Parts Unlimited

[ScooterBob]

Never buying a UCE then, it seems.  And it looked like the idea of a reasonably reliable but easy-to-order-parts-for vintage bike is gone.

I will stil have plenty of fun with my AVL, but that's it if I have to go through a third party for OEM parts.

Funny - I'll bet you don't get parts for your car, dishwasher or lawn mower right from the distributor. I'll bet you use a dealer for THAT stuff - or aftermarket. A good relationship with an RE dealer can go a LONG way towards keeping your bike alive - and YOU sane when it DOES break. Calling a distributor who is 2000 miles away doesn't really make sense - especially when you consider that the distributor probably doesn't have the intimate knowledge of the bikes like a dealer would. Your dealer should be your best ally! 

[Geirskogul]

I guess its the same either way then. My dealer is  hojillion miles away, and parts come from a separate company. Gotta learn to be self sufficient, because neither help with th current situation. That's a combination of my location and the sparse dealer network, though.

[REpozer]

Funny - I'll bet you don't get parts for your car, dishwasher or lawn mower right from the distributor. I'll bet you use a dealer for THAT stuff - or aftermarket.  Calling a distributor who is 2000 miles away doesn't really make sense - especially when you consider that the distributor probably doesn't have the intimate knowledge of the bikes like a dealer would. Your dealer should be your best ally! 

That's funny SB. All my lawn mower, appliance parts., some car parts , are shipped to me 4000 miles away. To be honest, the local Carquest  Autoparts knows me by name.

So yes, I'm not real happy with the thought of dealing with a 3 party dealer on the phone, not to mention paying for the phone call sometimes.

It s not as if there is a RE dealer in every town like Harley/Yamasuki.

[Vince]

     The move to dealer based sales is to enable the dealer network to grow. With a sparse dealer network and few sales it sort of made sense to have the distributor (CMW) deal with customers. However, a lot of potential dealers are put off by seemingly having to compete with the distributor. Also, as sales of bikes and accessories grow, CMW would have to add more personnel and infrastructure to service direct callers, thus driving up costs at the distributor level. The retail customer-you- would then be faced with higher pricing for parts and accessories.
     This is a normal step in the growth of a distributor. It will eventually lead to a larger dealer network, and will tend to minimize price increases. Have patience. This is not a dark plot aimed at you. If you want a viable brand this is necessary for the long run. Knowing Kevin and the rest of the crew at CMW, I am sure you will still receive great service. They will even have more time available to address your concerns if they don't have to deal with the nitty-gritty of day to day dealership type operations. They are a distributor. Your dealer is there for your immediate needs.

[REpozer]

In my position, I usually use the fastest, best service, lest hassle ,lowest cost shipping , parts house I can find.
Guess time will tell on were that is. I don’t really have a dealer nearby. At the moment that is CMW……but the writing is on the wall, they will not be here for me later.

Vince I might be calling you for parts.

[REpozer]

I understand that CMW no longer sales Iron Barrels or AVL’s. The UCE business plan calls for RE dealers to stock and sale UCE  parts.  CMW does not want to be a parts store for its UCE owners like it is for us old timers. 

My question is how much old RE parts ( iron-AVL)stock does CMW have on hand and what will CMW do when most/all of the old parts are gone? Will CMW reorder?OR does it want to get out of the old parts business?

 Looks like some stuff is already gone, and prices are rising.

[Vince]

      REpozer, you are worrying too much. I can get parts for a 1950 RE without much trouble. There are lots out there, so it would be foolish for CMW or Royal Enfield to stop making parts. That is not to say that there will not be some adjustments. As the bikes age and are retired from service the market will contract. This will lead to adjustments in inventory levels and production runs. Things might not be as common or convenient, but you will be able to keep your bike running.
     Examples of changes might be with sheet metal. At some point you might have to get a fender or tank in primer, rather than color matched. On another part, only the last update might be available. This may necessitate upgrading 2 or 3 things at once to enable fitment.
     As with any part, it has to be cost effective to make and stock. The best thing  to happen is for everyone to continue to ride and maintain their bikes,  Ensuring that parts will still be needed is the best way to make producing them attractive to the factory.

[UncleErnie]

I called NField and they didn't know how many teeth came stock on an AVL counter-shaft sprocket.  So....

Vince, are you volunteering to be everyone's dealer?  The closest one to me is open ONE DAY A WEEK.
You don't have an 800 number, do you.  ?

[t120rbullet]

I called NField and they didn't know how many teeth came stock on an AVL counter-shaft sprocket.  So....

18

This would be a good time for a dealer to step up to the plate and start a mail/internet order parts business. Someone that knows the difference between an Enfield and a pair of socks.
Kind of like what Dan Holmes did before he got sick.
Every let down opens a window of opportunity for some enterprising individual.
CJ

[Kevin Mahoney]

17 teeth on the AVL.

You guys are worrying too much about parts. We have a 10,000 foot warehouse full of RE parts, mostly for the older models. We are and will continue to order new parts for the older bikes every month. Why would we turn our back on a profitable market like the non UCE bikes? Parts is my middle name. (never mind that my middle initial is J).

Chris is very right here. I have been actively encouraging my dealer network to step up to the plate and handle parts for the UCE bikes. There is an opportunity here for a dealer with some foresight.

