MONROE , MI — Last week in Monroe , MI , something unusual happened. For the first time in four years, members of the Automotive Distribution Network’s (formerly Parts Plus’ and IAPA’s) Network Jobber Advisory Council and Network Service Dealer Advisory Council got together as a group and talked — really talked — about the issues that are impacting their businesses today.

The joint council meeting was hosted by Tenneco Automotive at the company’s lodge in Bolles Harbor, Monroe. Set against the backdrop of Lake Erie, the Tenneco lodge served as the perfect place for a relaxed, informal and very candid conversation about managing parts and service operations in today’s aftermarket. Tenneco kicked off the meeting with a few presentations updating the group on the latest products, promotions and services being marketed by the company’s various brands including Monroe and Walker.

With a set list of topics to address, the Automotive Distribution Network’s marketing directors Bob Barstow and Gil Gunn moderated the day-and-a-half discussion between the 16 representatives that make up the two councils. The meeting served two purposes: allowing the jobber and service dealer members to have a forum to voice their top issues; and giving the Network the insight it needs to better serve the Network’s membership in the future.

The topics up for discussion ranged from the specific — common parts look-up methods, return rates — to more broad-reaching issues such as the importance of brand and the influence of the OE parts programs.

Prompted by concerns that Network members are losing parts sales and repair business to the OE dealerships, Barstow asked the group how the increased pressure from the OE dealer is affecting them on a local level.

Barstow ’s prompt kicked off a lengthy debate on the influence and impact of the OE dealer in today’s marketplace. Out of all the issues on the agenda, this one seemed to dominate the discussion.

“The OE dealer finally figured it out,” said Barstow . “He makes 2 percent on new car sales, he makes 4 percent on used car sales and he makes 8 percent on parts and service. Go figure.”

For Steve Weber, owner of S & S Service in Hamburg, NY, the dealer is increasingly becoming a resource for hard to find parts. “We’re spending more, 5 percent more, this year at the dealer,” said Weber. “And every year it goes up.”

In certain situations, many of the service dealers on the council say they feel forced to buy a parts from the dealer because they can’t find the necessary information or product to complete a repair through aftermarket channels. Some of the service dealers on the council complain that aftermarket manufacturers don’t resolve issues with defective products on the market today, which causes them to look to the dealer for the part.

“The dilemma we’re up against is that we are supporting the dealer, who will cut us off at our knees in the service industry because we only trust them for the part. It’s a horrible situation to be in,” said Weber.

And, from a marketing standpoint, it’s a self-defeating strategy. Every time a part is described as “good as OE,” “OE-quality” or “OE form, fit and function,” the aftermarket helps to build the very brand it is competing against.

For those in the group who say they refuse to buy OE and won’t support the dealerships, the question became whether brand matters when making parts purchases. Of utmost importance, said the members of the two councils, is quality.

“It’s a trust issue more than anything else,” said Dick Hedahl, of North Dakota ’s Hedahl’s Parts Plus. Hedahl is also chairman of the jobber council. “Any brand can have value if you put the value in it and keep it there. Keep the integrity of it. If you don’t, it’s going away.”