From the Magazine: The parts dilemma

The hidden strain between jobbers and shops

The ongoing inventory challenges between auto service shops and their parts suppliers is common issue these days. As someone who has operated on both sides of the industry, first as an independent jobber and now managing a national franchise network of auto service locations, I’ve seen firsthand how inventory can either be a strategic advantage or a frustrating bottleneck.

The jobber perspective

During my time running our family-owned jobber business, inventory was always the heartbeat of our operation. It wasn’t just about having parts on the shelf — it was about having the right parts in the right quantities at the right time.

We constantly evaluated our product lines, min-max levels, inventory accuracy and deadstock. As a full independent jobber, I often found myself analyzing the physical space in our stores and the duplication of SKUs across multiple lines. While this duplication supported customer choice, it often came at the expense of inventory efficiency and depth.

When we joined NAPA in 2014, we took a more analytical approach. Using proprietary inventory modelling tools, we refined our product mix, adjusted min-max levels and began tracking key performance indicators like stock-outs and fill rates. This data-driven strategy helped us better understand how our inventory decisions impacted customer satisfaction and profitability.

Increased competition, especially from large corporate players, has compressed profitability, making it harder for independent jobbers to reinvest in their businesses.

Operating multiple stores in a single city presented its own set of challenges. We faced limitations in warehouse space, which restricted our ability to stock the inventory needed to meet market demand. In Canada, geographic diversity adds another layer of complexity. Finding warehouse space in Alberta is vastly different from securing it in the GTA or in Montreal. These regional differences affect how jobbers can scale and serve their markets effectively.

It’s been several years since I transitioned out of the jobber business, and the landscape has evolved dramatically. Technology continues to reshape how we manage inventory. Economic headwinds have made it harder to keep pace. COVID-19, inflation, and the post-pandemic labour shortage have all placed pressure on the distribution ecosystem. Rising interest rates made operating credit facilities more expensive, directly impacting a jobber’s ability to invest in inventory.

Margins are always under pressure. Increased competition, especially from large corporate players, has compressed profitability, making it harder for independent jobbers to reinvest in their businesses. Add to that the impact of tariffs, trade disruptions and rising rental rates in core metro markets, and it’s clear that jobbers are navigating a minefield of financial and operational challenges.

The shop’s frustration

From the shop’s perspective, inventory issues at the distributor level often feel like a direct impediment to efficiency. Technicians lose valuable time waiting for parts, service bays sit idle and customer satisfaction suffers. Shops rely on jobbers to be agile and responsive. But the reality is that many jobbers are constrained by factors beyond their control: Space limitations, financial pressures and supply chain disruptions.

In metro markets, some large distributors have tried to solve this by building expansive footprints closer to the customer. While this can improve service levels, it also introduces new challenges. High rent costs can strangle profitability and aggressive market entry strategies often lead to margin erosion, making the model unsustainable in the long term.

But the reality is that many jobbers are constrained by factors beyond their control: Space limitations, financial pressures and supply chain disruptions.

A relationship worth preserving

Despite these challenges, the relationship between jobbers and shops remains one of the most important — and successful — formulas in the automotive aftermarket. It’s a business-to-business partnership built on trust, responsiveness and shared goals. But maintaining that relationship requires jobbers to be more agile than ever, balancing inventory health with financial sustainability, and shops to understand the broader pressures their suppliers face.

As we move forward, collaboration will be key. Technology can help bridge some of the gaps, such as real-time inventory visibility, predictive analytics and smarter logistics, but it won’t solve everything.

The relationship between shops and jobbers is deeply interconnected. Through open communication, partnership and transparency, both sides can work together more effectively, with each appreciating the challenges the other faces.

Zakari Krieger is the Fix Network, Canadian vice president of Prime CarCare, responsible for the Canadian retail business, encompassing the Speedy Auto Service and Novus Auto Glass business lines

This article originally appeared in the October issue of CARS magazine