The model I have used in the past is not a model that most other manufacturers/distributors in the US use. I chose that model because I knew with a new product if parts were not readily available the brand did not have a chance. With a far flung dealer network it was really the only way. When I started very few if any dealers (of any brand) really had their act together to sell parts on a national basis. It has always been a bone of contention between CMW and our dealer network. It is a chicken and egg thing, If someone in the network heavily stocked and distributed parts I would not have to, but as long as I was the opportunity did not look appealing.
Dan Holmes took the opportunity and ran with it. Did a great job but since him no other dealer has done the same thing.

With the UCE and the strengthening of our dealer network in terms of quality I "bit the Bullet" (pun intended) and decided not to sell UCE hard parts or factory accessories  to the public. The idea is that dealers will stock parts and one or two of them will leap at the opportunity in front of them to sell nationally. Why would I do this you ask?

In order to sell Royal Enfields or any brand for that matter a dealer needs to be profitable. This means they need to make money on each and every sale and they need income from service, parts, accessories and probably used bikes. This is a move to help our dealers become more profitable and help them make their business sustainable. Without them none of us are in good shape. These are VERY tough times in the motorcycle industry and they need everything they can get. The number of bankrupt motorcycle dealers in the US is staggering and anything we can do to help (the collective we) is a good thing.  I can make more money by selling direct but that is not the point.

Having said all this, the number one thing CMW and Kevin are interested in is strong dealers and happy customers. Customers who can't get parts readily are not happy. It is not good for sales or for the brand. Some dealers understand that it is pretty tough to sell what you don't have and others don't. If you have trouble getting any UCE hard parts or the factory accessories (currently a performance exhaust and the matching C5 pillion) call us and we will facilitate your parts needs through a good efficient dealer.

Maintenance items and non factory accessories can be purchased from your dealer or NField Gear at present and thus far the UCE's have not required much in the line of hard parts

[Andy]

This would be a good time for a dealer to step up to the plate and start a mail/internet order parts business. Someone that knows the difference between an Enfield and a pair of socks.

A-Men!

[Geirskogul]

The thing that was nice about the way it was set up, though.  By coincidence, it was like new internet business models, with parts straight from the manufacturer.  Now, you're restricting us back to the "old ways" by adding another intermediary who will take yet another chunk out of the profits (and therefore increase the price even more). 


"No, No!  You must go through THIS person who will charge you MORE - you can no longer get things from me, I'm breaking it off.  He still gets your old prices, though."

[Vince]

The thing that was nice about the way it was set up, though.  By coincidence, it was like new internet business models, with parts straight from the manufacturer.  Now, you're restricting us back to the "old ways" by adding another intermediary who will take yet another chunk out of the profits (and therefore increase the price even more). 


"No, No!  You must go through THIS person who will charge you MORE - you can no longer get things from me, I'm breaking it off.  He still gets your old prices, though."

     
     The manufacturer sets MSRP. I sell for MSRP. On a regular order there is no shipping charge to my customers. I only charge for shipping if the customer has to have it NOW, and is willing to pay for the special shipping. With the volume CMW is now doing extra people would have to be hired. At some point the prices would have to go up to cover this. There is not as much profit in parts as people think. Plus, as I stated before, more dealers would be interested in taking on the line if they did not have to compete with the distributor. The current business model  is not conductive to long term dealer satisfaction. Fewer dealers = fewer bike sales= smaller, less viable distributor. The new business model should strengthen the brand and will help keep pricing at more reasonable levels. It is a sound business decision that will benefit everyone in the long term.

[REpozer]

Vince, change comes hard . I believe  and understand every thing you say.
 
A savvy ,over marketed motorcycle customer can already see it coming.
We know that we can't purchase any Japanese motorcycle part for less then $100.
Heck, Harley has been heckled for years for H-D meaning "Hundred Dollars"for any over the counter purchase.
Prices on REM are creeping into the " Big Boy" entry level motorcycle price. I expect prices on parts to rise with the current trend.

My favorite coffee just went up .50 a lbs. I just cut back to half usage and I  am  doing fine. So the raise in price really saved me $8 a month, cause it turns out I don't need it as much as I once thought.

Its a tight rope.

[Geirskogul]

     
     The manufacturer sets MSRP. I sell for MSRP. On a regular order there is no shipping charge to my customers. I only charge for shipping if the customer has to have it NOW, and is willing to pay for the special shipping. With the volume CMW is now doing extra people would have to be hired. At some point the prices would have to go up to cover this. There is not as much profit in parts as people think. Plus, as I stated before, more dealers would be interested in taking on the line if they did not have to compete with the distributor. The current business model  is not conductive to long term dealer satisfaction. Fewer dealers = fewer bike sales= smaller, less viable distributor. The new business model should strengthen the brand and will help keep pricing at more reasonable levels. It is a sound business decision that will benefit everyone in the long term.

Well, I'm just one customer, one person, so I can't exactly tell RE what to do, but it's just as you said.  The new business model (which is, actually, a very old business model) makes the DEALERS happy.  From my perspective, it's akin to adding another foot of snow, another layer of computer teleprompts before an actual rep.  It makes the business happy, and the customer gets what they want in the end, but it's only in the end.  The journey between may take longer and cost more for us, but makes the business grow.  Both sides have people on them, and one party is benefiting, so humanity as a whole met their goal.

Not bashing, just following through the discussion.