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Jun. 14, 2010 – A new preowned opportunity with three wheels

How much has the industry began to rely on the wholesale market to provide an additional source of unit inventory?
There is now an agreement between an auction provider and an OEM to produce a unit that will not only target a key demographic, but take advantage of the price-conscious used buyer.
National Powersport Auctions (NPA) and Lehman Trikes are working together to provide Lehman-authorized dealers with a new source of trikes: preowned motorcycles from NPA auctions. The new partnership allows dealers to purchase used bikes at NPA auctions, have them transferred to Lehman Trikes’ South Dakota facility, where a trike conversion kit can be installed. The finished trike will then be transported back to either the auction site or to the dealer.
The plan provides three possible incentives: 1) Lehman dealers who have not previously purchased units from NPA will have their initial auction buy fee waived (a savings of a couple hundred dollars); 2) pay transportation rates at reduced prices that NPA has secured through its transportation agreements; and 3) get both the bike and trike kit financed through GE Commercial Distribution Finance.
“Clearly the market is wanting the product (trikes) and they continue to retain their value at auction,” Justyn Amstutz, vice president of sales and marketing for NPA, said of trikes.
The new relationship came about earlier this year as NPA and Lehman officials sat down at the Cincinnati V-Twin Expo and discussed ways to increase dealers’ access to trikes, a sector that has gained considerably more interest in recent years after Harley-Davidson began selling them through a partnership with Lehman. Although trike retail sales are not publicly reported, three-wheelers sales have been healthy enough that Harley-Davidson recently said they were bringing the production of the vehicles entirely in-house.
Through the initial NPA-Lehman conversation, the companies found a common way to assist Lehman dealers — providing a consistent source of preowned product that can be converted into trikes.
“NPA is always interested in exploring relationships with other industry leaders to better business practices and assist with dealer inventory turns,” Amstutz said, “whether it’s parts and accessories or trike conversion kits.” psb

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