Car Owners Holding on to Vehicles Significantly Longer, at Least 50,000 Miles Longer, Says New Survey
AutoMD, a new free online auto repair resource, has released the results of a survey revealing that car owners are putting many more miles on their current vehicles, 50,000 or more, than on their previous vehicle – with the majority of respondents planning to keep their vehicle until it dies. The report also revealed that
High Unemployment Affects Aftermarket Front-of-Store and Hard Parts Sales Differently
Highunemployment continues to hamper overall consumer spending, but arecent analysis by The NPD Group, a leading market research company,shows that in high unemployment markets there is a discrepancy betweenfront-of-store and hard parts auto aftermarket sales. Market level sales data from NPD’s Aftermarket Industry Monitor, whichtracks point-of-sale data from more than 18,000 auto parts stores, wasanalyzed
The Way You Want It or The Way They Want It
Facebook, Twitter, Instant message, e-mail, e-Newsletter, Website, Print, Phone, Fax. There are many ways to communicate with an audience these days.Depending on the month, day or year, some are more popular than others.But popular does not always mean efficient. Some of these options aremore cost efficient than others, but cost efficient also does notalways equate
Winter Comes Every Year: Preventing Losses In Your Shop
Some items to consider: • Condition of entrances and exits: Are they in good condition or could snow, water or wind cause problems? Repair them now instead of waiting for an emergency. • Heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems: Don’t wait for a breakdown or even a sign of trouble, make checking the condition of the
U.S. Light Vehicles Expected to Grow 10.2 Percent in 2010, According to Polk
Lightvehicle sales in 2009 were 10.4 million, the lowest level in 27 years,and 21.2 percent lower than 2008, however things are looking upaccording to R. L. Polk & Co. Polk predicts the light vehicle market will be 11.5 million units in2010, according to its most recent U.S. light vehicle forecast. "We believe wealth accumulation and
Herman Trend Alert: Health Care Reform
As the United States thinks about health care reform, it seemsappropriate to look at ways to reduce medical costs without sacrificingquality of care. Some of the leading-edge health care solutions areclearly non-traditional. They include "disruptive" healthcareinnovations, such as medical tourism, retail clinics, medical homes,alternative and integrated medicine and cyber visits. To help employerscapitalize on these
Pollution: Does it have to be a dirty word?
Is your business exposed to pollution liability risks? Are you covered? Can you sleep comfortably at night knowing you have taken all the necessary steps to control this exposure? If you know the meaning of “Environmental Due Diligence,” you probably can. First let’s look at three fact-based scenarios related to pollution liability that have actually
Finding Your Break Even Point
Why should you care what your business’ break-even point is? Whatpurpose does it serve to know what it is? More specifically, how do youdetermine which of your business costs are fixed and which arevariable? What costs affect your break-even point the most? How oftenshould this information be calculated? How do you use this informationto better
American Families Save $26 Billion Annually at Independent Repair Shops, Data Shows
From aftermarketNews Proponents of the Motor Vehicle Owners’ Right to Repair Act Web say that new data revealing the economic importance of the automotive aftermarket to consumers shows why Congress needs to pass legislation to ensure a competitive repair market. According to the new study conducted by John Dunham and Associates for the Automotive Aftermarket
Turbocharging’s Not Just A Lot of Hot Air
With the uncertainty of fuel prices and the concern that gasoline couldagain top $4 a gallon across the nation, Americans have been shiftingtheir vehicle-buying behaviors toward more fuel-efficient vehicles. While gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles have been getting much of theattention as the next step in fuel-sipping vehicles, turbocharging —which is used by roughly half of new
J.D. Power Projects New Automotive Industry Breakeven Point to Decrease by More than 2 Million Units
From aftermarketNews Due to cost-cutting measures such as renegotiation of union and suppliercontracts, the "breakeven point" for the domestic automotive industrywill decrease by more than 2 million units when comparing currentindustry conditions to those forecasted in 2010, according to GaryDilts, senior vice president of U.S. automotive at J.D. Power andAssociates. Dilts shared these findings during
A Larger Sweet Spot
What made Callaway Golf’s Big Bertha and the Prince tennis racket so successful in the marketplace? A larger sweet spot. The sweet spot is the area on a club, racket, bat, etc., where a ballis most effectively hit. A larger sweet spot allows you to hit the ballwith power even when conditions do not allow