This is a must have item for any store. It's an essential upgrade. Make sure to check out the link to our Air Filter section. Having 130 stores across the country these guys know a little more about merchandising than the average shop and thats what I talk about to dealers you have to build the store experience. Stock parts. Air filters are used every day, don't let your client end up at Walmart because you don't stock an air filter.
Rollers, air filters, belts, these are all part of the equation of running a good shop. Contact us at MRP if you have questions on how to make a better air filter display we have the racks, displays, and yes lots of air filters. info @ mrp-speed.com
Having a good stock of air filters can help you sell more upgrades, especially the little chrome ones. Consumers love these and if they see you stocking parts, guess what they will buy. It's terrible when a buyer is looking for variety and they can't find one in the shop, make sure to stock air filters. Walk into any Cycle Gear shop and they have a whole row of air filters.
We have the best in OEM and Aftermarket disk ( disc ) brakes. For SYM, Kymco, Linhai, Jonway, Jincheng, United Motors, Diamo, CPI, LS Motorsports, Italjet, Malaguti, Benelli - Andretti, Aprilia, Honda, Yamaha, Genuine - PGO, GY6, QMB139, Vespa, Piaggio, check out www.mrp-speed.com
Once a day we get a call from someone who purchased a part online from Ebay or from Cheap Chinese Name your site.com They tell us the same story. I'm calling you because I have nobody else to call, or I found this on Ebay I need some support.
Buy from the local shop. It's the best way to make sure you get the support you need. Is it really worth it to save $10 if your local scooter dealer goes out of business. It's a sad state of affairs that had led us to this point in our country where people want tech support but are unwilling to pay someone to install a part.
I'm really getting tired of seeing the local shops close and its because as Americans we don't support our dealers. We have this Walmart mentality of cheaper = better. It's not true, in the end if you have nobody to fix your scooter and you can't do it yourself then the scooter is junk.
My favorite is when they pretend its one of our dealers and they are trying to blame them for not installing it correctly. Then it turns out they didn't want to pay for the install. In the end they say no were sorry we purchased it on Ebay. In Puerto Rico we have plenty of stores that advertise "Like MRP" then you get to the store and its not an MRP Kymco upgrade its some other brand. Same applies here, you get what you pay for. If you buy from a guy on Ebay you won't be getting any tech support or help. So stop buying on Ebay.
Support the local dealer. At least they will give you some support when you need it. If all the stores close there won't be a US scooter community.
The last few weeks I've had to learn a lot about apparel. I'm actually having to read and ask questions, sometimes I feel like I'm in chemistry class again and some concepts have to be repeated two or three times. My whole life I thought leather was the best material. I mean who doesn't feel safe wearing a nice black leather jacket? The differences between one material and another are incredible, but beyond that the fact that the majority of stores I talk to don't have clothing is even more incredible.
Some store managers are pretty honest and just say "I put a catalog on the counter and they can order from there." Forget about the fact that half the customers will go home, shop online and buy it from an online retailer or the other half will go to another store. The truth is most motorcycle store owners have never had to work in a Sears or Macy's giving them the understanding of how apparel works. Because of that they don't invest in training their staff to understand apparel.
Apparel is a great conversation piece. Customers come for the experience ( see my previous blog entry ) this is part of that. Give them a D30 Presentation like this one and you might get a sale. Follow Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6gT3IfjfUc
That conversation piece can lead to more sales and will keep the client coming back to the shop which falls on that whole "Create a Destination" talk I've been giving.
For years Americans have had limited choices and there are some great brands out there, but I don't feel many of them are geared towards "scooter riders." Big Four stores sometimes have a Dianese or Alpine jacket, but thats not a scooter jacket. Even shops that carry one or two pieces of imported Tucono Urbano, or stock a Corazzo jacket and aren't properly displaying these brands. I can say this with all honesty because I do visit about a 100 stores a year. Now that we are representing Armadillo in the US as their partner I see all the issues this side of the business has. It's like you don't notice how many yellow cars there are until you drive a yellow car well same thing here. I have to start talking about Apparel because half of what I do is helping stores stay in busines and create profit centers. Regardless of the brand you carry you should follow some key rules.
You always have space. I hear stores say lack of space is the number 1 reason. We'll guess what, getting rid of 1 scooter could double your accessories income, put up a rack and a mirror no excuses.
Lack of Funds. Same as above. Instead of buying one more $500 cheap scooter that equals 4 jackets and some helmets. The mirror will cost you $40 a Home Depot.
My Customers don't buy that stuff. Wrong, your customers are buying it from someone else. You have to take a leap of faith when it comes to clothing. Yes, it's true its complicated if you have different weather patterns so you might need some winter and summer jackets, but your store will benefit and you can always use the catalog if you actually have something for them to see. The catalog only works in Candyland, in America customers want to walk in to the store and touch, feel, smell sometimes the jacket. Like in Best Buy, the floor samples help make the sale. Sam Walton realized that a long time ago so unless you're in the business of being a small shop forever you have to think big, think apparel.
How do you know it sells?
