American Motorcycle Dealer AMD 224 March 2018 | Page 22

“I think we are closing the gaps and are
definitely better today than we were a
few years ago. Talk to me again in a
couple of years and I am sure we will
have improved still further. We have the
skill sets, the experience, and the
opportunity. Our quality of service is
becoming world class and the quality of
the products we offer already is.”
In terms of the next 12 months, Graves
is optimistic. He says that their court-
filed business plan calls for sales
revenues to be flat, “but if I were a
betting man,” he says, “I wouldn’t be
surprised if 2018 sees some growth, no
matter how modest, in some sectors of
the market.
“Although Harley has its issues with
22
‘our sales force
is a distinct
competitive
advantage’
new model numbers, overall they are up
in terms of the number of people buying
and riding new and used machines.
That’s good for the parts, accessory and
apparel market. I do now sense some
trickle down from the positive
economic indicators, employment
levels and stock market performance in
terms of spending confidence and
actual dollars.
“People are pointing to wage inflation
as a potential issue, but I see that as a
positive for businesses like ours. The
higher the disposable income people
have, the better the business outlook
has to be.”
Talking about the changes seen at the
MAG business units that were merged
with Tucker Rocky in 2014, Graves says
“we are now seeing some of the
synergies emerge. The group structure
is helping us tune the businesses to the
opportunities they have. We are not
worrying about the ‘why’, but dealing
with the ‘what’.
“If you remember my commitment has
always been to do eve rything we can to
ensure profitability, and the synergies
we are now seeing is allowing us to
make multiple, improvements that
added together are significant. If there
is market growth, then my job is to
make sure the business units are
equipped to be able to take advantage.
If not, then it is to make sure they can
deal with whatever market realities
they are confronted with. And I believe
we have already made progress and are
headed in the right direction.”
When I first met Graves a year ago, and
again after the filing, I challenged him
to speak to the profitability of the
business, and did so again. “I know
there is a lot of noise still out there
about that, but I keep coming back to
the basic fundamental about the filing.
If we hadn’t been in a position of
underlying profitability, our options for
moving forward would have been
limited.
“In operational terms, the businesses
overall are profitable. Some brands
have made better progress than others,
but they all are headed in the right
direction and some of them are
growing in a down market.
“Once we have emerged from the filing
process, we will be able to further
leverage the unique skills and
capabilities the group has, and the
benefits of that will become clear for all
to see.”
AMERICAN MOTORCYCLE DEALER - MARCH 2018
Twin Power: Founded in 1982, Biker’s Choice/Tucker Rocky published a first
new Twin Power brand catalog three years ago after a 34-year absence and
has re-energized to program under the expert guidance of
V-twin industry veteran James Simonelli. The original Twin Power program
earned a reputation for providing quality performance parts at a fair price,
and Simonelli’s assured curation is seeing that reputation re-established
with hard to find parts, many of which are the only alternatives to often
out of stock OE components, ranging from old school to tomorrow’s classic
motorcycles. “From pistons for Ironhead Sportsters to high-tech lithium ion
batteries, we have more performance parts for more applications than
ever, tested in independent labs to ensure that they fit and work like they
should”; www.twinpower-usa.com
Cyron: Chatsworth, California based manufacturer of LED single and dual
beam headlights, daylight running lights, passing lights and accent
lighting; www.cyronmotor.com
Two Brothers Racing: New to the Biker’s Choice program last year, new
products from the Santa Ana, California manufacturer include slash-cut end
caps for its line of Touring slip-on systems. In addition to the existing
carbon fiber and billet aluminum caps available for TBR slip-ons, the
company now offers Touring slip-on systems with “slash-cut” aluminum
end caps. Machined from 6061 aluminum, they feature a rotational
mounting design and are available in black anodized or polished, and can
be retro-fitted to existing TBR slip-on mufflers www.twobros.com
www.AMDchampionship.com