RE: Paddock is done?

[Steven Charette <stevec@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Thanks for the kind comments.  And I loved Butch's point - sometimes it's
just lousy timing.  Murphy has a designated parking spot here.

I don't want to belabor the point, but there is a natural cycle to these
small businesses as well.  There are names like Fellwocks and Norm Brady who
were around since long before I started, but as time goes on and priorities
change new businesses start and older ones seem to get pushed to the
shadows.  20 years ago local shops attended local and regional shows (like
the Paddock in Bill's neighborhood) and prospered.  The internet has changed
all that - someone with a slick website can take orders from old established
businesses without breaking a sweat.

The sad part is that there is first hand knowledge that a lot of these guys
have that is lost once they've moved on.  That's why we're seeing '63 Street
Wedge cars and original '65 Coronets with hideaway headlights - after all,
if you heard it on Barrett-Jackson, it must be true, right?

We're really lucky in this niche ('62-'65 Mopars) because there are so many
really knowledgable people who take part - Jim Kramer, Joe Suchy, Wayne
Brewer, Rick Allison, Norm Brady, Larry Pontnack, Bob Mazzolini, I could go
on.  There are probably 10 I've missed for each name I've given.  In
addition, the members on this list are a veritable treasure trove of
accurate information.  You don't find this kind of camaraderie among other
brands, or even other Mopar groups.

Anyway, to those we've lost the last year or two - Paddock, the Cranes, and
others, I thank them for what they brought to the party and wish them well
in whatever their futures may hold.  When things pick up I wouldn't be
surprised to see some familiar faces among us again.

SC

-----Original Message-----
From: Butch Edison [mailto:waedison@xxxxxxxxxxx] 
Sent: Tuesday, June 22, 2010 10:18 AM
To: 1962to1965mopars@xxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: Paddock is done?





I too am in business and will second Steve's comments. My income is down
with no prosects for improvement, so have really dialed back on spending,
especially on my cars. When I don't spend, vendors who rely on what is
totally discretionary spending, suffer first and most. I'm very concerned
about the shrinking pool of Mopar vendors. We tend to piss and moan about
poor service and parts, but one of the alternatives is no parts. It's not
always the worst vendors that fail. Business failures can be caused by many
factors and Darwinism is not as frequent a cause of failure as Murphy's law.




/Butch/Ferndale, WA 




----- Original Message -----
From: "Steven Charette" <stevec@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: 1962to1965mopars@xxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Tuesday, June 22, 2010 7:10:06 AM GMT -08:00 US/Canada Pacific
Subject: RE: Paddock is done? 


Being in the industry I can tell you that everybody is hurting - sales have
plummeted since 2007 and many companies were way, way out on the financial
limb.  It takes a lot of cash to develop new products and many in the
industry were/are leveraged to the hilt. 

It's understandable as things are tight all over - when the average Johnny
Lunchbucket finishes paying the bills, there's not much left over for car
parts.  It's the same if you own an old-car-related business, sales are off
40-60% and after you pay the bills there's not much left for new product
development, new equipment, advertising, etc.  We've dropped all of our
magazine advertising over the last two years just to cut cost and pinch
every penny to make sure we survive the next 2-3 years.   

Owning a business doesn't mean you're rich.  Some have other business
interests that pay the bills, have a fully funded retirement, a spouse with
a good job with benefits, or are independently wealthy.  Many, including
myself, have invested everything they have to keep the doors open, and
sometimes it's just not enough.  You'll be seeing less vendors each year at
shows like the Classic Events or Mopar Nationals because of this and the
effect the internet has had on show trade.  It's not that the vendors don't
want to be there, or that they are "blowing off" the customers, it's simple
economics.  If it costs $10K to go to a show and you don't bring home a
profit, it's hard to justify the outlay as an advertising expense. 

Try to bear this in mind when you call a vendor and get automated response
or are directed to the internet - having somebody sit at the phone at a good
hourly rate plus 20% or so burden comes right off the bottom line.  Quite
often we are all making parts and just can't get to the phone when it rings.


Just wanted to share the view from the other side - making Mopar parts isn't
like making Chevy parts - we have a very limited niche market with
comparitively low volumes, so parts do cost more.  Most of us do it because
we love the cars and the people.  This isn't an industry where you would
invest money to make big returns. 

Rant mode off. 

SC 






-----Original Message-----
From: David Bailey [mailto:bb64d440@xxxxxxxxxxx]
Sent: Monday, June 21, 2010 6:32 AM
To: 1962to1965mopars@xxxxxxxxxx; mml@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: RE: Paddock is done? 




