Problems With PMB Performance, Anyone Else? Options

[mercury26]

I sent my calipers in last October 2015 and received a confirmation that they were received shortly after they were sent. I was sent an invoice but was told not to pay until they were ready to ship. I sent an email on 2/1/16 to inquire on the status and received an email the next day that they were almost done. I then emailed on 2/17/16 to see if they were complete, since then I emailed on 2/26, 4/12, 5/9 and 5/11 with no response back. I have also left numerous voicemails with no call back. At this point, I would just like my calipers back regardless if they have been completed or not. I had used PMB before with good results, it is too bad that they are not being at all responsive. Also, they must have lots going on at the shop since they have Facebook and Twitter posts every other day on all the activities going on.

Any one else having similar problems? Another person posted on Facebook and Google about the same issue. Both of our posts were deleted from their Facebook page, so they are reading and monitoring what is going on.

Thanks

Chuck

[scotty b]

I'm going to try my best to stay out of this, but feel there are a few things to say in defense of those of us on the other end. Eric can address this specific issue if he feels

I will also say upfront Eric is a good friend of mine, and gets all of my brake and suspension work/purchases, so I probably have a lot more experience dealing with him than most

Perspective :

How many other companies out there do what Eric does ( truly restore vs simple rebuild ) ?

I know of ZERO

How many Porsche's, Ferrari's, Alfa's, BMW's Jag's are out in the world being restored right now that need the brakes done properly ?

10's of thousands + ????

How many of those go to PMB ?

When dealing with a niche market, ( in this case being one of, if not the only one providing a service ), you will get overwhelmed with work extremely quickly once the word gets out. Mistakes happen, phone calls, emails etc get missed or forgotten about. I tell every one of my customers that if you call, text or email me and don't hear back in 2-3 days, hit me again. I may go for a week without checking emails. I see phone calls and texts while working and forget about them by the end of the day.

As far as " why don't you just hire someone " statements....I wonder how many of you making that blanket statement have ever had a small business in a very specialized market ?? Just "hiring someone", tends to end up with bigger issues in the long run ( see the complaints about quality control ) You as the owner of a growing business have to put faith and trust into employees because you CAN NOT fully inspect every single item that goes out and get your work done. As a formerly 3 person business, if I took the time to completely go over my employees work on every car, I might as well have been doing the job myself. I have had to re-do so much work from my last 2 full time employees it has made me decide to go back to working by myself on fewer cars unless someone magical comes along.

If you want to provide a top notch, specialized product, you can't hire the average Joe looking for a job on Craigslist. I speak on all of this from a LOT of personal experience.


Now take all that, and factor in the traveling to shows to promote the business, taking care of employees F-ups ( I've got several stories I can get into there ) dealing with vendors you sub work out to, the phone calls, text messages, emails, parts chasing, paperwork, taxes, bills etc etc etc. and THEN trying to maintain a life out side of work etc.

On Michael's ( Cairo's ) car we have been plagued by delay's from EVERYONE I have outsourced work to because they are some of the best in the business I know. We had some serious issues with a chrome shop I have used before with stellar results, but in this case they botched his stuff up. I have had my own delay's that he and my other customers know of, but I haven't spoken on in public ( because quite frankly it isn't the general publics business )

Going from a garage startup to where we are now, pretty much any small business will experience " growing pains " which is not only a headache for the business owner, but also a headache for customers during those times of change. I have changed my business practices once already, and am in the process right now of changing it once again to better suit the work I now have coming in.

In the end, when you want specialty work done in a limited market, there will be delays because the vendors in that realm are few and far between, are typically swamped with work ( because there are so few ), and they too try to maintain a life outside of the shop/office that the rest of you do.

Your question has been asked and answered, ( particularly by one member who is well known to still hold a grudge ) Eric no doubt has seen this. IMHO your reason for going public may be very valid as I don't know the whole story, and he now knows it is out there in everyone's face. Maybe you should grant Eric the respect of letting this thread die out until you two have a chance to get the issue resolved

Patience and understanding are virtues, vitriol and grudges ares not