According to Marshall’s Doug Gilbert, the distributor feels that Outside’s product line will complement its own dealer’s OEM business. “By providing part support for these import units, many dealers will be able to attract new customers, increase apparel and accessory sales and further drive their OEM business as customers progress in the sport. In these tough times it’s important to keep customers riding and coming in the doors.”
Outside Distributing’s owner, Andrew Hepburn, says that the company started sourcing quality parts for the Chinese units after being unsatisfied with what was available on the market.
“We work directly with the manufacturers to ensure the reliability and quality of our products first and foremost,” Hepburn says.
TWISTED THROTTLE, manufacturer and distributor of gear and accessories for the adventure motorcycle crowd, is unveiling a brand-new dealer program that features a series of self-contained, one-stop-shop displays.
Adam Redford, Twisted’s marketing manager, says the displays will be fully loaded to give dealers a strong feel for how they will fit into their store.
The displays will cover four brands carried by Twisted Throttle — Bark Busters, Interphone, Macna and SW-Motech. Each display serves as a silent salesperson for the various products and contain everything a customer would need — they’re a little like the displays one might see for Yakima or Thule car racks at their local sporting goods store, Redford explains.
For Bark Busters, there are three different setups: one aimed for Euro-centric dealerships, another for multilines that carry Japanese brands, and a third built with a motocross flavor. Interphone products appear on a double-sided pegboard tower that also holds marketing material. A video monitor built into the display serves as an extra sales person, Redford notes.
The SW-Motech displays are interchangeable and consist of three different double-sided towers. These have display racks that hold everything from tank bags and mounting hardware to soft bags and over-seat bags to ergonomic hardware like handlebar risers.
The idea for all of them, says Redford, is to make them as versatile as possible, otherwise dealers won’t want to bring them into their stores. — Dennis Johnson
This story originally appeared in the Dealernews February 2013 issue.
