The 52K tray was the metaphor used to describe the metal tote tray when I started in the mobile tool world. Fifty-two was the number of weeks in a year, and "K" was for $1,000. It was based on the fact that the average dealer would sell an additional $200 a day, which equates to $1,000 a week in additional sales. One thousand dollars a week multiplied by 52 weeks makes 52K. Those numbers were based on the average business, some 25-plus years ago. A quick web search of the value of today's dollar compared to 1998 shows the 1998 dollar is now worth just shy of $2.00. The dealer who carries tools into shops could realistically see a six-digit increase in annual sales based on today's dollar value.
Starting out in the mobile tool world
When I first started on a tool truck, Mac had just started the failed experiment of employee dealers. You couldn't own a Mac route at that time. Mac was only allowing the employee-based, Mac Direct Sales Representative (MDSR) as new starts. That meant my district manager was also my boss. He told me that if he ever came to do a dealer ride and customers asked me why I was carrying a tote tray, he'd fire me. I still consider him my mentor, and to this day, he denies telling me that! Losing my job was the primary reason I carried a tote tray.
Discovering the power of the tote
What I quickly learned was that toting tools actually worked. I nicknamed my tote tray, "the dog and pony show." One of the first questions I was asked when I entered the shop was, "What's in the D&P this week?" I'd usually set my tote on a bench or ask permission to set it on a toolbox. If customers wanted to look at the tools, they knew they could without the "What will it take to put you into a new impact gun today?" No one wants to feel pressured into buying tools.
I'd always leave the D&P in the shop while I went with customers back out to the truck. I found that a lot of customers were more comfortable looking at the tools in the D&P on their own terms, without a tool dealer looking over their shoulder.
It wasn't unusual to find customers looking at the tools when I walked back into the shop. A lot of times I'd hear, "Put those pliers on my bill," or "I don't need those sockets, but that reminded me to ask about a new ratchet." I had a veteran tech tell me he appreciated seeing the D&P every week. He went on to explain that sometimes, between "waiters" or simply the immediate need to get on to the next car, he wasn't always able to come out to the truck. He liked the fact that he was still able to see what was on sale, what was new, or even a great deal on a used tool. In all those years, I never had a single item come up "missing" when I returned back into the shop. The main issue I had was forgetting to retrieve the D&P before I drove off. Too many times, I'd need to go back to grab the D&P.
