our depot at that time was staffed solely from ex dealer techs including management. superb place to work, best of pay with a really good bonus system, bonus per job rather than weekly/monthly, get a come back or fail a QC you lost it for that job. i thought they had given up the workshops until chatting to somebody recently about them.
They operate under Halfords banner but are actually Nationwide fit centres. They bought the from the AA: I helped close it down in sorts (no I in Team). We had all sorts of issues including claims (ie more than one) where a tyre change resulted in a wheel accelerating down the street faster than the axle it used to be connected to... £80m hole that one
yip, wheels coming off, it does happen. not surprised they lost 80mil. like i said their menu pricing was a joke.
The model was simple, and entirely flawed, that they could work the mechanics in shift and work patterns like a roadside patrol. Also towing in several hundred thousand of jobs a year. Shame most were Corp customer service who refused to have their new vehicles repaired by greasy spanner 3
yip, they cracked the whip, but the craic was good although i think i got out at the right time, place turned to shit after i left. charging a flat rate of £99 per clutch etc etc etc. i am not surprised really. time and motion and middle managers eh?
While Cycling is on the up as it has been for last few years, it has seem quite a boom, they also sell a good line of tools, and with a trade card some things are exceptional Value. I think if they moved more in to E bikes they might to climb again. Looking at their share Prices I know back at the cycle boom they saw good increase almost tripled, and as you would expect had to see a decline, so tough call if they start to bounce and reached their dizzy heights for an investor, as a business they will be around for a while.
