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FOCUS PSB FOCUS PSB Power 50 www.PowersportsBusiness.com Powersports Business • March 17, 2014 • 25 24 • March 17, 2014 • Powersports Business www.PowersportsBusiness.com Movie night a hit, and cheap If you haven't made plans to host or sponsor a showing of "Why We Ride" yet, there's no better time than now to get your dealership on board. Dealerships nationwide are using the critically acclaimed film to generate interest in the spring riding season. At Power 50 dealership Leo's South in Lakeville, Minn., co-owner Wayne Bedeaux first offered a Movie Night at the store last year, when he showed the "Colorado Back- country Discovery Route" to the local BMW owners group. "I had never even thought about doing something like that until the guys from the movie contacted us," he said. "We got about 50 people for that one." So it made sense to feature "Why We Ride" for the dealership's second annual Movie Night. Bedeaux estimates the crowd grew to 70 for the recent Saturday evening showing. He promoted the event in-store and via the dealership's e-newsletter, which also included a link to the movie's trailer. He again reached out the BMW owners group, along with the dealership's enews subscribers. A section of the dealership that houses clothing was turned into the seating area, with a capacity of about 75. No reservations were needed, although early attendees could get dibs on one of three couches, which were billed as premium seating at no charge. At 5:30, the dealer- ship opened for the showing with brown- ies, cookies, meet and cheese trays, pop, water and coffee. The popcorn machine that Bedeaux recently added to the dealership also got a workout. Bedeaux showed the film on a rented six- foot screen via a projector that he had pur- chased. "The screen was $11 to rent; I should have rented the projector also," he said. "And I'll get an 8-foot screen next time." His post-event assessment? "It was very successful," he said. "I talked to a bunch of people afterwards, and they enjoyed it and thanked us for having it. It brought more of a mix of riders than the first one we did. We did it as a fun event, not really to make sales. Of course we sold a couple of movies and some things before the movie started, which is nice and appreciated. But it didn't cost us much at all. We might have had $150 in food and stuff, not very much." THUNDERBIRD TAKES GOLD Scott Fischer Enterprises announced that is primary Albuquerque Harley-Davidson location, Thunderbird Harley-Davidson, was recognized with the Gold Bar & Shield Award from the Harley-Davidson Motor Company. The recognition solidifies the company's effort to invest in their people and focus on customer experience as part of their rebranding. Thunderbird Harley- Davidson was awarded Harley-Davidson Motor Company's Gold Bar & Shield Circle of Excel- lence Award for the 2013 calendar year. Given to the top four Harley-Davidson dealerships in each region, there are only six regions in the coun- try placing Thunderbird among 24 Gold Bar & Shield dealerships nationwide. The Gold Bar & Shield Award was earned based on the dealership's motorcycle and related product sales performance, customer service and satisfaction and other operation measures. "It's a great honor to win this and we're excited to share the momentum with our new sister store, Duke City Harley- Davidson. The employees and the management team have worked hard," said Sean Delaney, general man- ager at Thunderbird Harley-Davidson. STORE WITHIN A STORE Power 50 dealership Del Amo Motorsports of Redondo Beach, Calif., is celebrating the opening of a Sidi Boots store inside the dealership. The dealership is carry- ing more than $100,000 in Sidi inventory, with all sizes and models for on- and off- road riders. F&I FOR CUSTOMERS At Power 50 dealership Surdyke Harley- Davidson of Festus, Mo., the store hosted a seminar for customers titled "Behind the Scenes of F&I." The seminar featured a vari- ety of F&I topics, including "how your credit score is generated; what lenders are looking for; and what terms such as simple interest and revolving credit really mean." PSB DIGEST "It's been a mindblowing experience, really, as far as digging into the nuts and bolts of the business, every square inch of the dealership beyond just selling," Stickney said. "And I'm a salesperson at heart. I love to get out there and sell, sell sell. I pump my guys up and train the hell out of them. But at the end of the day you have to make sound decisions and look at the internal components of the business. "There are a couple of us who just getting our feet wet who want to be owners at some point. It's good to get in there and find out what it's all about." PSB 50 POWERSPORTS DEALERS WILL BE RECOGNIZED IN THE INDUSTRY FOR BUSINESS OPERATIONS, CUSTOMER SERVICE, MARKETING TACTICS & MORE! TO APPLY, go to www.powersportsbusiness.com/power-50 APPLICATION DEADLINE IS AUG 1. MAKE SURE YOUR BUSINESS PARTNERS ARE NOT OVERLOOKED! Are you a supplier or vendor to a top-performing dealership? Nominate your exceptional dealership partners by sending an email to dmcmahon@powersportsbusiness.com IF YOU ARE ONE OF THE ELITE, YOU DESERVE TO BE RECOGNIZED. DON'T LET YOUR COMPETITION BEAT YOU TO IT. Focuses on customer service Plans for future success with sound planning, marketing and training initiatives Maintains a retail environment that promotes an exceptional powersports lifestyle …WE WANT YOUR PARTICIPATION IN THE 2014 POWERSPORTS BUSINESS POWER 50 AWARDS PROGRAM. IF YOUR DEALERSHIP… 00714S Belinda Phillips looks ready to take over the keys to her KYMCO Super 8 50 2T scooter from GM Nate Stickney of DeLand Motorsports. Phillips won the scooter as part of AIMExpo's 3-Way Giveaway contest. OEM exhibitors KYMCO, Suzuki and Yamaha Star provided the prizes, which also included a Suzuki Boulevard C90T B.O.S.S. and a customized Star Bolt featuring Kenny Roberts replica graphics. Showing "Why We Ride" in the dealership showroom provided Leo's South with an ideal reason to get customers into the shop on a cold Minnesota evening. Thunderbird Harley-Davidson, owned by Scott Fischer Enterprises, was award the Gold Bar & Shield Award from the Motor Co. P16x25-PSB4-Focus.indd 25 3/5/14 11:44 AM