PSB visits Simply Ride for its 20th anniversary
Powersports Business visited Simply Ride, a two-time Best-In-Class winner, for its 20th anniversary celebration. This powersports dealer in the suburbs southwest of Minneapolis has built an avid fan base around pre-owned vehicles, mostly street bikes but some off-road vehicles, too. The business recently became an authorized Yamaha dealer, so it’s not all about used bikes.
Brian Cox launched this dealership as Simply Sport Bikes in 2005. He’s built the dealership into a powerful business of (mostly) used motorcycles, UTVs and ATVs. With the growth came a name change, and we visited Simply Ride for its 20th anniversary celebration in March.
PSB: How do you feel on this 20th anniversary?
Brian Cox: I didn’t know that by 2025, we would be where we are today, but when I started, every time I would get a used bike to sell, I would have so much demand that I knew we could grow and grow and grow. So I just bought more and more motorcycles. In the first four or five years of the business, we grew 80% per year because there wasn’t a dealer out there that focused on pre-owned like we did. And there wasn’t another business that was as involved in the community as I was.
PSB: How did you do find and build this demand?
Brian Cox: For starters, I just I went out and bought bikes, and I put them in an area where people could come and find them. I knew a lot of people weren’t comfortable going and buying from someone’s garage. I was, so I would buy these bikes and do the basic work to clean them up and get them ready to ride. I would have 5, 10, or 15 together in one area in my garage. Eventually, we moved into a warehouse so that people could come and buy from an establishment instead of a private party.
PSB: Where did you find the community, and how did you get the word out?
Brian Cox: I was a very avid rider, putting together group rides and hanging out with other riders. And I’d go to the motorcycle show and visit other dealers. I did all the Thursday bike nights and things like that, and it was just part of what I was doing because I was riding so much. Over time, I’d ride with the people who bought bikes from me. Then, they would trade them in because they wanted something different. I was heavily involved in the community, and that continued to spread the word.
