Hi Guys,
I work for David Jones in a related department (not buying) with close ties to both the DJs buyers and Apple's liaisons.
Firstly, Dronus I can understand your frustration but DJs is 100% completely powerless to do anymore than what they are doing, I'm not going to go into details of the DJs ordering system but Apple essentially tells us when we can and can't place stock orders.
Hi Miranda,
Thank you for taking the time to reply to the forum.
Could you please expand on
DJs is 100% completely powerless to do anymore than what they are doing Are they aware that there is no shortage of CPU's or video cards as they are being told? Are they actively pushing apple to get the orders shipped?
While I understand that DJ's might be doing all they can, communication is the key here. By reading this thread you would have seen the frustration of customers who see online orders get filled straight away while we wait. While i understand that the online orders would take financial priority as far as Apple is concerned, telling DJ's customers that their order is not shipping due to a lack of CPU's or Video cards is deceiving. I dont understand how Apple can tell a reseller when it can place orders, that doesn't make sence; sure the order might not be filled straight away, but an ETA can be given to the customer to reassure them.
I think you are forgetting that the buyers are employed by DJ's to manage the company's supply and demand of products and to deal with scenarios exactly like this, they are doing the best job they can, their yearly bonuses are at stake.
Not meaning to sound rude, but Apple seem to have disrupted the best made plans of mice and men here. Would you agree that by Apple constraining retailers orders and feeding them misinformation about the staus of the orders isn't ideal? I understand the role of buyers, as i deal with them in my day job.
At the end of the day David Jones, Myer, JB HiFi are Mass Merchants which sit slightly under Premium Resellers in the pecking order followed by Apple's direct channels.
These stores (as mentioned above) have dedicated buyers and account managers. I would have thought that they would have 'buying power' and would be able to negotiate at least the production of the pre-order stock for the customers. This seems like an advantage of having account managers and buyers. Apple should be monopolising on this, not retarding it.
Surely now that online orders are shipping in some cases withing 48 hours there is capability to fill retail orders. We keep hearing that the shipping time is slipping to the right, so it begs to ask the question: What are the buyers and account managers doing to push for our orders to be filled? Maybe an email update or phone call to the customers would provide assurance? Are they still being told that the orders are not being placed due to a lack of parts?
If someone has only paid a deposit, personally I would request a refund and purchase it online.
If you have taken advantage of a 48 months interest free offer through DJs I would suggest hanging on, I highly doubt we will be offering something nearly as good any time soon. We are expecting an initial shipment of units mid December, this may meet some of the suburban store's back orders, but most city stores won't have their demand met from that one order.
I personally would encourage people to hang in there unless there is a critical need for the computer. Supporting stores like yours is very important; local jobs for the people working there, logistics such as truck drivers, storepeople, surrounding and feeding businesses. Where possible, no matter how small the commission is, Aussies should look out for each other and shop locally. I know a few people in retail, its a hard enough job as it is let alone the fear of losing jobs.
Does 'demand' mean customer orders, or warehouse stock? In Adelaide, does Suburban mean stores like Marion and West Lakes, and City mean the city store? Hopefully most orders will be filled, well, at least mine
I am happy to look up any DJs order numbers for concerned parties, keep in mind it only tells me if the order has arrived into DJs not as to it's status or whereabouts outside of the store.
If anyone has any questions and is sick of waiting 30 minutes leading up to xmas to speak to someone on the phone you can ask me here.
Excellent, im sure lots of people will take you up on that
... Im also hoping the rep will call me as soon as it arrives.
Most importantly, remember DJs is in the same boat as you guys are, we have no more news and Apple can't give us any specifics.
Apple should be giving DJ's specifics. If one of my suppliers at work wouldn't give me specifics on manufacturing or shipping for a product there would be repercussions. Firstly would be to explore the legal options. Secondly would be to ditch the supplier. Unfortunately there is only one place to get Apple products, but they should be treating DJ's with more respect than just saying "we dont know". Someone knows, or someone is not managing their accounts properly.
Thanks for replying to the posts and providing a face for DJ's here, im sure everyone appreciates it. i also apologise for any emotion that may have crept into this post, but i am confident that given the correct information and persuasion the right outcome will eventuate for everyone. I have had to purchase a second computer while im waiting for the imac as I could not wait any longer, but im hanging in there until my order is shipped aswell.
