Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/183375
NEWS www.PowersportsBusiness.com CONTINUED FROM COVER HOTNEWS HARLEY-DAVIDSON DEALERSHIP OWNER TO ACQUIRE THIRD STORE After 20 years, Karen Smaltz, the owner of Smaltz's Chester County Harley-Davidson in Pennsylvania, is announcing her retirement and the sale of the dealership to Joe White of White's Harley-Davidson (Lebanon, Pa.) and Iron Valley Harley-Davidson (Manheim, Pa.) as of Oct. 1. Smaltz posted the following on her store's website: "I didn't weigh the decision to sell the dealership lightly. The most important thing to me was that the 'right people' would step in after me and maintain the standards and ethics that Smaltz's Harley-Davidson was built on. When Joe White of White's HarleyDavidson and Iron Valley Harley-Davidson voiced his interest, I knew he was the right fit. Joe's family has demonstrated for 60 years their dedication to Harley-Davidson and their customers. I am sure that his leadership will lead to great things." White's newest dealership will be called Harley-Davidson of Chester Springs. It's located at 12 Pottstown Pike in Chester Springs, Pa. White's Harley-Davidson was founded on Aug. 17, 1953, by J. Herman and Marion White at 421 E. Cumberland St. in Lebanon. As the customer base expanded, the business grew and moved to its current location and new designer store in 1992 at 1515 E. Cumberland St. In 2002 they expanded the dealership to double its capacity. This year they celebrate 60 years in business under White's name. On May 19, 2003, Joe White opened a secondary retail location and named it Iron Valley Harley-Davidson. Located at 3091 Lebanon Road in Manheim, it is just north of the Pennsylvania Turnpike exit on state route 72. It's a full-service location that celebrated its 10th anniversary in May. VW Credit, Inc. "With Ducati Financial Services, Ducati customers and dealers have a strong, captive finance partner. They will benefit from more than 30 years of experience in the automotive finance business and we are really looking forward to working together." The first motorcycle financed through Ducati Financial Services was a new 2013 red Ducati 848 EVO. Protection plans. "The introduction of Ducati Financial Services marks an historical time for Ducati North America. With specifically tailored, in-house programs, we are now able to effectively enhance and improve the customer buying and ownership experience," said Dominique Cheraki, general manager of Ducati North America. "The implementation of a program of this magnitude represents a milestone in the development of Ducati and its growing dealer network in North America." The United States is Ducati's largest market, with 9,258 units retailed in 2012. Now, supported by VW Credit, Inc., which provides financial products and services to Volkswagen dealers, Audi dealers and their customers in the United States, Ducati will benefit from the vast experience of VW Credit in the automotive finance business. "We are delighted to offer competitive retail financing and ancillary products for the Ducati premium motorcycle brand," said Andrew Stuart, CEO of P01x13-PSB13-News.indd 3 ARCTIC CAT ADDS VP NORTH AMERICAN SALES Matt Malfitano has joined Arctic Cat as vice president of North American sales. He will be responsible for leading Arctic Cat's sales, national MATT MALFITANO accounts and dealer development efforts in the U.S. and Canada. Most recently, Malfitano was director of global sales and operations for Fisker Automotive, a luxury hybrid electric vehicle manufacturer. Prior to that, he served as vice president of sales operations for Maserati/Alfa Romeo North America and as senior director of global sales and marketing with Eclipse Aviation. Earlier in his career, Malfitano worked for Ford Motor Company's Volvo Division as vice president of sales for the Western Region. He also held positions in sales, marketing, retail operations and after salessupport with Volvo. He graduated from Lynn University in Florida with a Bachelor of Science degree in See Hot News, Page 4 Q&A with: Paul Prudhomme Product manager, accessories and clothing for Ski-Doo snowmobiles, Can-Am Spyder After starting his career with BRP in 1991, Paul Prudhomme has been serving as product manager for clothing and accessories at BRP, a division that accounts for approximately 16 percent of the company's revenue. His portfolio covers the Can-Am Spyder and Ski-Doo snowmobiles. Powersports Business caught up with Paul while working the company's massive new PG&A display at the Haydays snowmobile show in Minnesota. 