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Kolpin purchases product line to broaden its UTV lineup

INDIANAPOLIS — Kolpin Outdoors announced the acquisition of a product line and its CEO says the Fox Lake, Wis.-based manufacturer will continue to look for other possible product extensions.
“We think this down market gives a good opportunity for Kolpin and other companies that have a strong brand, strong distribution and some capital,” Kolpin CEO Tom Lutes told Powersports Business.
Kolpin showed off its new acquisition, the non-OEM products from Premier Manufactured Products of Ohio, at its Dealer Expo booth in Indianapolis. The custom fit-molded products, which will be branded as Kolpin, include roofs, center consoles, stereo consoles, front and rear storage/cooler boxes for a range of UTVs, including the Rhino, Teryx and RZR.
Lutes said the Premier acquisition “significantly accelerated our penetration into the UTV category. We had a dominant position in the ATV accessory category. We did not have an equal position in UTV and that’s the big growing area. So this allows us to do that.”
Lutes said the acquisition also allows Kolpin to have access to a proprietary design development tooling process that will allow the company to “do more customization for individual key retail partners. We couldn’t do that in the past because of restraints and the time invested. This allows us to do that.”
The acquisition will expand all of the company’s activities, Lutes says, including marketing, sales, product development and warehouse fulfillment activities.
Kolpin, which was established in 1943, has a number of patented innovations, including its Gun Boot cases and brackets, Stealth Exhaust, DirtWorks System and an assortment of ATV and UTV accessories.

Helmet House to dramatically boost its inventory capacity
INDIANAPOLIS — National distributor
Helmet House is increasing its inventory capacity and staffing this year at its two
U.S. warehouses, the company announced
at Dealer Expo in Indianapolis.
The Calabasas Hills, Calif.-based company is building a new warehouse in Southaven, Miss. This facility, which will be more than 200,000 square feet, will replace the company’s Memphis, Tenn., warehouse and more than triple the inventory capacity of the existing facility. The distributor also is increasing its inventory capacity at its West Coast warehouse by nearly 50 percent.
The company’s inventory management system and staff size also has been upgraded.
All totaled, the company’s facility, operating system and inventory enhancement investment approaches $10 million.
“Dealer demand outstripped our supply as we and our vendors struggled to react quickly to the increased demands of last season,” Bob Miller, Helmet House’s president, said in a press release. “We’ve made a commitment that this year will be different.”
The distributor also is increasing its marketing efforts to record levels, says Helmet House Vice President Phil Bellomy.
“Helmet House dealers can expect more advertising and marketing support for all of our products plus a full array of exciting new product launches throughout 2009.”

Manual that details
Chinese scooter repairs
a popular item

INDIANAPOLIS — What at first glance might not be the sexiest of items — a repair manual — is getting quite a bit of interest at a national scooter distributor.
James Canning, vice president of Parts for Scooters, says the Haynes Chinese scooter manual — something new to the United States — is currently hard to keep in stock.
The repair manual covers a number of Chinese/Taiwanese brands, including Daelim, Hyosung, Jincheng, Jinlun, Keeway, KYMCO, SYM, TGB, Zongshen and others.
Canning believed he was the only U.S. distributor that had access to the repair manual.
The manual, which has a MSRP of $29.99, has drawings and descriptions of repair tasks, which are described in a step-by-step sequence. The manual also shows what tools are required and offers a complexity rating.
For more information, contact james@partsforscooters.com or call 866/478-8700.

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