Hello Bill, I read the same thing in MCG. Yes, the Paddock is closed. As I
understand from MCG, the Paddock stopped their advertising in MCG a while
back like some other advertisers also did, 'presumably', because of the bad
eco crunch. MCG said, there was no indication at the time of any other
problem. Later, MCG had an appointment arranged with them (probably to
discuss / encourage continuing to advertise in their mag) but he / they
never showed for the appointment. I've heard this same scenario from others,
like yourself, that tried to make contact / purchases with them but to no
avail or explanation. Other than (understandably), a very sudden or
catastrophic life event issue, this seems to be a very unprofessional way to
close the door. 
  
> To: 1962to1965mopars@xxxxxxxxxx; mml@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> From: Y1TopBanana73@xxxxxxxxx
> Subject: Paddock is done? 
> Date: Sun, 20 Jun 2010 21:25:28 -0400
> 
> 
> I read something in Mopar Action or MCG that the Paddock has closed it's 
doors? 
> 
> Anything past the main page of their website yields this... 
> 
> " 
> Thank you for visiting the Paddock 
> We are temporarily unable to take calls or orders at this time. 
> We apologize for the inconvenience." 
> 
> Anyone know what happened? I thought they were pretty big?!?!?! 
> 
> -- 
> Bill M 
> 65 Coronet 500 'vert http://1962to1965mopar.ornocar.com/mmo62008.html 
> 73 Dart Sport, 00 Cherokee Sport, 01 Dakota SLT 
> 21 Model T Depot Hack, 92 Accord, 06 Mazda 3 
> 
> 
> ---- 
> Please address private mail -- mail of interest to only one person -- 
directly to that person. I.e., send parts/car transactions and negotiations 
as well as other personal messages only to the intended recipient, not to 
the Clubhouse public address. This practice will protect your privacy, 
reduce the total volume of mail and fine tune the content signal to Mopar 
topic. Thanks! 
> 
> 1962 to 1965 Mopar Clubhouse Discussion Guidelines: 
> http://www.1962to1965mopar.ornocar.org/mletiq.html and 
http://www.1962to1965mopar.ornocar.com/general_disclaimer.html. 
> 
                                                
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-- 
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed] 


---- 
Please address private mail -- mail of interest to only one person -- 
directly to that person.  I.e., send parts/car transactions and negotiations

as well as other personal messages only to the intended recipient, not to 
the Clubhouse public address. This practice will protect your privacy, 
reduce the total volume of mail and fine tune the content signal to Mopar 
topic.  Thanks! 

1962 to 1965 Mopar Clubhouse Discussion Guidelines: 
http://www.1962to1965mopar.ornocar.org/mletiq.html and 
http://www.1962to1965mopar.ornocar.com/general_disclaimer.html. 


---- 
Please address private mail -- mail of interest to only one person --
directly to that person.  I.e., send parts/car transactions and negotiations
as well as other personal messages only to the intended recipient, not to
the Clubhouse public address. This practice will protect your privacy,
reduce the total volume of mail and fine tune the content signal to Mopar
topic.  Thanks! 

1962 to 1965 Mopar Clubhouse Discussion Guidelines: 
http://www.1962to1965mopar.ornocar.org/mletiq.html and
http://www.1962to1965mopar.ornocar.com/general_disclaimer.html. 





[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]


----
Please address private mail -- mail of interest to only one person --
directly to that person.  I.e., send parts/car transactions and negotiations
as well as other personal messages only to the intended recipient, not to
the Clubhouse public address. This practice will protect your privacy,
reduce the total volume of mail and fine tune the content signal to Mopar
topic.  Thanks!

1962 to 1965 Mopar Clubhouse Discussion Guidelines:
http://www.1962to1965mopar.ornocar.org/mletiq.html and
http://www.1962to1965mopar.ornocar.com/general_disclaimer.html. 


----
Please address private mail -- mail of interest to only one person -- directly to that person.  I.e., send parts/car transactions and negotiations as well as other personal messages only to the intended recipient, not to the Clubhouse public address. This practice will protect your privacy, reduce the total volume of mail and fine tune the content signal to Mopar topic.  Thanks!

1962 to 1965 Mopar Clubhouse Discussion Guidelines:
http://www.1962to1965mopar.ornocar.org/mletiq.html and http://www.1962to1965mopar.ornocar.com/general_disclaimer.html. 

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