Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/183375
Distributor Showcase FOCUS PSB 22 • October 7, 2013 • Powersports Business ww MTA's first dealer show hits jackpot in Vegas Po the the wa exp Co-location with Motovan brings efficiencies BY DAVE McMAHON EDITOR IN CHIEF At fin van mu ov aro com an tw eac the com wa tim Ik som ST "I c eve 10 18 we lau arr ha of ser tw aro Ne get dea po Am ers slid gin SL MT tri lat in sh PHOTO BY GLENN HANSEN/MTA MAGAZINE Nelson Rigg's bag line expands to include this adventure-oriented tank bag that adapts well to smartphone use. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em. That's the approach Motovan and MTA Distributing are taking to the aftermarket parts distribution SI world in North America. For approximately the past year, Motovan, the leading distributor in Canada, and MTA, with facilities in California, Louisiana, South Carolina and Ohio, have combined their purchasing power as they seek to become bigger players in the industry. And while the partnership is less than one year old, MTA owner Larry Popp is already calling it a success. All he needed to do was look at this summer's meeting with vendors and dealers at the Monte Carlo in Las Vegas to know his 30-year-old business made the right move. "They needed to expand in this country, and we needed to expand also," Popp said. "We started talking about what we each have in mind, and if things work out, it will all be one. We're sharing some expenses and product lines right now." The combined MTA/Motovan show in Las Vegas brought together vendors of both brands. Motovan staples like Scott, Nelson Rigg and Dowco that were previously unavailable to MTA are now part of the family, and brand staffers were in Las Vegas educating the MTA dealers and reps about the products. Similarly, Motovan has gained access to brands like STI Tire & Wheel, EKS Brand goggles and AudioFormz roofs. "Basically we traded back and forth, and now we both have massive catalogs we have to print," Popp said. Popp has seen the size of some of the competition's catalogs, and he figured the only way to grow his product lineup was via an arrangement like the one he formed with Motovan. "We're just trying to put our resources together," Popp said. "It's gotten to where Parts and Tucker and Western and these guys are getting big. To grow that big is very difficult, so this is a merger between two companies to get there quicker. Understand that you have to be of some size. It's become very difficult for a small distributor anymore, because that's what we started to feel. You have to understand your place in the world, and that's fine, but we just don't want to stay there. It seems like things started passing us by that were going to the other guys. They were pressing the fact about how big they are, and so we need to get a little bit more exposure and do more things like the show." Motovan hosts a show every other year in the U.S. The two-day event was expanded to three days in 2013 as part of the dual-hosted event. "We did things together like the appreciation dinner for vendors, the chips we handed out for placing orders, those kinds of things," Dave Wolman, Motul president, was eager to explain the advantages of his brand's oils and chemicals. P20x27-PSB13-Focus.indd 22 9/25/13 11:26 AM PHOTO BY GLENN HANSEN/MTA MAGAZINE PHOTO BY GLENN HANSEN/MTA MAGAZINE www.PowersportsBusiness.com Ken stre