http://www.914club.com/bbs2/index.ph...f=2&t=9208

I think that thread speaks for itself
Mike

 

I don't think that thread speaks for itself at all. It only has one side of the story.

I would be willing to bet there is A LOT more to that story. Given the amount of hard work (and well deserved goodwill) Randy has put in with the MINI community, I'd certainly not go off saying he isn't a stand-up guy. Nothing could be further from the truth based on the 18 months I've known him.

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North American Motoring
Send me a PM

 

I agree, I have known randy for a while, and he is a great guy. He has stood up to everything he has said. I agree with dave, you need to hear both sides of the story.

 

Mike.... ur certainly allowed to and encouraged to.... here on NAM.... to state your opinion :smile:

I'll add mine here.... as well :smile:

Peace,
D




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PM d-mini-ero

 

There are always two sides to every story. In my dealing with Randy, he has always been upfront and honest, delivering good value for money. That is one of the main reasons I continue to deal with him. I would not change my opinion due to an internet rumor from one dissatisfied individual. The MINI community owes Randy both gratitude and respect for the aftermarket part testing and modification installation he has spent the last year and a half doing. I for one plan on having him supply me with my next round of mods.

 

Well, I'm sure you will get Randy's attention here (RUKnight has also posted on webbmotorsports site) and, I am just as sure Randy's side of the story will clear up any concerns you may have.

 

A couple of comments:

the internet spawns too many self proclaimed experts (nothing new here), but also too many easy believers. One also sees no correlation (maybe an inverse one) between reasoning ability and quantity of output. I don't take anything on the net at face value.

Randy has shown himself to be a qualified miniac. He has found a way to make his business and his customer base grow, he is no doubt struggling with all of that, his testing, his website, his travelling around, etc. and he gets my support. I'm much more impressed with that track record than the other claims. Based on the behavior we have seen, even if those claims are grounded, who cares? .

 

Randy has worked very hard and has earned our respect and trust here on our MINI site. I don't know what happened, but it is just one instance of someone from another site in competing cars. I've heard here before that Randy used to work with Porches but that was awhile back and he's basically a MINI enthusiast now. This could just be sour grapes from past experiences and dealings. I'm not really worried about this.

 

I cant say Randy is a stand-up guy because I have never seen him on stage, or heard any of his jokes.

That being said any dealings I have had with him, albeit not much so far, he's been a helluva guy.

 

Yes theres always another side to every story or incident...lets remember that before we judge someone or instigate anything

 

I met Randy Webb in Vegas. He did my pulley, throttle body, plugs, wires and coilpack (the ECUs did not show up - NOT HIS FAULT - so I need to go get that). He did all this for $1765.00 - may or may not be the best price. I left Vegas owing Randy the money and he was fine with that - I Airborned him a money order for it later.

I am no expert but I would trust him with whatever he wanted. I am ordering a rear swaybar and a Borla catback from him. And I will pay him up front.

I have also invited Randy to stay at our house in our spare room when he comes to San Diego. I would have no problem leaving him at my house when I was not there.

I am sure he is a stand up guy and I have heard a couple of his jokes - and he had to listen to a couple of mine

Earl

 

I met Randy @ the Detroit pulley party back in December, and he was a good guy, no reservations about his abilities or integrity. For performance mods, it's Webb Motorsports for me :smile:

 

I have nothing but praise as well. Any vendor who'd tell a customer not to buy a product that he sells because it's wrong for his application deserves some credibility. He installed I think fourteen pulleys over two days in Atlanta and workeed his @ss off. Not 'flaky' behavior in my book.

Regards,

Jeff

 

Actually, I've had kind of a similar experience as that guy on the other forum. 100% of my orders from Randy have been screwed up. However, I have some inkling of how overwhelmed he is so I just brought the issues up with him and things have been resolved. No harm no foul (well I'm still waiting for one part).

Nevertheless, considering he must get hundreds if not thousands of emails, phone calls, and forum questions a day, I think cutting him some slack is not out of the question.

I'd have no qualms about doing business with him again.

Chuck

 

Whether the story is true or not, does it really matter? Who really cares what people on a Porsche site think of him? :smile:

 

Randy installed my pulley and rear sway bar in an excellent manner. He was very straightforward with his advice and suggestions. My only problem was trying to get a hold of him to purchase more mods , however being popular and busy isn't a crime. In fact I felt bad that I finally had to go to other vendors on NAM for my needs.


Dave

 

I have had no problems with Randy and he has given me some good advice. I also realize that he is a one man shop. With that said, I think his business model may need some work. I think a lot of problems regarding business on the internet is fueled by the increasing desire to get high quality parts, cheap and fast, and the potential fear of scam that everyone has. The smallest upset can sometimes bring negative publicity.

