I don't understand why everyone is defending randy?? Doesn't make any sense. He runs a business which provides products for people. People order said products and he needs to ship them out and answer questions as needed in a TIMELY fashion.

There's being rational and patient, and there's chasing someone down for a month trying to get an answer. I'm sorry but this is no way to run a business and he just needs to stay put and attend to matters to get his business on the right track instead of racing and doing pulley parties and what not all over the country.

I have honestly never seen customer service this bad, and the thing is, it's accepted by the MINI community! I understand he's a busy guy and I don't personally need randy to take care of everything, anyone at webb will do, but its obvious his business has outgrown him but yet he doesn't attend to it. I just want my matters dealt with so I won't have to worry about it. ugh

 

Do it dude! Man I'm on your side here no need to be hostile.

Mikey

 

EXACTLY!

 

Yeah Let's wake Chad up For that matter...I bet you I can get Peter on the phone right now if you want

 

Do it for me would ya Sid, I need that bushing!

 

I think Randy is aware of being spread to thin. That is one of the reasons he is not having anymore pulley parties. I'll bet within a week Randy will return his emails, answer questions on his fourms and catch up with his shipping. Let's all cool out for about one week. After that I'll join the ***** session!!

 

I can't believe that ***** (aka female dog) was censored.

 

Wow...what a read!

I kind of feel pain for Webb for the bad press he's getting but at the same time he dug his own grave. In his defence though he did warn in a past thread that he was still doing a few last pulley parties before calling it quits and he'd be busy for a while.

Personally I don't really care. I ordered my HDI from Coopersport as I got sick of trying to phone tag those guys. I have money to spend on my car and unfortunatley I don't think it will go their way as they really don't seem to want it.

There is a second side to this equation though. Because of all the "hands on" stuff Randy has done with the community he has carved himself a niche as far as technical support specialist. Lets pretend he gets 100 calls a day...I can guarantee that 50% of those are people looking for "free support" while guys like us are waiting for parts, 20% are looking for "quotes" and the remaining 30% or so are actually people with cash in hand ready to buy. We go through the same crap at my shop and it's more than quite annoying. I refuse to offer tech support to people who don't buy parts / service from us. If your not a mechanic don't pretend to be...pay a pro or pay the piper as time is money.

I can kind of stay neutral as there is probably more than meets the eye here. Think about it logically. Do you honestly think Randy wants to **** of his customers? Of course not. In fact he's travelling nationwide to service them. Does he need a lesson in small business management...well yes of course.

My only suggestion would be that if your busy enough to be travelling and can afford to miss a few customers calls then you should be pulling in enough scratch to HIRE A BLOODY SECRETARY!!!


My 2 cents


Seann

 

I thought that was spelled Biaaaaatch

 

I'm not saying I needed to talk directly to Randy in my case. Unfortunately no one answers the phone or returns calls.

Sorry guys, I like the guy as well but if Webb wants business some one, any one needs answer or return calls.

Hell, I drove two hours to have him put my pulley on at one of his party's.

LongBoard

 

Holy cow,

First off, there should be two guys(James and Rich) at the shop from 9am-3pm, monday-friday. I dont know why you cant get int touch with them as they should be answering every phone call, checking messages, and answering e-mails. I apologize if you have not reached either of them.

Secondly, I have said this several times, if you cant get in touch with our shop try e-mailing(Brian@webbmotorsports.com) or PMing me. I think if you talk to anyone who has contacted me directly I get back to you quickly.

I think the first step is to take some of the load of off good ol Webb, and place it onto someone else. He is not exactly trained to run a business as many of you have figured out but I swear he is trying. We are still searching for good affordable help, but it is turning out to be really hard to find. As some of you may know, I devote more time than I should as a full time student to try and keep up with the support. I would also like to personally apologize as it looks like my time spent e-mailing, calling, posting, and driving across the country to personally install parts is not enough. I realize that our focus should be on taking care of the parts business which is why he is making major changes to fullfill your requests. I hope you guys can understand and continue your patience.

-Brian

 

YGPM, thanks.

