Professional Grade

[turbomangt]

Greetings; Recently while attending a professional detailing clinic hosted by a well-respected chemical company, I was involved in some dialog you may find interesting. Someone asked the regional manager why they don’t market some of their products retail, insisting that there would be demand for high end products. The example he used was Turtle Wax and Meguiar’s. I was intrigued by what he said.
First of all the two companies that cater to both the professional and the retail consumer compromise the quality of the products for a few reasons. One, it is cheaper to package is bulk, for example 55 gal, 5 gal, or 1 gal containers rather than small bottles. So in order to market at a reasonable price they have to cut back on the ingredients, or use lesser quality, which they would never consider doing. The public has the misguided notion that they are getting professional grade products because of the name, sadly, that is not true.
1. Most professional detailing products come in a wide assortment of choices, or variations of any given category. For example, a simple polish that you may find at Auto Zone, you may see one or two of. The pro line might make 25 or 30. The reason is simple; every finish requires special attention and needs. Also, many professionals use buffers to correct paint imperfections, which means chemicals must be designed in interact with these machines to work effectively. In the wrong hands, it can result in disaster.
2. Nothing has the same results as professional chemicals when used properly. This is an edge that the professional detailer has over the consumer, why would you want to loose that edge? (Hmmm, maybe I’m nuts, but I don’t agree on this one)
3. Even Meguiars’s maintains a 24-hour hot line to assist consumers with application questions; sources tell me that most of the questions that come in generally show a lack of education on car care. When a person calls in and asks how do I apply a paint cleaner or wax, this is not a market will want to target.
4. With the amount of car washes, car dealers, and professional detail shops around, we have more than enough business to keep us busy.
5. This may seem insignificant but ALL professional products need to be shaken before use. Reason is because of all the ingredients that make up the product, many times if you don’t shake the product,it won’t perform as directed. Thus is the reason consumer products have a lot of water in them, kind of makes it fool proof.