It’s closeout time in the parts department

Fall is approaching and now is the time to clear out all summer seasonal products, from gloves to life vests.

Each of you should have or are just about ready to have a clearance sale and clean out your retail house. Be aggressive! You can’t afford to tie up your cash flow on stale products that no longer appeal to customers. I know some of you hate like crazy to sell and lose margins, but that is the nature of any retail-related business.

If you have very little leftovers, great job! That means you and your staff worked to drive sales all season (Note: Some dealers did not purchase any products in the 2010 season so there’s nothing to blow out. The killer in that strategy is a season of customers who did not see new products and may not come back next year.)

For those dealers that have more than one round rack of the spring/summer 2010 products left, it’s really very important to get the cash out of it now. I’m aware we have owners and managers who think sales and discounting are not practical. But you really don’t fool customers with ’07, ’08, ’09 apparel gear or opened packed hard accessory items that you’re trying to get full retail pricing for. They can tell it’s not fresh by the dust layers alone.

August through September is always a time to blow out the old and have your stores reset with all the new fall products by Oct. 1. Too many of you may not take the holiday selling season seriously enough. For those dealers, the season is putting up decorations a week before the holiday. When really it’s savvy dealers that are aggressive and focused on the prize — the Oct-Dec. 31 retail selling season! Many consumers shop early to see the best selection so make sure you have it! Make sure to stock items that will be hot this season.

Bottom line, lose the old and get ready to sell the new!

FYI: Do not re-merchandise old, stale products with the new!