February 2023 ertonline.co.uk


Q&A


Q: So how did Repair Parts Team come about? Richard Williams: ASWO has seen tremendous growth in the UK in the last few years, mostly from independent retailers and repairers, and we wanted to support this sector further, especially since the pandemic had such an effect on high street businesses. We knew we could do more to help increase footfall in these stores and to also send more repair work their way. We have never been interested in selling directly to consumers and ultimately biting the hand that feeds us, but we knew we could develop new opportunities for the future. And while


some small businesses may not


necessarily have the desire to launch consumer sites and ship directly to consumers, we looked for a way to offer this on behalf of these businesses and so the Repair Parts Team concept was born.


Q: Tell us more about the service. RW: From my past experience I know that 95 per cent of consumers will leave a parts website without making a purchase – that could be because they can’t find what they need, they could be undecided whether they want to replace the product, or they simply don’t know how to do the job themselves. But the fact they visited in the first place means they must have a faulty product at home – it’s unlikely they are just there by chance. So Repair Parts Team stemmed from this idea. And one main element of the site is the ‘Find A Repairer’ service that we hope will send plenty of repair leads to


ASWO customers, as it appeals directly to that 95 per cent and encourages them to contact a professional. They can put their postcode into the website and be presented with a list of local tradespeople, which each have their own details page. Then ASWO steps back and lets the two parties connect. There’s no charge or commission or lead generation


fee – it’s just simply another opportunity for a repair person to get a repair job. However, to cater to the remaining five per cent


of people that do wish to go ahead with the spare parts purchase, we can have that part delivered to a local retailer for collection or direct to the consumer’s home. So if someone needs to buy a replacement TV remote control or a shelf for their refrigerator, this doesn’t require a repair visit. But if ASWO offers a click-and-collect service using its own dealer network, we then provide footfall to those stores – and what they do with that is entirely up to them. Again, there are no charges or fees; we let the customer make their collection whenever it suits them.


The new Repair Parts Team website 15


Q: What are the main benefits of Repair Parts Team to electrical retailers? RW: The best part is that we pass the retail profit directly on to the ASWO retailer or repairer. So we make the initial connection between them and the customer, and once the customer has purchased their part we’ll send them into their nearest store to collect it – but we’ll also pay the retailer for the privilege!


Not only that, if a consumer wants their part delivered directly to their door then we simply use postcode geography to find our nearest ASWO partner and we’ll pay the retailer profit to them. So they do absolutely nothing but still get paid! >>


Nick Viney, Richard Williams and Pavan Uchil at the Sirius Buying Group Trade Show in September


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