I think that Randy for a one man shop needs to focus his concentration on a very narrow business model or hire more people. Many people have posted on this site and his own asking where parts are, and where he is because he hasn't responded to e-mails or phone calls because he has been out or at pulley parties. One problem is, since he is a small shop he relies heavily on drop shipments, which takes him out of control and places it back onto other individuals. Because of delays with vendors, shipment problems with other vendors, he spends a lot of time trying to fix these problems and respond back to questions. It also appears to make him look bad, when things are not shipped on time. While I think the pulley parties are a great way to interact with his customers and attract new customers, it can be detrimental for a one man shop to leave for 3 or 4 days doing this. I think the order line he put in is a good step, but they are limited in what they can do. Maybe he can't afford anyone else at this time. If that is the case, then maybe narrowing the focus would be good. He touts "elite customer service" on his website. This takes a lot of work and sometimes requires a singular focus.

I am not trying to be negative to Randy, I really like him and would love to see him suceed. I know that there are a lot of other small business owners out there, who are going to respond to me saying it is tough and you don't understand. I do understand and if you want to be successful you can't rely on the fact that it is tough. It can be done and it can be done successfully. It takes a lot of skill and foresight into navigating through the market. A small boutique shop can be very successful and can provide superior customer service compared to a large company.

 

Even as another "vendor" Randy is more than patient, I owed money throught the time i was down for my accident, once we talked he was fine with the arrangement we made, he is a standup guy we crack jokes every time we talk, even if dissagree on things like the 19%, i feel there is a mutual respect.....I have had no problems refering people to his shop, after all he is "out west" and on the east coast, very knowledgeable guy, great mechanic as well.....

 

very well said, dgsweda.

i think maybe if he just took on some help, to help watch the shop while he's out and to take orders/handle customer relations.

i haven't purchased anything from him, but he sure doesn't mind giving advice for free, and thats more than some vendors do.

-ABT-

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Randy I will back you to. I know how hard it can be to be scrutinized, second guessed and lied about.......

 

my .02 cents worth. liked him from day one. got lots of straight info and no b.s. ordered from him and got the part and the right price. needed info on a good mini pulley installer in my area and got the scoop from randy. so for what its worth i will buy more and hope he brings all the neat things to mini's i also hope he can make a living at it. thanks for being part of the mini group.

 

I have to note that I have a great deal of respect for vendors that can stick up for a competitor. That demonstrates real character.

And as usual, dgszweda's comments are well-put. (Hire an umbrella girl at least dude!)

Back to your regularly scheduled program.

 

My emails to him were ignored a few times so not sure what to think of him.

 

Sheesh!

This guy has to be kidding! I have talked to him several times. This has been a story that has evolved over the last year, but I think the details are pretty accurate. Here's the story (and it is from my perspective, so take the two, and meet in the middle for the truth I always say ):

I had a clearing of parts when I started the MINI side of things and sold my 914-6. I had a ton of rare 914-6 and 914 stuff. Olav, the guy in question, called and I made him a hell of a deal on several very trick 914-6 only parts, to clear room for the MINI stuff. He mentioned after putting the deal together, that his seat insert was not the one he wanted. I let him know that in Florida, in storage, I had one that might work for what he needed. I didn't know when I would get to it, and it wasn't perfect, but he was welcome to it.

Well, I immediately sent out the 7 or 8 trick things he wanted (I don't remember what the entire list was). He got them and was happy with them.

I hadn't been back to Florida until the pulley party in May of '03 - a few months after Olav had bought my parts. Just before that, I had the computer crash, and lost a ton of my e-mails (some of you may remember that!). Olav's address and contact info was one of those e-mails.

So, when I did return to Florida, I didn't have his shipping info. The smart thing to do would have been to ship it back to my place, then have it on hand for when Olav got back in touch with me. Hindsight.

Well, Olav called, and made it sound like the seat was the heart of his initial purchase, and that he had been eagerly awaiting its arrival. I let him know the situation, and found out how upset he was. I again told him that I didn't know when I'd be back in Florida.

I have since let him know that I will have my Grandfather ship it to his address, and I forwared his address to my Granddad. As you can imagine, boxing up and shipping a seat isn't high up on my 81 year old Granddad's list.

I will have to sort this out with Olav - I am at fault for sure, as this part wasn't a priority as it was a private sale and the seat was more of an afterthought for the purchase.

As for the business, the old cliche of finding good help is definitely true. I've put an order line and message service in place, and I stay up until about now returning phone messages. I'm trying pretty hard right now to find the right person to interact with customers that has a good knowledge base. We are workign hard to implement the changes necessary to grow and provide customer support, while continuing to develop as well as test great new poducts.

Thanks for all of the support!

Randy

 

Randy, is it possible to set up your website to process credit card orders? That will save some time and effort for your customers when placing an order. :smile:

Thank you for all your personal phone calls and expert advices! :smile: