Power Profiles

Show Low Motorsports – Show Low, AZ – Jan. 21, 2008

CONTACT
Show Low Motorsports
1000 N. Automall Pkwy.
Show Low, Ariz. 85901
866/616-RIDE
www.showlowmotorsportsinc.com
OWNERS
Gerald Hatch, Roger Hatch and Lynn Reheard
BUSINESS PROFILE
A change in location has made all the difference for Show Low Motorsports. Last March, the dealership moved into a new building that’s 18,000 square feet and sitting on four acres of land. Co-owner Lynn Reheard says the extra room has really helped. “There’s a lot of room for trucks and the loading dock,” he said. “(It has) all the things you need to be more efficient.” The extra space also has allowed the dealership to add an essential piece — a test track. “There are very few places and amenities that allow you to ride the vehicles,” Reheard said. “A lot of that is because they don’t have the place to do it.” Show Low Motorsports is in a rural but recreational area, which allows for a lot of traffic. “We’re about 180 miles from the Phoenix area and 125 miles from the Flagstaff area. We have to count on the outlying areas,” Reheard noted. “There’s hunting and fishing and a ski resort about 30 miles away. The Show Low area is home to about 10,000 residents, but the summer population swells to about 30,000 because the number of second homes.” The dealership concentrates on motorcycles and ATVs and carries Polaris, Yamaha, Arctic Cat and BRP.
GREATEST CONCERNS
Two factors grab Reheard’s attention. One factor is the groups who are trying to restrict motorcyclists and ATV riders from having places to ride. “It’s been typical for years,” Reheard said. “There’s the 1 percent that tries to restrict these people. They’ve been getting their way because they’re better organized. Polaris has been helping with this to open trail funds; Yamaha started a similar program. All the others are going to have to follow suit.” Reheard adds that Show Low Motorsports is a member of the Arizona Powersports Industry Association. Monthly, the group looks at how to lobby to keep riding areas open. “We’re having a real battle right now with the Forest Service,” he said. His second big concern is the influx of Chinese product. “There is some quality stuff, but a lot of it isn’t of quality,” he noted. “We have people coming in and asking ‘Can you fix this?’ We ask, ‘Well do you want us to put it in our dumpster or do you want to put it in your dumpster?’ [The Chinese manufacturers]?don’t pay tax. They don’t have to follow the safety or disclosure rules in the industry. They don’t have parts or service networks. It can leave a bad taste in [the customer’s] mouth about the industry, and it affects all of us.”
WHAT’S HOT
“The side-by-sides are moving the best,” Reheard said. “The (Polaris)?RZR is the hot commodity. The Yamaha 700 Rhinos are going strong, and of course all of their sport bikes always stay fairly strong.” As far as manufacturers, Reheard says Polaris is the best seller for Show Low, and Yamaha is close behind.
CUSTOMER BUYING TRENDS
The convenience of the Internet, Reheard says, is affecting the way people shop. “We have an online store, and that’s the way people are going,” he said. “They don’t want to leave the comforts of their homes, and I can relate. I dread going into these stores around Christmas time. We have a dedicated staff that does the updates on the Web site. We carry (on the site) just about everything a customer would want.”
PARTS AND SERVICE
The parts and service departments are areas Show Low Motorsports excels in. Reheard says parts, service and accessories sales have more than doubled. “There has been some months where they’ve (the departments) tripled and quadrupled in sales,” Reheard said. The new building has contributed to the success. “We operated out of a facility in the old building where we had to haul parts out to move another unit in,” Reheard said. “Now we have a nice, state-of-the-art facility. We have a nice waiting room for customers with big screen TVs, vending machines and a meeting room that we allow community members to use.”
PROMOTIONAL HOME RUNS
Show Low Motorsports does the usual radio and newspaper advertising, which Reheard says they did a ton of in the first couple months they were open. To keep up with changing times, Reheard says the dealership is active with the Internet in sales, which he says will be more important to the dealership in the future. Although the traditional advertising and the Internet helps, the biggest promotional home run is the dealership’s test track. “It’s not a racetrack. It’s to experience handling characteristics. It’s got a sandpit and some really rugged rock hills to go over,” Reheard said. With little maintenance that a lot attendant takes care of, Reheard says the track has minimal upkeep since he hasn’t had to do anything with it for four or five months. The dealership gains more recognition by opening the track to local groups like the Chamber of Commerce and various motorcycle clubs. “During the better weather months we have poker runs, bands and large gatherings of people come to have some fun,” Reheard noted. “It brings them back when they want something.”
WORDS OF ADVICE
“I think it’s the same as any business,” Reheard said. “If you’re not prepared to give top quality customer service in every asset of the business from the time the person walks in the door just to look around to the person that orders something or needs service, you’re going to struggle, struggle mightily.”
— Karin Gelschus

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