Just want to know if anyone else out there has noticed that with a tougher than normal business climate of instances where a retailer/small business through cost cutting will inadvertenly turn away customers.
The instance I just witnessed was where my wife decided she wanted an icecream from a retailer (major chain) we have frequented many times in the past. My wife asked for her regular one scoop in a cup which is normally fair in proportion but on this occasion the young lass behind the counter put in about half the usual icecream and then proceeded to a set of scales to weigh it!!!...WTF?? obviously some so-called smart bean counter has crunched some numbers to work out that if you reduce the amount of icecream but charge the same price your cost of goods sold figures look better? We were both stunned and hence wont be going back there again, two of probably many lost customers!
Depending on the level of cost saving vs reduced sales this will undoubtedly have an effect on profit. I know right now its real tough times out there for retailers and small business but you have to think customers are your lifeline and doing anything that may turn them away is business suicide.
If you think that light switches in modern houses are low so kids can reach them you are mistaken.
They are that low so sparkies can use less wire and charge the same amount.
Don't assume its cost cutting. Most major food retailers have incredibly specific portion control for the ingredients in their shakes, burgers, pizzas, fries etc, Maccas, HJ's, Pizza Hut, Boost, you name it they all do it, whether they use scales or measuring cups. Next time you get a Boost Juice look over the screen at the scales.
It could be they were training a new girl and she hasn't learnt to reliably portion out a scoop of ice-cream yet or food costs were getting out of control due to over-portioning and the boss is getting them back to basics?
But yes it could also be they have shrunk the portions to trim costs as well...
When I worked for Eagle Boys many years ago they were one of the first of the big pizza chains to drop the size of their large pizzas from I think it was a 14 inch diameter 13 ( about 13-14 years ago), not a single customer ever mentioned it (they shrunk the box at the same time so it was harder to notice). Yet a year or two ago they happily gobbed off in their advertising they weren't shrinking their pizza like the competitiors were doing at the time.
I forgot about when a certain brand of beer (cant recall) reduced the size of their bottles to 330ml but charged the same amount hoping no one would notice! Demand for beer is inelastic in my books so wouldnt have mattered to me but still....consumer rip off?
btw Im not a sparky..
A small shop in westfield pays min 100g per annum in rent and that rises usual CPI+3pct (6%).
Food prices have increased massively. (15%)+
Electricity prices have doubled in 5 years.
Minimum wage has shot up of the back of a change in government.
Yet we still pay 7 bucks for a burger combo?
Complaining?
Things could get scary with this new tax.
Or how much smaller can that ice cream get? How much more soy can they fit in that maccas pattie?
Yep, you're crazy Doggie ! Mostly wired in the ceiling... Lighting in the ceiling... Wire from switch goes up to the lights ! But often, the main backbone cable runs are also in the ceiling.
oh yeah and its not soy in your maccas burger its 100% beef, like scrotums, annus and noses. My nephew works at a country auction house and says maccas buy all the old bulls because they're cheaper.
Which reminds me of a joke... why does Micheal Jackson like mcdonalds? Old meat in fresh buns
I like watching Gordon Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares, and it seems that a lot of places try and skimp on quality as the business slows down, and end up making it much worse.
I guess it must be hard to try to keep up quality if you think you are saving the business.
Back to cost cutting being bad for business...I call it the quality cycle, they cut costs while things detoriate until its so bad they can't deny it any longer. Of course they can't admit this and need someone else to blame so sack some middle managment and staff. Then add more resources to fix it but it's not easy as "Humpdy Dynamics" have taken hold. Like the humpdy dumpty nursery rymne, humpty was an egg and you can't unscramble an egg no matter what resources you put in (all the king's horses and all the kings men). Eventually quality comes back up and the cycle starts again.
Humpty Dynamics is a managemnt theory I have developed inspired by Dilbert. I hope to run corporate seminars explaining this management theory and other corporate wank speak.
btw Im not a sparky..
NSW government
Public servant wages and condition issue.
New South Welshmen's services will be of
poorer quality.
Bad Business Sense!
cost cutting at my workforce has caused job losses and training issues yet again what u expect from a multinational. In 2 yrs time visa workers or the local trolley pushers will be doing my job too lol
Joondalup Local outlet for household item and the idiotic change of heart they threw at me last week.
Make a purchase, just over $3000. Talked them down a tad, normal haggle. Agreed on price.
Agreed on delivery price, to home and price to remove replaced household item. All good
However, short lived joy, when outlet calls, all excited saying "you item is here at shop
Please come down and pay, so we can have it delivered. Discuss delivery date, and then the spanner in the works comes out from outlet rep. "Oh about the pick of old item, sorry, change of policy, we don't do that anymore"
Discuss that this was agreed to in the sale, and if policy change, then policy should only take affect "after " all items sold under original policy agreement. But Noooo, no matter how hard I tried, rep wouldn't budge, just kept on about the "Policy change"
I asked him to discuss with is Manager, and call me back. He did some 10 minutes later, still no movement on "policy change"
Well my next trump card was to tell him, there was also a Policy change my end as well. " Any business electing to change policy mid purchase, would be removed from my allowable business outlets to use list. What's that mean he asked? Simple I said, you just lost a $3000 plus sale. The guy just blew a fuse. Started yelling at me over the phone saying I couldn't do that, we had an agreement. I calmly told him that soon as he was ready to revert to his original agreement, I would re -instate his Company back on my list and do business. [}:)]
He hasnt called yet
^^ Nice one Mineral.
Funny one I noticed recently. I often buy these Honeycomb choc Muesli bars from one of the big two supermarkets. As we know they are having a bit of a price war atm and a while back I noticed they disappeared off the shelves for a few weeks. They reappear with the new slogan "NEW LOWER PRICE, miracles do happen I thought. Then upon closer inspection I noticed they had reduced the quantity from 12 to 8 bars...sneaky mother....new lower price indeed. Fast forward 4 months or so they are back to 12 bars again and the price is the same....so who knows wtf is going on.
you have to love the "I will have to talk with my manager "line
once when haggling over a second hand car , the salemen told me , he would have to check with his manager and left the office.
whilst waiting for him , a salesman in the next office said to a customer on the phone"I will just check with my manager", put the caller on hold,and sat back smoked a ciggie, then picked up the phone and told the personthat his manager wouldnt allow him to reduce the price.
we got up and left the caryard..
so many salespeople just think they have to bull**** you to get the sale , but realistically , if they told the truth they would get a better sale
Select to expand quote[Normally the plumbing comes up from floor and wiring comes down from the roof.
Wrong,
Plumbing and electrical all come from the ceiling.
Main lines run up a wall and across the ceiling with droppers down to each electrical/plumbing fixture.
I plumb them every day.
