New Zealand bike prices WTF

[lakedaemonian]

floor plans, plain and simple, are a necessary evil for the motorcycle industry.... in accounting terms, a business needs to be making a 20% return to be worthwhile..... I assure you, few bike shops achieve that.

If a bike shop was to have all the units in stock, paid for, the investment (in stock alone) would be unbelievable, quite simply, the director(s) of said bike shop would be better off investing the $400,000 it would cost to have even a basic model range in something that made a resonable return.... like property....or a hotdog stand.... or a bar.

The fact remains, floor plans are (almost) the only reason we have any dealers in NZ at all.... and the number of dealers in NZ is (still) too high.... like natural selection, the strong are surviving (strong meaning established), the weak are being devoured.

Yes and no......

I agree completely that if floorplans got pulled from NZ, much like they were in many dealer points in the US car/motorbike trade a couple years ago, many dealers would simply cease to exist...and that's what happened over there.

I distinctly recall being in a US airport terminal in 2008 where a certain European brand of motorcycles was being discussed by representative dealers(I knew a pair of them) who had just finished their dealer meeting and were flying home.....they were ALL(several dozen there) told they've lost their floorplan and retail finance, cold turkey, overnight. It was chaos.....a whole bun ch of them are gone now.

But some dealers don't use floorplan at all....and if you manage your floor stock well.....and turn it at a rate faster than your competition(who's probably using floorplan as you stated) you ultimately win because your carrying costs are potentially far, far lower.

[lakedaemonian]

Suggested retail prices don't even fix it. They buy the business with the Trade in.

For those paying attention. Suggested Retail Prices/RRPs are no longer constants for a model year...they are now changing through the Model Year, or at least reviewed....looking at the fine print on brand RRP pricing will point that fact out...and it's been spreading through the industry to be a little more obvious.

[Beren]

serious question, why dont people open up specific, to-order motorcycle importing businesses, where a customer can pay a nominal fee to a company which imports excess overseas stock, landing the customer a new bike at a price substantially discounted from the standard NZ floor price?

Would covering manufacturer warranties be an issue if the bike is sourced overseas, or would the manufacturer still have to honour factory warranties via a local brand specific agent, even if that agent wasnt responsible for the sale?

Not entirely certain - but I certainly intend to find out Sounds like there might be a tiny little baby hole in ze market.

[lakedaemonian]

Not entirely certain - but I certainly intend to find out Sounds like there might be a tiny little baby hole in ze market.

A couple folks are doing it and advertising for it now in bike magazines.

Although it would probably be best to look at it as a "pop up" business...much like those that are "popping up" on ultra short term leases in all the empty commercial real estate throughout the US and UK.

You would need to be careful in how it's organized....if you are deemed the importer/retailer you are on the hook for CGA.

If you are a facilitator? Probably not....but you'd be suprised at how things can go or be interpreted...and that can get expensive...since probably no distributor or retailer will want to know you.

In the last 10 years we've seen bikes/cars exported out of NZ when our currency was too low......and then we saw a GOOD bit imported in waves through parts of 2005-2008 timeframe...we could be seeing another wave now....but I suspect with purchasing power and retail sales down in NZ there will be fewer willing to take the punt to do it.

Retail arbitrage.

There's opportunity in it I'm sure...but could be fleeting.

[Big Dave]

For those paying attention. Suggested Retail Prices/RRPs are no longer constants for a model year...they are now changing through the Model Year, or at least reviewed....looking at the fine print on brand RRP pricing will point that fact out...and it's been spreading through the industry to be a little more obvious.

Doesn't make any difference on the floors though - they still cut the margin on deals to get them off competing dealers. Lots of ways to fiddle it. New hat sir?

[clint640]

i'm a geek because i like the look of the new bmw g650gs

but why is it...........

uk price 4920 British pounds = 9 876.80196 New Zealand dollars

us price 7900 U.S. dollars = 9 687.3084 New Zealand dollars

jeff gray bmw christchurch price = 16228 New Zealand dollars

W.T.F

Sounds like a fully excellent excuse to fly to the UK, buy the object of your geeky lust, ride it around scenic bits of Europe for a few weeks, ship it back, pay GST etc & still come out ahead Don't get mad, get even.

I am amazed more people don't do this given the price differences. It's certainly something I'd consider if buying a new bike. A free overseas biking holiday is not to be sneezed at.

Clint

[Beren]

There's opportunity in it I'm sure...but could be fleeting.

I would guess that the best way to work would be as an agent for the NZ customer... So dealing with US/China/Japanese purchase, shipment and putting the bike together. So that the consumer doesn't have to. It would be trying to sort out potential warranty issues that would be tricky.

[Grubber]

And it still looks like a Yamaha SRV.

Na....the Yamaha doesn't look that bad.
My god it looks like a piece if turd to me!

[lakedaemonian]

Doesn't make any difference on the floors though - they still cut the margin on deals to get them off competing dealers. Lots of ways to fiddle it. New hat sir?

The funny thing is......even though the customer expectation is to see prices DROP...due to the high flying Kiwi.....my GUESS is that factory/distributor RRP "price reviews" or "2012 RRP prices good until XX/XX/XXXX" are to cushion blowback of future price INCREASES.

I don't have ANY idea of what prices are going to be for any brand for 2012.....but until two years ago prices set for the Model Year pretty much stayed that way throughout the year....bar the "runoff specials" and such.

I honestly believe from seeing behind the curtain the purpose for the re-pricing is not to obscure the truth, but to protect themselves a little better when the volatility swings back hard the other way through higher manufacturing cost inputs/lower currency/lower # dealer points giving some pricing control back to dealers/distributors.

