Dealernews article

If you're a scooter dealer and have the May 2006 Dealernews magazine, you probably have seen their scooter insert. I was interviewed by Senior Editor, Dennis Johnson. I told him that while I was at the Indianapolis Motorcycle Show I spoke to dealers about how a shop's longevity relies on creating a community of scooterists. I spoke about this briefly in my 2/10 blog entry, but went into it more in depth with Dennis. He used some of my quotes in the article that appears in Dealernews.

While some shops grow out of a thriving community, I am seeing many new shops open that are not owned or helmed by scooterists. While there isn't anything wrong with that, it just means that these shops will need to create a community so that it keeps revolving business going. This is especially true when you get "newbie" scooterists who are buying scooters purely for economic or practical reasons. These scooter owners are usually alone, putting around the town on their own. But, if a shop intoduces them to other sccooterists and hosts scooter-centric events, it can invigorate their appreciation for scooting!

The Dealernews article also talks about catering to the unique needs of scooterists by stocking items that they actually want to carry. I mentioned that most scooter riders don't want to get off their scooters looking like they were going to race. Unortunately, the article makes it sound as if I said that scooterists wouldn't wear Joe Rocket or Alpinestars gear. However,I didn't mention those companies as such and I think that both companies have some clothing that is totally right-on for scooter riders. I wish scoooter riders bought clothing that was made for riding instead of repurposing street clothing for riding. BTW- in our current issue, you can find a nice example of those clothes as we have a men's riding gear spread.

At any rate, I'm glad to get some press for Scoot! to dealers who may not be aware of us. Additionally, if you are a dealer who wants to chat about what I'm talking about feel free to give me a jingle at our San Jose office: 408.294.4292.

Oh, I also forgot to mention: HOW ABOUT THIS WEATHER? AWESOME!