Spaceport Cycles – Titusville, FL – June 28, 2004
Spaceport Cycles
CONTACT
480 North Washington Avenue
Titusville, FL 32796
321/269-5941
www.spaceportcycles.com
OWNERS
Conrad and Betty Eigenmann
BUSINESS PROFILE
10,000-sq.-ft. dealership founded in 1970 at the present location, 30 minutes east of Orlando. Carries full lines of Suzuki and Yamaha (including jet boats), plus KTM off-road motorcycles, and Aprilia scooters and motorcycles. Largest-selling segment is motorcycle, followed by ATV. Spaceport’s salespeople have won platinum awards from Suzuki. 14 employees.
GREATEST CONCERN
“My greatest concern now is the mandatory no-wake laws so that watercraft don’t bump into the manatees [slow-moving marine mammals] and where that affects the sales of PWC,” says general manager Mark Mitchell, who joined Spaceport eight years ago. “Also, a lot of off-road legislation is coming up that would erode people’s right to ride.”
WHAT’S HOT?
Out of this world at Spaceport: “The new four-stroke Yamaha FX 140 PWC is really taking off,” says Mitchell. Also hot: The Suzuki GSXR sportbike models, the Yamaha R1 sportbike, the Suzuki Volusia cruiser lineup, the Yamaha V-Star cruiser lineup, the Suzuki Ozark ATV, and the Yamaha Grizzly ATV. “We move a lot of helmets and OEM Suzuki and Yamaha parts.”
CUSTOMER BUYING TRENDS
“Back in the late 1990s, watercraft were really big,” says Mitchell. “It kind of dipped then flattened out. This year we might see a sales increase because of the four-stroke models coming out. Watercraft sales are not where we’d like them to be, but every year we’ve increased in ATV and motorcycle sales.”
ANTI-POWERSPORTS ISSUES
“Since watercraft don’t have propellers, they don’t hurt manatees,” notes Mitchell. “Yet these laws affect riders all the way down the Florida coastline.”
PARTS AND SERVICE
Spaceport Cycles has two employees devoted to parts, and a service team of five. “We have one AMI graduate and we one former Yamaha/Sea-Doo factory technician who’s been in the business 30 years,” notes Mitchell.
PROMOTIONAL HOME RUNS
Spaceport Cycles’ race team consists of about 100 racers of all types — road, drag, motocross, cross country, enduro, watercraft, and go-kart. The team has secured championships in nearly all national titles. Owner Conrad Eigenmann has competed for 30 years and has more than 20 different championship titles. Eigenmann rode nationals in the 1970s, worked with Suzuki’s School of Motocross in 1976, and raced in Europe in the early 1980s. He has served as president of the Florida Trail Riders and the Space Coast Association of Personal Watercraft. Spaceport Cycles is also home to the Suzuki Dream Team, a youth motivational program that promotes positive attitudes and goals as opposed to drugs.
WORDS OF ADVICE
The best advice that Mitchell has been given? “This is a ‘toy’ industry, so when people walk into the dealership, they usually know what they want. Take your time to show and describe to them the vehicles that fall around what they believe they want. Make sure that that’s what they want so they don’t make any mistakes — because we are the professionals. We just have to guide them the right way.” psb
—Julie Filatoff
If you would like to share your story with the readers of Powersports Business, please contact Julie Filatoff at filatoff@cybermesa.com.
