Rob Pochos is a multi-route operator and tool dealer with ZRP Tools out of Phoenix, Arizona. Pochos and his wife Zeita operate throughout North and South Phoenix, Deer Valley, and additional areas in the city as independent mobile tool distributors.
Both Zeita and Rob had routes with different franchises, until one day the pair decided to join forces and go independent, purchasing their initial inventory from GEARWRENCH to get started.
Since then, Pochos maintains going independent like he and his wife did could be the best decision they ever made.
The two have flourished since going their own way thanks to a variety of different customer-centric principles and techniques. They agree that the key to a successful mobile business is letting potential buyers know you're there to help them in any way they may need.
"If you're good to people and show them, 'Hey, I'm just up here to help you guys,’ they take care of you [too]," he says. But it isn’t enough to do it one time. It needs to be a regular occurrence.
"You've got to be there every single week,” Pochos says. “These other tool guys aren’t. You have to find out [what buyers need]. My motto is the week that I don't check with you, that's the week that you want or need something."
It's a lesson that Pochos learned early on after initially taking on his route. He was a very young seller when he first started running his truck and learned the importance of remaining available to customers as a reliable and valuable seller early on.
"I was literally talking to myself when I went to this one stop," Pochos explains. "I said 'God, I can't believe I'm doing this. This is an absolute waste of my time. I've been coming here a month and a half and this dude barely gives me the time of day,’” That day’s check-in netted Pochos a $275 bill of sale, all because he decided to see if his customer was in need of any products.
"If I would have listened to stupid me, I would have driven right past that [shop] and the next tool person in there would have gotten [that business]."
Pochos and his wife share just one truck, as the pair "wouldn't want the headache of two." Their Chevrolet Kodiak C5500 truck (a popular choice) features a sizable 19' box and "a bunch of shelves." It's been through several labels in the business since they started but has always served them well.
In terms of stock, the couple tends to feature "as much as they possibly can," with the addition of a few snacks and incidentals for buyers who might just be hungry or thirsty. But what Pochos loves to stock and sell most are specialty tools.
"I can educate buyers on things they may not even know they need. Just the same, when a guy tells me 'Hey man, somebody's going to ask you for one of these,' and I didn't even know they made that tool, I thank them for that information. Because now I buy three of them and tell my guys that I have the tool to do that particular thing," says Pochos.
Pochos notes that much of his success as an independent seller is about having the right attitude, something he’s noticed many dealers lack.
"You've gotta have fun doing this," says Pochos. “You gotta be happy. This is the [techinician’s] happy time. Your visit is a bit of a getaway for the customer. They get to go out into your air-conditioned truck, hear and tell a few jokes, and look at tools. You have to reach out and connect with your customer. You have to be the one to do that. Once you do that, [selling tools] just becomes incredibly easy.”
