Ordering Online 
In Pursuit of Happiness 

With over 60 billion dollars in online sales, 2000 will go down in the books as the biggest on-line sales year since the term e-commerce hit the internet. In turn, many auto parts suppliers are turning to the Internet to capture a piece of this market. Initially, there was some hesitancy about the Internet and some of that hesitancy still exists today. 

But, now most vendors are thinking that they had better get on the Internet or miss the boat. With most of the specialty auto parts vendors spread out across the country, it makes sense to have an on-line catalog if they want your business. What else besides the Internet, could bring together these far flung companies and puts them at your finger tips.

Since most of us in the restoration hobby are relegated to mail ordering our needed parts and supplies, all this is good news. In the past, you might have had to request 5 or 6 catalogs from various vendors to shop prices and selection for your project. The process involved writing requests, paying for catalogs and mailing out those requests: let's not forget the wait. When the catalogs arrived, you would sometimes be faced with detached price lists and catalog pages with endless lines of inventory. Most of these parts catalogs came without photos or were of such low quality that the photos contained within them were not of much help. 

In contrast, many of the larger aftermarket suppliers of parts and restoration supplies have always had nice color print catalogs. The back of these catalogs are always filled with order forms and telephone numbers for you to call. Simple, right? But, for one reason or another it always seemed to take a week or more to get around to placing an order. Now, the process has just become easier.

Today shopping for auto parts and supplies is easier than picking up the phone. This is made possible by the growing access to the Internet and its 24 hour, 7 days a week capability to serve the consumer. On-line catalogs are now starting to provide a cost savings to suppliers which allows them to focus more resources on selection and service. In any event, the hobbyist can now sit down, and in a short period of time, search dozens of vendors from the comfort of their home. [more]

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