Jump to content

Jigsaw racing - receivership


rulloyd

Recommended Posts

Is the forum aware that Jigsaw Racing has gone into receivership?  Financial problems and ill health.  The lady on the phone said that Mark is not at all well.  She expects the business to be wound up within a month and they are not allowed to sell anything currently.  Very sad.  Mark has a cracking collection of cars of course.

  • Sad 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

44 minutes ago, rulloyd said:

 Mark has a cracking collection of cars of course.

That is sad news. One of the stalwarts of Triumph maintenance and upgrades. He has a great collection of cars; wonder if they'll now be broken up (the collection) and scattered over the country via auction?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That's a shame. I had a difficult experience with Jigsaw, I suspect mainly because of it coinciding with a previous bout of ill-health for Mark, but wouldn't wish this on them. I hope his health recovers - the added stress of the receivership won't help.

Gully

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 minutes ago, rulloyd said:

Thats interesting. Hopefully it's not as bad as the Lady said....😉😉😉

Mark has posted a message on the Jigsaw Racing facebook site about an hour ago as follows, so it looks like October 31st will be the key date (sounds a familiar date!)  

"Today I have to write to all of our fantastic customers and colleagues
That due to my continued health issues
We have had to take the very hard decision to place our company
Into voluntary liquidation
Our business we have loved for the passed twenty five years
Will close its doors with myself and jo at the helm on the 31st of October
I write this with tears of emotion for the job I loved
My feet don’t work like they should which means I am unable to work in a busy work shop environment as I have done all these years
Thank you all
I hope to still be involved in the triumph scene albeit in a lesser capacity
Mark jo"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

we had a great evening with Mark when he brought 1B ?  to the meeting Pub giving some fast rides  for sponsorship towards running at LeMan. some years back 

its a shame many suppliers repairers get a love/ em hate em with the good and bad thats goes with classic fixes but Marks been up there and around for many years 

in the support of our triumphs , health has plagued him and we all wish him well in a un planned retirement from the trade 

good luck Mark and Jo 

Pete herts and beds 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 hours ago, Herald948 said:

One could only hope that another Triumph specialist could, at least, pick up where Mark left off?

This is the worrying thing; as we lose yet another Triumph specialist, there don't appear to be more coming along behind to pick up the business again.

Having chased 'bodyworkers' for the last fourteen months I'm starting to despair that as the older generation (no offence, Mark et al!) disappear, those taking their place don't have anywhere near the same amount of knowledge or experience that is lost.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I know exactly what you mean. In my 'other job' (!!!) the younger end are quite happy the reap the rewards from the work done by the 'old guard', but there is little sign of them taking on the work or even shadowing anyone so they can learn. Modern society (in many cases, though I must stress, not all), want it now, don't care where from as long as I don't have to do it.

  • Sad 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think the high labour costs due to overheads and operating costs contribute to the continuing  disappearance of these specialists. I know when I first purchased my Vitesse and completely new to the Classic game I was paying £80 per hr ( including VAT ) to Manvers Triumph ( now longer trading since Clive passed away ) and if I had continued down this route my Vitesse would have been a money pit . My opinion is that this is not a business model that can thrive and prosper over the longer term .  However specialist training courses would have a place and the TSSC is best placed to organise and run these courses . The courses could begin with a basic mechanics over 3 to 4 days through to courses on bodywork , spraying etc . I for 1 would pay the going rate to be taught rather than paying £80 per hr for somebody else to do the job .

My pennies worth 

Paul 

  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

A lad who did gardening for me when he was 16yrs old (he is now 25) took more interest in my Triumphs than he did in the gardening. I just happened to ask him one day to give me a hand, he jumped at the chance and within a couple of hours had the suspension stripped on my 2000. He actually is now a farm hand, but now i can no longer do a lot of work, Ben has taken over and i only have to tell him once (if he gets stuck) and it stays there. He loves the mechanical side of things, but having trained in farming can't go down the car repairs route as it would be to costly....... So there are younger people out there are willing to have a go. Strangely he never plays on computers and only uses one for reference.

Tony. 

  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

30 minutes ago, Colin Lindsay said:

Worth every penny, too. I think I'm going to have to learn to weld bodywork and it may look like a dog's dinner when finished, but it's better than at present, where the car is sitting gathering dust because no-one will touch it...

sad to hear about jigsaw but go for it colin.

i couldn't weld anything a few years ago but i've done nearly all of my gt6 tub now and 95% of the welds are ground down anyway.

paul

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, Paul H said:

I think the high labour costs due to overheads and operating costs contribute to the continuing  disappearance of these specialists. I know when I first purchased my Vitesse and completely new to the Classic game I was paying £80 per hr ( including VAT ) to Manvers Triumph ( now longer trading since Clive passed away ) and if I had continued down this route my Vitesse would have been a money pit . My opinion is that this is not a business model that can thrive and prosper over the longer term .  However specialist training courses would have a place and the TSSC is best placed to organise and run these courses . The courses could begin with a basic mechanics over 3 to 4 days through to courses on bodywork , spraying etc . I for 1 would pay the going rate to be taught rather than paying £80 per hr for somebody else to do the job .

My pennies worth 

Paul 

The counter-argument here is obviously why would a mechanic work in a classic based business when they can easily earn more in a franchised or main stream 'modern' dealership charging £80-£130 per hour? Why should we as classic owners expect to pay less for our classics than our moderns? The reason we are reluctant is the same reason so few of these cars survive - they reach the point when replacing is cheaper than keeping. 

If people choose not to use the specialists we have, then they will disappear and all that will be left are the top end restoration businesses accessible to the few with deep pockets and cars worth 10 times ours.

Gully

Link to comment
Share on other sites

42 minutes ago, Gully said:

The counter-argument here is obviously why would a mechanic work in a classic based business when they can easily earn more in a franchised or main stream 'modern' dealership charging £80-£130 per hour? Why should we as classic owners expect to pay less for our classics than our moderns? The reason we are reluctant is the same reason so few of these cars survive - they reach the point when replacing is cheaper than keeping. 

If people choose not to use the specialists we have, then they will disappear and all that will be left are the top end restoration businesses accessible to the few with deep pockets and cars worth 10 times ours.

Gully

I don't know that the average mechanic gets any more of that "£80-£130 per hour" rate in a modern dealership than they would at a restoration shop. What the shop charges and what they pay their help are two different things. That said, I agree otherwise. I'm often amazed at people who might balk at paying, say, £15 for an OE-quality wheel cylinder for a Triumph but don't blink when shelling out many, many times that much for...whatever...on their modern car!

Beyond that, what we'll truly lose when it's only those "top end restoration businesses" is the knowledge base of people like Mark as well as their attention to details. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong here, but wasn't ADU1B deemed so "correct" that it was ultimately accepted as more or less the "real thing" and not simply a replica?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Herald948 said:

I don't know that the average mechanic gets any more of that "£80-£130 per hour" rate in a modern dealership than they would at a restoration shop. What the shop charges and what they pay their help are two different things. That said, I agree otherwise. I'm often amazed at people who might balk at paying, say, £15 for an OE-quality wheel cylinder for a Triumph but don't blink when shelling out many, many times that much for...whatever...on their modern car!

Beyond that, what we'll truly lose when it's only those "top end restoration businesses" is the knowledge base of people like Mark as well as their attention to details. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong here, but wasn't ADU1B deemed so "correct" that it was ultimately accepted as more or less the "real thing" and not simply a replica?

I think you are correct about ADU1B which explains why it was allowed to run at LeMans Classic.

I have seen it suggested that labour costs are 1/4 of what has to charged out. + labour costs include more than actual wages paid to the employee.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...