Truck Parts and Service | Heavy Duty Trucking, Aftermarket, Service Info
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/117978
By Lucas Deal, Associate Editor lucasdeal@randallreilly.com Cover Story W hen someone mentions commercial trucking, it���s easy for business owners��� and analysts��� minds to turn to the heavyduty marketplace. The heavy-duty trucking market has dominated the North American landscape for years, and in the aftermarket, servicing heavy-duty customers provides a great opportunity for business success. But the commercial trucking market is more than just heavy-duty ���eets and owneroperators. Medium-duty customers are part of the market as well, and many aftermarket businesses have found that medium-duty customers provide an excellent business opportunity. It���s an area all aftermarket businesses need to investigate, says Allan Parrott, president at Tidewater Fleet Supply. ���I think it���s a market that is going to continue to grow,��� he says. ���I am seeing a lot more medium-duty vehicles on the road and some smaller ���eets seem to be gravitating toward them.��� ���It���s a growing market, and it���s a good market,��� adds Harry Amoroso, president at B&A Friction. ���I think some people think ���We don���t know that market so it can���t be good,��� but that���s not true. It���s a great opportunity. If you spend some time researching your market, you can ���nd [medium-duty] customers in your own back yard.��� Aftermarket companies that take a deeper look at servicing the medium-duty market will ���nd a loyal customer base. Unlike heavy-duty ���eet customers, medium-duty customers typically are not in the trucking business. They own trucks because they have to ��� because they need to transport something else. The products in their trucks are their business, not the trucks themselves. And while they need to keep their trucks on the road just like a national ���eet, they are much less likely to have the parts and technicians to do that alone. AFTERMARKET BUSINESSES THAT PURSUE THE MEDIUM-DUTY MARKET CAN FIND LOYAL CUSTOMERS AND STEADY, NEW REVENUE STREAMS. 12 T R U C K PA R T S & S E R V I C E | TPS0413PG012-16_Cover Story.indd 12 This makes them extremely reliant on the dealers, service providers and distributors in their area. John Messina, president at Tampa Spring, says his company does a lot of business with medium-duty ���eets operating 10 trucks or less. He says most of these customers understand maintenance is important, but they simply lack the ability to perform all of it on their own. ���They don���t have the same maintenance programs heavyduty ���eets have,��� he says. ���Their drivers might know to check the oil and maybe the tires before they drive, but that���s it. And they don���t have the [technicians] back at a April 2013 3/25/13 3:51 PM