In the early part of 2020, I lost three major 12-volt lines Hertz, Audison, and Connection. I honestly thought after twenty-five years in Car Audio; I might have to make a change. These brands are very OEM and premium audio upgrade centric. They do audio very well, but the speaker and amplifier upgrade market has become very crowded lately. This “new to us” product came available in the name of MTX.
Old School Blue Thunder Subwoofers
Everyone has stories about these subwoofers that never died or an amplifier that they still have today, 20+ years later. I honestly thought they got sold to an overseas investment firm; nope, it was always the same owner from the nineties. But once again, the big subwoofer market has become very crowded lately. I thought it was a suitable replacement for my lost lines, but I felt, at the time, I was only replacing dollars.
Along Came – COVID 19
Just after we got a new speaker, amplifier, and subwoofer company, along came Covid 19. March 4th, in my area, we went into lockdown. Many Car Audio shops were forced into a temporary shutdown. The most amazing thing happened during the shutdown; people started spending money on their toys – Marine and Powersports. I did not represent these two categories well in the past, but now I had drop-in products for RZR, Can-Am, and Marine applications.
An Old Dog Taught Me a New Trick
MTX had invested in the OEM and aftermarket Marine and Powersports by becoming OEM for Polaris RZR products. Suddenly Polaris RZR dealers from across the country started looking for ways to increase their average invoice and set themselves apart from other ATV dealers. Being immersed in Car Audio for so many years, I never gave this category much attention. Covid showed me one thing, diversify, and get creative for new business.
Need to Increase Your Average Invoice?
Suddenly I was selling $3000-$5000 systems that could be installed in one day with OEM mounting locations and NO SPECIALIZED TOOLS! In the online install video, done by MTX, they even use the factory supplied Polaris Pliers! I could now provide my dealer base with correct plug and play harnesses while utilizing the factory mounting points AND give them the installation tools remotely. No in-person training needed, and this worked perfectly during Covid. Let’s face facts; Covid is still here for many months to come.
A Door Closes, and Another One Opens
Let me start by saying, my last lines were not bad products, but due to the changing consumer spending habits, my business and family would have been in Dire Straits. I needed to adapt to the changing market, and MTX helped me do it. Powersports not only replaced my past business but increased my business at the same time! I am sure there might be other products out there, but I can only speak from my perspective. I can 100% tell you, without Powersport, my 2020 would be very different.
There Are a Lot More Powersports and Marine Audio Dealers
A rough number is a 5:1 ratio of Powersports to Marine to Car Audio Shops; maybe it is time to look at their business model. There are a lot of Powersports and Marine customers out there! We are always trying to find new ways to bring new customers to our stores, why not a whole new demographic of customers. If a customer has a side-by-side or boat, they have disposable income, which would be our perfect customer.
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James Chevrette – CanadianCarStereo.com
Photo by Shibupavizha George on Unsplash
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