I am definitely no sir...I work for a living(always wanted to say that)

[jaffaonajappa]

I am definitely no sir...I work for a living(always wanted to say that)

Hahahaha, R+ Staff.

[lakedaemonian]

I would guess that the best way to work would be as an agent for the NZ customer... So dealing with US/China/Japanese purchase, shipment and putting the bike together. So that the consumer doesn't have to. It would be trying to sort out potential warranty issues that would be tricky.

If you could be a "facilitator" rather than an "importer/retailer" you might be exempt from the CGA.

Just have to be careful, otherwise you could be caught in the CGA net...it's happened before...and is happening again now with Tenders by the looks of things.

Something to ponder might be some sort of bridge financing......since a rather substantial % of bike buyers do NOT actually pay cash...arranging finance and putting a finance "hook" on overseas property isn't easy....maybe the property's able to be borrowed against once ON the boat...meaning only bridge finance from purchase to boat, then maybe converts to normal loan...it widens the potential customer base that way....Jap car import to order folks would be the go to folks for something like that....same with freight/customs folks dealing with North America and Europe.

A couple years ago, here in NZ, factory warranties on parallel imports were still covered.....not so much anymore....distributors are pushing back hard....can't blame them with parallel importers trying to ride their back.....they have to try and differentiate apples from parallel imported apples.....best to make the parallel imported apples look like relative lemons in comparison.

Back in the 80's Mercedes has a popular program(due to favorable USD/DeutchMark exchange rate) of people buying Mercs from dealers in the US and taking delivery in Stuttgart and taking a tiki tour in their car before dropping it at the port and flying home.

Lifestyle option again for some well loved brands maybe, updated for the 21st century.

[Robert Taylor]

The funny thing is......even though the customer expectation is to see prices DROP...due to the high flying Kiwi.....my GUESS is that factory/distributor RRP "price reviews" or "2012 RRP prices good until XX/XX/XXXX" are to cushion blowback of future price INCREASES.

I don't have ANY idea of what prices are going to be for any brand for 2012.....but until two years ago prices set for the Model Year pretty much stayed that way throughout the year....bar the "runoff specials" and such.

I honestly believe from seeing behind the curtain the purpose for the re-pricing is not to obscure the truth, but to protect themselves a little better when the volatility swings back hard the other way through higher manufacturing cost inputs/lower currency/lower # dealer points giving some pricing control back to dealers/distributors.

I am definitely no sir...I work for a living(always wanted to say that)

Stock also has to be ordered many months in advance by distributors in line with production schedules. You just cannot order it any old time. Often the buy price is ''unfavourable'' when several months later the exchange rate shifts. Currency fluctuation has a habit of distorting prices significantly and if anyone thinks any of the distributors and dealers are making a killing they are VERY wrong.
What concerns me is how many ordinary everyday people are losing their jobs because of so much offshore buying of many goods, not only motorcycles, parts and accessories. I think everyone should have that on their conscience.

[lakedaemonian]

Stock also has to be ordered many months in advance by distributors in line with production schedules. You just cannot order it any old time. Often the buy price is ''unfavourable'' when several months later the exchange rate shifts. Currency fluctuation has a habit of distorting prices significantly and if anyone thinks any of the distributors and dealers are making a killing they are VERY wrong.
What concerns me is how many ordinary everyday people are losing their jobs because of so much offshore buying of many goods, not only motorcycles, parts and accessories. I think everyone should have that on their conscience.

I'm with you and agree 100%.

But I'm also a realist, and see that the majority of folks often buy on price/convenience...so we've got to up our game on price and/or convenience.....as well as become true subject matter experts people are willing to pay to access that hub of information and by offering a level of customer service that simply blows people away and hopefully earns their loyalty.

It's nearly impossible to compete apples for apples with the likes of a Warehouse, WalMart, or Amazon.com.....so we do our best to try and sell an Orange.

But I would be lying if I said it was easy to compete in an environment where the currency is going up and down like a roller coaster.

[Robert Taylor]

I'm with you and agree 100%.

But I'm also a realist, and see that the majority of folks often buy on price/convenience...so we've got to up our game on price and/or convenience.....as well as become true subject matter experts people are willing to pay to access that hub of information and by offering a level of customer service that simply blows people away and hopefully earns their loyalty.

It's nearly impossible to compete apples for apples with the likes of a Warehouse, WalMart, or Amazon.com.....so we do our best to try and sell an Orange.

But I would be lying if I said it was easy to compete in an environment where the currency is going up and down like a roller coaster.

Yes I understand all of that, the justifications and the non justifications and that retailing as we know it is changing rapidly. Hence the maxim ''adapt or die''. My business is in the former category of that maxim.
I do think though that armed with all of the information on the net buyers should at least give their local a chance to sell.
If we take it to a cynical extreme NZ businesses amongst many other sectors of society are doing their best in difficult times to help with natural disasters such as the Christchurch earthquake. Are our American cousins who are so keen to clip our credit cards for online purchases just as eager to put money back into our local economy for such worthy causes?
Im certain the unemployment figures have a significant percentage of people that have been laid off because of worldwide competition. Thats a very sad by-product that we all pay for.

[Woodman]

Why not a trans tasman motorcycle big box chain??

One or two per city depending on size/demand.

Sell any brand that wants to jump on the bandwagon.

Because its trans tasman e.g. lots of outlets they could leverage off their buying power and purchase direct bypassing distributors. Not just bikes but parts and accessories as well.

Attach a workshop and trye fitting bay to each store.

Its the way of the future.