Very simple - Apparel is the fastest growing side of the scooter and powersports industry. Simply put stores that stock will sell. If you don't have any women's jackets don't expect to sell from that catalog on the counter. When you pick up an Armadillo Hoodie and try it on for the first time there is nothing like it. I heard Steve Guzman talk about the Armadillo Hoodie over a year ago and I thought "Meh" another jacket. Yeah, I was wrong. You put that Hoodie on and you totally feel like a badass. Now anyone who had ever riden a bike has fallen. I fell at 6 on an ATC Honda 70cc and broke a leg, at 17 I was riding a 49cc Grey Market Suzuki Love going 60mph in the rain and fell, I remember crashing my YSR 70 on a main road at 18, we all have these memories, but what I remember most is that each time I had a jacket on. The hoodie is in no way a jacket or half as thick as the jackets I wore in those accidents, but I feel like it could take it. Check out Steves Review here at this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zz5xgPlwR4Q
Great video huh, leave it to Steve to point something out that in the end was pretty obvious. Hands down the Armadillo Hoodie is pretty sweet. I've been wearing it non-stop since the Dealer Expo and even in Florida people ask me what am I wearing when I go out.
Back to Apparel you don't have to take my word for it. If you're unsure of what to do in the apparel side of the business the best thing to do is talk to a woman. See women are the fastest growing side of the business. There are some great choices out there and I'm encouraged to see companies like GoGo Gear showing up because they are making some nice stuff geared towards women. Armadillo also has a womens line which is difficult to keep in stock.
Picture with Arlene president of GoGo Girls LA -
So if you're a shop owner ( and 90% of the ones I know are men ) go ahead grab your wife or girlfriend and head to the local mall. Take a cue from the shops on how to properly display items. Not every scooter shop can afford a retailing specialist but a couple of displays instead of buying 2 more Chinese scooters could help give your store the edge it needs. I see all these small dealers making the same mistakes over and over like picking up 9 brands and not properly representing any of them or investing in more units than they need. For the same amount of money you can buy a rack, a mannequin, and a mirror. That's all you need to sell jackets. Scooter Apparel is not that expensive between $100 and $400 so it's affordable and an easy sell to a client. Customers want these products and they will seek them out, so if you're reading this and say "oh that will never work in my little town" don't worry those clients are going somewhere else and you my friend are loosing some business.
Apparel is extremely profitable when done right. Cycle Gear has 150 stores across the United States and they sell only apparel and helmets. Most scooter store operators have one location, and 90% have no apparel or it consists of two or three jackets. See my point?
I've noticed a trend of smaller shops closing in the last few months. The season has taken longer than usual to kick in for 2010. There are a ton of reasons including long winter, a lack of bank financing, Obama forgetting about the small business owner. The truth is all of the above, but the biggest reason is that scooter business operators believe its business as usual. They haven't adapted to the new realities.
The Scooter Shop can no longer rely on unit sales alone to survive in the scooter retail industry. It has to be a combination of buying experience, online networking, and incremental income from service. Basically you have to hustle and not just on repairs. We no longer are in an age where you can make a living repairing vintage bikes on the weekends. The key here is the incremental outside sales that are scalable and repeatable depending on the buying experience. Basically do more than just sell bikes and be able to give that experience over and over again.
I know I've said it before, but you have to make the store an experience. Now more than ever because selling the cheapest Chinese bike on the bloc doesn't help anyone. Actually it only helps the Chinese factories and will leave you on the street. So if you want to make a profit, focus on that experience factor.
Sounds complicated? It's not.
Create the Experience: Get a TV for the store, get some bar stools, sell some cookies, coffee, turn the shop into a gathering place not a place where you just fix a flat tire. The combination of one business model and another can lead to higher profits. You can now buy a fully automated coffee espresso machine that requires little maintenance and make your own espresso bar. Having this scalable business model will allow you to sell that scooter client a shot today, an espresso tomorrow, and maybe an Armadillo Scooter jacket next month.
I've said it a million times, but you have to stock accessories as well. You can't stock everything but try battery tenders, a helmet, jacket, oil, essentials, plus weird things to get attention. Whenever I visit a new shop I look for interesting things I haven't seen before and sometimes Im surprised and buy something. Sell Online: I would say 6 out of 10 stores I talk to have no idea how to sell parts online. Out of the remaining 40% the majority buys a Powersports Network or site managed by someone else that costs them several thousand a year and unless properly maintained it really won't do much for the store since you're selling the same stuff the other guy is and competing against many of your own suppliers.
Get yourself a website where you sell essentials. No excuses you dont have a website you are dead. Go commit Harakiri tomorrow. I guarantee you that one of your other distributors is taking business from you right now like candy from a little kid because you don't sell online yet.
Social Location: To make the Experience Complete you need to make sure there are places for customers to "Chill" certain things are taken for granted now like free Wi-Fi. This is a staple in many themed locations like coffee houses or bars. You need this in addition to the couches.
Food = Hangout: You don't need to develop a bakery, but you can sell frozen baked goods that taste just as good as anything found at the local Starbucks. Ready made Muffins and pre-packaged bagels are easy sales on a Saturday Scooter Rally.
Focus on these outside sales. At the end of the year coffee, soda, muffins it all adds up and some stores make a ton of money. When I look at the guys thriving in a bad market its because they have outside sources of revenue. So keep the store alive, keep it social, and make some awesome displays. BELOW ARE SOME IDEAS
Just remember as a Scooter Store owner you have to actively pursue outside sales this includes the social crowd. Anyone in a college town should pay attention to this, it's important.
We're getting some cool plugs on our new TK Exhaust for the Quanon 150cc by Kymco. This is a great starting motorcycle for those looking for speed without going crazy, but once you ride it you know you want to go faster. So upgrade with the new TK Exhaust ( www.TurboKit.net )
MRP made Powersports Newswire this week with it's support of third party brands. The only company in North America with online user manuals and repair manuals for Italjet (CF MOTO) Diamo LS Motorsports UTVs QJ Scooters Keeway Scooters United Motors Linhai - China CPI - Taiwan Malaguti - Italy Benelli Andretti Yamati Powersports Factory
