Date: July 13, 1999
To: moving@avatar-moving.com
From: "EBIRCH" <EBIRCH@prodigy.net>
Subject: AMS-Forum Its ridiculous to blame the salesman
X-Hosted-By: http://www.avatar-moving.com
[ Return To The Hall of Fame ]I have just joined so I may be out of context, but I take issue with those blaming the pricing issues, that exist in our business, on the salesman. The tail cannot wag the dog unless the dog agrees.
Over many years the leaders of our industry have failed to exhibit almost any discipline at all. In the early 80s in particular, it was commonplace for the van line CEOs to meet at the HGCB and come to agreements, only to have their boards shoot them down as soon as they got home. At a time when as few as 5 or 6 van lines could have literally dictated the direction of the industry, they couldn't agree, so they passed the responsibility down the line to the agents. Than they tried to force the agents to accomplish what they couldn't by establishing a system of punitive chargebacks, etc. It didn't work. The agency owners couldn't do it alone so they tried to get the sales people to demonstrate the discipline no one else seemed to be able to achieve. Well, they couldn't do it either. So, here we are.
I agree with those who feel that only bankruptcies and consolidations will make any difference down the road. If a firm cannot operate profitably in the current environment, they will fail. But isn't that the way business operates in every industry?
Every time I get among groups of movers there seems to be some underlying agenda that we should be doing things to protect the "industry" ie, each other. I submit that the only entity we are responsible to are our own companies, because everybody else is a competitor. All of the "Supply and Demand" questions will be answered when the over-capacity, our industry maintains the majority of the year, becomes more in line with the demand for our services. When that happens the prices will follow. Unfortunately, there is simply not room for all of us, and the marketplace will eventually sort things out.
Ed Birch
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