many consumers like me value the expertise


and service that you only get from dealing with an independent. It’s such a shame that so many brands in our industry appear not to value what retailers do for both them and their local communities. One final quote from one of our members,


“why do manufactures want to shut down independent electrical retailers?” I really don’t have the answer to that one!


March/April 2023


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