Knowledge is Know How...

Before computers, it was pretty easy to get your local auto parts counterperson to search catalogs endlessly for ’83 Corvette windshield wipers. (Chevrolet didn’t make a Corvette in 1983.) Coveted data was buried in dusty parts catalogs so wild goose chases took ages. These days, counter person jokes usually involve describing the shape of Tacoma water pump gaskets, quoting flux capacitor prices, or searching for Tesla oil filters. The punchline hits as quickly as someone can type! Can the same be said of a parts quote for your 2008 Chevrolet Silverado? I’m not so sure.

Auto parts is a career most people seem to stumble into by accident. Everyone I know in the industry was in the right place at the right time and something compelled them stay. Everyone has varying levels of interest in cars, varying levels of actual wrenching experience, and varying ability to memorize the seemingly endless amount of trivia counter people call upon daily. Yet to the customer it rarely matters as long as their counterperson is given accurate tools to serve them.

Like your mechanic’s diagnostic equipment, automotive parts cataloging software is incredibly expensive, usually requiring a costly monthly software subscription. Costs the end customer often overlook. Chain stores like Napa, Auto Zone, Advanced Auto Parts, and others have proprietary cataloging software that they’re compelled to use, though others exist. After quite a bit of time using Napa’s proprietary system, dubbed “TAMS”, I can firmly say that it’s the reason most Napa part’s professionals can seem incompetent. It truly breaks my heart.

Rarely a day goes by where an internet user doesn’t use a search engine. Back when the internet was young, Lycos, Yahoo, and AltaVista were all the rage and competition was fierce. Eventually, Google became the undisputed king of search engines because its superior algorithm returned relevant results quicker than the competition. Plain and simple. The majority of parts counter people do not get this choice when it comes to searching for your parts in their catalog search engine.

Despite the efforts of an ungodly large, Fortune 500 parent company, your local Napa’s search abilities are just plain awful. Rarely a day went by in my Napa career where all of the relevant information I needed to sell parts accurately was readily available. If a late model Jeep Grand Cherokee needs brakes, brake pads are listed by brake code while rotors are listed by diameter. What brake pad code corresponds to what rotor diameter? That’s a great question! One that is incredibly difficult to answer quickly or accurately. That is, unless you’ve disappointed a dozen or so customers before tattooing the correct answer inside your eyelids. This isn’t a cherry picked incident, it happens also with Volkswagens, Saabs, Volvos, Grand Caravans, and many others. It also happens in part categories beyond brakes!

Sometime just after Thanksgiving 2022, TAMS underwent a large update. Before the update TAMS wasn't terribly great, but it was a semi-tolerable all-in-one solution. Today a Napa counterperson's search isn't sorted by most readily available or most likely stocked part. For example, your local Napa defintley stocks Napa branded calipers, but not for every car on the road. Many times, other brands are more readily availible or more affordable than the Napa branded part. If a Napa caliper isn't in stock but a NuGeon branded caliper is, it could be buried on page 7 of their search results. The Napa calipers, available from a warehouse several days away, could be right at the top though! If there’s an anxious customer on the phone or an inexperienced counter person at the computer, it’s a recipe for disappointment all around. A “fix” to this update was supposed to be issued within days of the update’s launch, but as of December 31st, 2022 it is yet to be issued.

Many parts stores are currently strapped for help of any kind. If you're the type of person that enjoys building relationships with wholesale and retail customers and problem solving, it can be a great job! I enjoyed it for many, many years. But the stores that are "great" to work for have become few and far between because of mergers and acquisitions.

I now pronounce the "know how", once found at local parts, an endangered species.