UK The truth about CEF and why is it so expensive.

[Stingray]

So after reading through some of the threads on here, I think its worth mentioning why you all pay so much at CEF.....I'm a former employee who left for a career in a completely different field (just so you know I'm not a disgruntled leaver).

So first of all Proteus and MCG as we know are CEF products, along with firesafe, tamlight and many more. The problem is as a branch we're told to push the living daylights out of these "in house products" because at the end of the year we all get a huge bonus based on the sales of in house products! A few years ago as a sales advisor I received £5700 bonus in June for inhouse sales.....as a van driver!!! So you can only imagine what we then got working inside.

When someone gives you a "discount" using the price which CEF paid for the item, the price actually has a hidden 5% mark up which only certain members of the CEF food chain know about.

"You want something ordering in? Yeah we can do that.....but you'll have to pay a carriage". You pay the carriage and the branch actually just orders in enough stock to fill a carriage paid order with the company.

Have you ever received a paid invoice from CEF but you haven't used them in a few months? Maybe it was something small like batteries or a light bulb? Branches need to have as many Live Trading Accounts (LTA's) as possible monthly so if a your branch is falling behind on those figures they'll usually trade something on the account to make you look active.

If you use another branch other than the one where the account is held ( a double booking) ring your branch first and get a price quite because as soon as you enter the second branch and as them to get your quote it'll be much higher as both branches must share the profits.

 

[nicebutdim]

If I do an online order. I request a quote first. Then my branch apply all the discounts upload the quote then I could order the parts. I find they give me good discounts and I like there next day delivery which seems to be working ok again now .

I tried that once and they quoted about 6 months after the order was delivered. The branch whose door I never darken is considered my local branch.



Edit: I just might request quotes on any future online orders, if for no reason other than to annoy the people in that branch.

 

[Flanders]

I tried that once and they quoted about 6 months after the order was delivered. The branch whose door I never darken is considered my local branch.



Edit: I just might request quotes on any future online orders, if for no reason other than to annoy the people in that branch.

My quotes come back within the hour mind you we do give them a lot of business . I think it all depends on the beach you use.

 

[DPG]

My quotes come back within the hour mind you we do give them a lot of business . I think it all depends on the beach you use.

Cleethorpes

 

[littlespark]

StAbbs…. Or now internationally known as New Asgard

Beach? branch? You’de be no good at wordle

 

[Gavin John Hyde]

I use them for emergency lighting and 3 phase cables.
They take AMEX and a discount if invice paid esrly. If i take a quote in from another local supplier they will at worst match it often beat it. Add in my airmiles which i convert to nectar and 2.5% for esrly payment and we got a happy relationship.
I can easily spend around £6-7k a month on materials locally. Im not averse to going into all of them and showing quotes from different
suppliers. It keeps them honest!
Within 100m i have Rexel., kew, cef, add 1/4 mile in i got screwfix, toolstation, edmundsons.
When one of them said we dont take AMEX anymore. I said i wont be buying here anymore then and walked out. Had a phonecall later that day saying we dont as a rule take AMEX due to the fees but as you spend so much each month with us we will for you. When the new zappis came out they sent me prices. I sent it back marked in red and said i can get them for this much online so match it plus another £20 and you keep the zappi orders, they did as i wanted.
Never be afraid to set out your terms of them supplying you. They want your business and have targets to meet, especially when they leave target figures on the whiteboard outback showing if they have met it or how fsr under they are that week or month.
I once placed an order for around £2.5k and outright said i want an ev charger but will take an extra 3 if you do them at my usual price plus 10%, he moaned but then i pointed to the white board and said isnt it better you meet you target and make an extra whatever it is from the extra 3 units than just the profit in the 1st unit.
He reluctantly agreed and met his monthly target by a few hundred and got the branch bonus. So i reminded him how i helped!!
Basically never be afraid to ask them the cost price and see the screen where it shows there profit!!

 

[Dustydazzler]

Going back some years certain wholesalers had special deals from certain manufactures which made them more competitive than other wholesalers. When I worked for a big electrical contractors they used WF for near everything but they got any MK gear from Edmundsons due to the cheaper price. I remember picking up gear from Edmundsons one day and asked about this special price and they in effect were selling MK to the big local contractors at cost price but MK gave Edmundsons a 5% rebate. Still to this day I am not sure how this worked but the contractors didn't complain as they were getting MK boards and Logic plus gear at cost price

 

[UNG]

Going back some years certain wholesalers had special deals from certain manufactures which made them more competitive than other wholesalers. When I worked for a big electrical contractors they used WF for near everything but they got any MK gear from Edmundsons due to the cheaper price. I remember picking up gear from Edmundsons one day and asked about this special price and they in effect were selling MK to the big local contractors at cost price but MK gave Edmundsons a 5% rebate. Still to this day I am not sure how this worked but the contractors didn't complain as they were getting MK boards and Logic plus gear at cost price

They get price breaks on their turnover if they hit target A then it might be 5% rebate if they hit target B it's 7.5% rebate target C and it's 10% rebate
I once got a quote from Edmundson's for £5K for some Thorn fittings that was substantially cheaper than everyone else quoting £7K turned out that Eddy's were quoting at £1500 below cost to them to get the order because the rebate from Thorn was worth much more ISTR around £10K - £12K

 

[HappyHippyDad]

I use Rexel (Wilts) and screwfix. It's too much hassle to price match with screwfix, but as their prices are good anyway it doesn't really matter. With Rexel, I always have an online price handy and then ask them to better it. They match/better it perhaps 60% of the time. It's definitely worth having a friendly haggle as @Gavin John Hyde suggests. In fact one chap at the branch always asks me straight away what price he needs to beat. I used to tell him, now I've cottoned on to the fact it's best to let him go first with a price!

 

[Gavin John Hyde]

I use Rexel (Wilts) and screwfix. It's too much hassle to price match with screwfix, but as their prices are good anyway it doesn't really matter. With Rexel, I always have an online price handy and then ask them to better it. They match/better it perhaps 60% of the time. It's definitely worth having a friendly haggle as @Gavin John Hyde suggests. In fact one chap at the branch always asks me straight away what price he needs to beat. I used to tell him, now I've cottoned on to the fact it's best to let him go first with a price!

A good example is the Bath Rexel sales guy asked me this morning if i wanted any Zappis without the buitl in hub, these will still be compliant come 1st July via software update but people now want the ones with hub inside. I said hed have to knock a bit off.
offering untetethered for £462+ VAT and tethered £482+VAT which is actually a bargain.
CEF by coincidence called me about chargers yesterday evening, they will price match Rexel on the zappis, I will be happy to send a few orders there way to keep them primed for the time i need a godo price on something only they have.