1. WHAT'S THE PURPOSE OF THIS FANCY DISPLAY SEMI TRUCK YOU'RE SHOWING OFF? "We wanted to create the ultimate platform for our dealers to be able to provide the necessary tools and product for them to communicate to their customers … getting customers to be able to come in, have a wide selection of product on hand of all different sizes so that the consumers can try stuff on. It's not easy for the dealers to do that, to bring this type of setup to an event like this." 2. ALL PRODUCTS YOU SELL HERE GO TO THE LOCAL DEALERS. WHAT'S IN IT FOR THE PARENT COMPANY? "It's great for us, too, because we're able to learn from it also as far as the feedback. We wanted to change the perception of the tours. The product we have here is all brand-new 2014. It's retail pricing. There are no closeouts here, and our focus is being able to talk on current product. Typically when you come to these shows it's a non-current flea market. We want to be able to show our brand positioning of our clothing and our accessories is in alignment with what the consumers expect as far as our brand." 3. WHERE ELSE WILL THIS SEMI TRUCK BE TRAVELING? "This truck is transformable. We're doing snowmobile events right now, but we can convert it into Can-Am ATV and we'll have this at our Can-Am Spyder owner events. It's multifaceted how this trailer is able to function, but overall it's to provide more knowledge to our consumers, supporting our dealer network and giving them a great tool to work the local shows and support what our brand is all about at a professional level." 4. IS SUCH AN EXPANDED FOOTPRINT HERE A SIGN OF PG&A'S GROWING IMPORTANCE? "For sure. Our PG&A business has grown significantly in the last 10 years, specifically in the last five years. This is a reflection of it, but it's also a reflection of how serious we are about the business. It's not only that we're building cool product. It's the experience that we want to bring with it, too." 5. HAVE THE OTHER OEMS BEEN CHECKING OUT YOUR SETUP? "It's been interesting. They've been walking through and touching and feeling a lot of our product, which is cool. It's great for the sport; it's great for the industry." 6. WITH PRODUCTS, TASTES AND TRENDS CONSTANTLY CHANGING, HOW DO YOU KEEP UP? "It's challenging for me with my job to be able to one-up all the time what's out there, or to be able to think of new ideas that never existed before, addressing consumer irritants and stuff like that. It's really cool to be able to talk to consumers and sense how excited they are about products you've done with them in mind, enhancing their experience, making their ride even better or making them go further or explore longer or just enjoy their vehicle." 7. SOME SHOWS HAVE FALLEN OFF IN RECENT YEARS. WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT HAYDAYS? "Whether attendance is up or down, Haydays is an extremely important event for us. Anyone who's anyone in the business is here, so it's for sure an excellent spot to be present and also interesting for us to be able to poke around, walk around and see what the competition is doing, because everyone's at this one event. It's obviously a very important and special event for us to attend." PSB Powersports Business • October 7, 2013 • 3 INSIDE NEWS 12 ... Ski-Doo makes 3 millionth sled FINANCIAL NEWS 16 ...NPA improves dealer financing 16 ...BRP's revenue increases in Q2 17 ... SMP integrates with ADP Lightspeed OPINION 19 ... From the Editor 19 ... Online at PowersportsBusiness.com PSB: FOCUS Distributor Shows 22 ...MTA, Motovan host joint show 24 ...Automatic Distributors expands 25 ...Drag/Parts unveils 2014 showcases 26 ...Marshall adds to vendor lineup ATV 33 ...Suzuki, Kawi add ATV, UTV models 34 ...Quadna mud event returns in '14 MOTORCYCLE 36 ...Indian plans new displays for dealers 36 ...Shorai gets U.K. distribution 39 ...Piaggio focuses on mobile shoppers SOLUTIONS 44 ...Sam Dantzler 45 ...Neil Pascale POWER 50 51 ...ARI proud to sponsor Power 50 AFTERMARKET 53 ...Hot Products 54 ...VARTA batteries debut at AIMExpo Kawasaki leads now accessible in Traffic Log Pro Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A. has begun sending its consumer Internet leads to its dealers through the powersports industry's largest lead management provider, Traffic Log Pro. The move allows Kawasaki dealers to have one place to track their vehicle leads, manage these leads and convert them into sales. These leads will be moved in real time from Kawasaki to Traffic Log Pro, enabling dealers to receive email inquiries consumers make on Kawasaki's two- and four-wheel products shortly after the consumer clicks the "send" button. "We're thrilled Kawasaki is partnering with us to make it more convenient for dealers to receive their leads and then convert those leads into unit sales," said Paul Newman, general manager of Traffic Log Pro. "With so many online marketing channels available now, it's especially important dealers have one place to access and manage all of their leads for a more successful retail operation." Kawasaki dealers will continue to receive consumer Internet leads through Kawasaki's existing, internal system. By receiving these same leads in Traffic Log Pro, salespeople and sales managers will now be able to track these leads as they progress through the sales process. PSB 9/25/13 11:02 AM