Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/679587
INDUSTRY LEADER – MILT REIMER FOCUS PSB Executive of the Year www.PowersportsBusiness.com Powersports Business • May 23, 2016 • 19 INDUSTRY LEADER – TIM BUCHE What is the best advice you can give to others in the industry? Remember that we are promoting the fun and adventure of real experiences. Make sure that you are having fun. Be a lifelong learner. Assess the market you have and define the market you seek. Align your team with the market you seek. How will the MIC's purchase of AIMExpo help elevate the various elements of the industry? I am grateful for the market confidence the MIC Board has shown in its acquisition of AIMExpo. The show is on a great trajec- tory, and it addresses our entire member- ship including OEMs, aftermarket, dealers and services providers. And equally impor- tant, AIMExpo brings thousands of con- sumers into the largest trade show in the Americas, letting them see everything that's new in-person, right now, and not in a few months. In only three show seasons, AIM- Expo has grown to nearly 600 exhibitors, 300 members of the press and more than 11,000 consumers, and remains poised for continued growth with its acquisition by the Motorcycle Industry Council. Now a part of the industry's trade association, AIMExpo is also poised to leverage the power of MIC's combined membership to increase dealer and consumer attendance and overall value. The MIC Events team is working diligently to bring components of the AIMExpo platform to new venues and to increase the value of show participation for all. Because MIC focuses on consumer experiences and member services, our ROI is measured in industry growth. While net contribution is important as we recover our investment, we count member, exhibitor and consumer satisfaction with the show as even more important. As further testament to the growth and value it delivers to the motorcycle and greater powersports industry, AIMExpo was recently honored for the second consecutive year in Trade Show Executive magazine's Fastest 50, recognizing the fastest-growing trade shows in the U.S. I wish I could say more about our coming plans, but know that we will keep you up-to-date as we chart our future. PSB BUCHE CONTINUED FROM PAGE 16 REIMER CONTINUED FROM PAGE 17 front than units. You have to figure out that merchandising balance in the store to make that area very attractive. A lot of our moms and the kids, 80 percent of the apparel that we sell never sees a snowmobile. It's winter wear, and it's a growing profit center for us. Apparel gets you a far broader cross-section of customers through your doors, period. What has been the biggest challenge in your current position, and how have you dealt with it? The biggest challenge absolutely is having your personnel develop their skill sets and mature your business operations manage- ment model at the same pace as your brand grows. And that's called growth pains. Every company like us — we've more than dou- bled our sales from three seasons ago from $20 million to now we're like at $53 million in sales — when your company is growing at that pace, with the infrastructure and ware- housing and manufacturing and your ability to ship and deliver, it's not easy to keep up with it all. We struggled three years ago a lot; last year we corralled it a little bit, and this past winter we really nailed it down. A lot of our operations had to change. The method that you run the company — to ensure a stable supply chain and delivery, and to be the best at it — that was the biggest challenge. We hired some great people, and made some internal moves, and our people organically have been growing with us. What's the best advice you can give to others in the industry? Don't do it for the money. It's always been about the passion for me; never about the money. I don't have to do this; I get to do this. I can live my passion and personality and the way I function. I get in too deep because I don't know when to let off — it's a little like racing that way. We pushed those boundaries, but now we're stabilizing, and we've done a bunch of test and market approaches and activations, and we're find- ing our way. Moto is coming to the top. So I guess my advice is to take risks, but don't go all in with anything. Test the market, see where it's going. Sometimes the first year doesn't tell the right story, and you just need to tweak it a little bit and then put it out there again. You're going to make mistakes and have successes. To keep it emo- tionally on an even keel is the tricky part. Understand what your customer wants and deliver that service and product. PSB