Thursday, March 24, 2011

Another big box drop shipper is sending out flyers again

As the industry heats up you should be seeing more ads. Hey you might even see scooters at the local big box retailer this summer. They creep up on you and start displaying everywhere like the local mall.

Check out Northern Tools latest catalog, or a local Home Depot for new UTVs and ATVs.

In our opinion there is no getting past this. The big box retailers are finally here so scooter shops need to learn to repair these vehicles to stay profitable and find alternative sources for parts for scooters sold by Pep Boys ( like MRP ) since many companies like Baja Motorsports have imported from multiple distributors in the past few years and the company they outsource the parts distribution to gardnerinc.com doesn't know or understand all the complex issues dealing with the units. Past units imported five to six years ago are no longer supported, again the big box mentality its cheaper to take the ATV back at a Pep Boys and ship it back to Baja than to repair it because the big box stores do not repair or service these units on site ( more than likely they send you to a traditional dealership or repair shop that sometimes is unequipped and likely untrained on the unit ) this can be especially confusing if its from a factory that the distributor no longer buys from. Some of the private label companies purchased from ten to fifteen different factories.

We specialize in this. Diamo - LS Motorsports one of the companies whose inventory we acquired would buy from Zongshen, QJ, Wuxi, Lifan, CF MOTO, Jiangsu Linhai, Lingyuen, and Loncin just to name a few. It all sounds like giberish I know, but thats what we do. Some of these factories sell a few containers to companies that later switch management or distribution systems and they abandon all support for older models. This is the norm with big box retailers since they're not liable for the support like a traditional powersports dealer. Sams club doesn't care if your Vision, Yerf Dog, or XKart are supported because all those companies have closed despite having been sold by Sams.

So if you're looking for parts we're here to help.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GW8GpMMe-kQ

SEARS Selling Baja and EBikes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QU-EePXBX8Q


Home Depot UTVs - Bulldog made by American Sportworks
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h82tF9I1wmI


In Italy you also have the Supermarkets selling scooters so this could be a sign of things to come.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xsaR7Vlnpik


Last but not least Pep Boys selling Baja, Hammerhead, and a host of other product from China.
Below we take a closer look at the pros and cons of big box retailers selling scooters and go karts. As we visit one of our local Pep Boys for a closer look at the suppliers of these vehicles.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9e6EMQ_z36Y

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