 

Let me first preface this by saying that anyone who has to wait an extended period of time wating for a response on an order that they have paid for has a legitimate gripe - to a point.

Since WMS began business, these threads have popped up every few months. By now, people should be aware that a good portion of WMS business is the pulley party, which entails travelling, shipping, planning, etc.

Unfortunately, it is a sad fact that the majority of Randy's calls tend to be of the advice variety. These are calls that do not end in a sale. In other words he spends quite a bit of time on the phone making no money.

Most other vendors do not offer the same service that Randy does, so comparing them is an apples to oranges affair. The are not spending the same amount of time at pulley parties, in their own shop doing installs and developing, testing and researching new products.

There are vendors that service other marques that perform a similar function, and forums catering to those cars are filled with alternating praise and vitriol. So I am not surprised the same sort of threads have surfaced here.........

So by now people should know and expect that there are pros and cons to any vendor on this board. I do not expect anyone at Outmotoring to walk me through a pulley install and I do not expect Randy to call me back immediately.

I do expect Randy to give me unbiased advice - he has literally talked me out of as many mods as I have purchased from him.

I do expect Randy to perform installs that almost no other vendor can do and in places that no other vendor will touch. My WMS head was installed in my driveway, and when a pre-existing condition raised it's ugly head, Randy spent an additional 8 hours working on my car (free of charge) swapping sensors with the Mule, buying equipment on his own dollar to troubleshoot the issue and staying away from his wife and kids until my problem was resolved.

I do NOT expect Randy to offer the same shipping services as other vendors who do not offer the wrench side of the business.

Alot of people on this board will get their wish - Randy will be travelling no more. He will be staying in Colorado, where relatively few people will get to have him personally work on their cars. I expect in time, the customer service/ordering side of his business will be up the same level as other vendors - and many customers will be really happy that they got their BBK or CAI in less than a week - and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.

As for me, well, I could give a rip either way whether my parts get here in one week or three. I will sorely miss being able to have probably the most knowledgeable Mini Mechanic around wrenching on my car and I will also sorely miss his free advice.........

 

Just FYI, Brian got back to me immediately with a response to my PM.

Thanks Brian!

 

Brian, For the last 3+ years almost all of my business has gone to Webb. I'm really irritated & fed up that i've been trying to get ahold of either you or Randy since April and have gotten no return calls. I've left at least 4 phone messages, sent PMs & emails to each of you 3 times and heard not a word from you, Randy or any other staff member.
You called me in early March and asked that I return a camber plate to you as you needed it for the upcoming track events. Randy mailed me a Helix plate to replace the Webb (PerfectPower) one that i was having issues with. I had not had a chance to put the Helix plate on my car and i mailed it back to you the day after you called as you requested. We discussed & you agreed to get me another Helix plate in early April and i'd return the Webb Perfect Power when i installed the Helix. I have not received any response from either you or Randy from the many voice mails, PMs or emails. I not only wanted to talk about the return camber plate but wanted to discuss buying a Quaife, and perhaps a flywheel & clutch.
FYI I called Eric at Helix the day after the Dragon and he answered his phone after just returning from long drive back to Philly. I ordered the Quaife from him and it & and new clutch & flywheel are in my car.
I understand you folks are busy, developing & installing great products but this is no way to treat loyal customers. We aren't asking to much !
You have my # please call me. Barry in Honolulu

 

I defend Randy, Brian, and Webb Motorsports because they are good, honest, hardworking guys, and because WMS as a business has provided invaluable support to myself and a couple thousand other Mini enthusiasts. Let me provide one specific example that individual Mini owners have undoubtedly experienced in one form or another on countless occassions:

At the Phil Wicks Laguna Seca event last December, WMS was the first to arrive and the last to leave to help Mini owners the day before and the day of the event. When someone needed a tool, a spare part, or even a serious overhaul (without which they would not have driven from the track), Randy and Brian were there to help -- and this was all during and after a day of enthusiastically instructing, racing, and providing answers to psyched Mini owners who were at the event. Given the time, distance, and travel money involved, this was not big-time money making endeavor for WMS either...

Companies like WMS and guys like Randy and Brian are part of what make the Mini community great -- their enthusiasm and energy in contagious, and IMO worth supporting. Constructive criticism is one thing, but holy moly do you haters really want the business to go away as you seem to imply in some of these posts?!

The former office person Bridget recently moved to another job that paid closer to what she needed to make, and her loss has certainly contributed to some of the frustration folks have felt in the past month -- but again I ask that y'all take the history of WMS and the current situation into consideration before turning away.

 

If I had the patience to tolerate the bagging on Randy I would have said exactly what Skip did.... (good job skiploder) .... but I dont... and it's late, so all I will say is I hope you anti-webb people get a nice rammed up your .

Edited before I get Harrested.

 

seems to me everyone who met with them in person natually become the defenders, or sort of. since they're really nice, down to earth guys, it's hard to not like them . just that they tend to run their business in old fashion way, reminding me of family restaurants, dishes are good but may take longer to get, which is not necessarily the most efficient way of doing a business. hopefully they'll find a perfect balance between, and make everybody happy.

 

Well said micahbones and Skiploader,camelpilot that’s no place for such a pretty part.

Having one of a kind guys like Randy and Brian are worth countless vendors who answer the phone on the first ring and will take and ship your order the same day but don’t know a 10th of what these guys do about MINI’s. I have waited for several parts but didn’t freak out cause I couldn’t get hold of them immediately. I’m going to really miss seeing them at pulley parties. But know it is for a good reason, so they can build the business and spend the much needed and deserved time with family.

I don’t plan on doing all of the mods I want to do for years so waiting for stuff and advice is part of the game. I know Randy will come up with cool stuff in the future and I will get in line to get some of it.

 

The point is, his business is not solely about shipping products to people. He is (over)committed to doing that, providing service, doing R&D on products, making MINIs dependably faster, and a host of other things.
As others have said, he excels at the personal service aspect (I've watched him in action, including fixing a broken car at Laguna and doing installs in Vegas in the dark) but is apparently less adept at the product shipment aspect.
Then again, just like reading NAM might make one think all MINIs are lemons, we don't know how many people get just what they want, when they want it from WMS. But we do know many of the unhappy ones.
Not trying to make excuses for Randy - if he says he'll ship something, he needs to do it - but some businesses earn more slack than others, at least from some of us.
Just another perspective.

 

sorry for the previous rant folks- i'm a true Webb supporter, having received great advice, counsel & parts from Randy- I totally support micahbones & Skiploader posts.
I received a PM response from Brian shortly after my post- something i had not received in the last 2 months in spite of trying to communicate in every way.

 

I wish Randy all the best as he goes through the steps to re-tool his business..... I have had long talks with him on this topic and he is aware and doing what he believes is the best course for the long run......for the customers, his business, and his family.

 

Fck'n A!!

 

.... I like Randy...

He was the 'kid' that helped this old man get started with doing what he's always wanted to do. I respect his knowledge and his spirit. I was bummed that he announced that his track days were over as I was hoping to see him there.
I know how some here feel when Randy disappears, as it happened with me. I was pissed and even hurt, but in time I got over it. It's just the way Randy is, like it or not. I run my own business and have been guilty of the same things as Randy, so I get it. It's not right, but it's the basic way an artistic person does things.
Look forward to seeing Randy sometime soon, hopefully on the track...

Greg V

(well how about that. My 2000 post, how fitting ... )

 

Well said onasled.

If Randy TRIED to rip people off then it would be a different story. But he doesnt do that, he is trying to meet the needs of everyone. Some people will slip through the cracks. No reason to hate him or get mad at him for it.

Randy doesnt sell some McDonalds style hamburgers where the "Customer is always first". What he sells is alot of valuable time, research, development, and quite frankly the BEST mods available, and if to get any of this stuff means that I have to wait, then hell yeah I'll wait.

I just hope that Randy doesnt decide to lay down his guns because of the haters, because there are still lots of people out there that appreciate him.

Anyway... threads like these have popped up enough times to make them boring and repetitive. I dont even know why I still post in them.

Hey Greg (onasled), good to see that you have come back to the dark side. .

btw.. what ECU mod will you be running in the car when it's completed?