MANUFACTURER & DEALER RELATIONS
And some were more direct . “ Oh yes , it ’ s an issue . And not just for Makita ,” said Dennis Stauch , vice president of OPE sales for Makita . “ The independent dealer is the backbone of the industry . They have the relationships with end users , and we need to help the dealers manage that .”
I asked dealers , too , if they believe there are issues with the relationship . “ I don ’ t think the manufacturers understand ,” said Greg Paul , of Paul ’ s Lawn and Garden in Massillon , Ohio . “ I hope they hear this , and I wish they would be with us for a day or two .”
“ We have really good relationships with some manufacturers ,” said Britny Funk , sales manager at Belgrade Sales and Service in Bozeman , Montana , “ but there are concerns . When we talk about Toro , it seems they really don ’ t care about us as much as the big-box stores .”
“ For the most part , distributors seem to do a better job than some of the OEMs ,” said Mark Bailey or Buck ’ s Saw and Lawn Equipment in Novato , Calif . “ I don ’ t get the warm feeling that they really care about my business . Honestly , most of them do a good job , but one that stands out lately is Honda . I do not have a good feeling about them lately .”
What Do Dealers Want ? I understand that any dealer might complain about almost any manufacturer on a given day , and others might praise that OEM . While I gave dealers and manufacturers a chance to be heard , whether on a call or in a written response , the point is not to make this a record of complaints .
With the understanding that the OEM-Dealer relationship is maybe-probably-definitely an issue to be improved , we asked
OPE dealers what they want . For context , the dealers who responded were all multi-brand businesses , with roughly 40 percent carrying between 2 and 4 brands , about one-third carrying between 5 and 9 brands , and about 25 percent carrying 10 or more brands .
Two charts show what dealers want , through two questions . First , what do manufacturers do well ? And second , what do manufacturers do wrong ? Dealers want to be respected as independent service-focused businesses . And they want the ability to earn a fair profit margin . At first , one could be surprised that the same topics can answer both Doing Well and Doing Wrong questions . But it means that when manufacturers do this right , it ’ s great , and when they do it wrong , it ’ s really bad . It also suggests that – though our dealer respondents didn ’ t name names in these specific questions – each dealermanufacturer relationship is unique , with variables that include individual OEM or distributor field representation .
Dealers indicated they appreciate prompt support on service and warranty items , and that frequent communication is important . Those two are related , with warranty support often coming down to quick and thorough communication .
90 % 80 % 70 % 60 % 50 % 40 % 30 % 20 % 10 % 0 %
CONSIDERING THE MANUFACTURERS YOU ENJOY WORKING WITH , WHAT DO THEY DO WELL ? SELECT ALL THAT APPLY .
48.3 %
Communicate often
75.9 %
Respect me as an independent business owner
62.1 %
Allow me to earn fair margin on equipment
58.6 % 58.6 %
Provide training and education opportunities
Respond promptly to my concerns
37.9 %
Advertise and promote brand to increase traffic
62.1 %
Manufacture a good mix of products , prices
79.3 %
Support service and warranty needs
Source for all charts on pages 18-21 : OPE Business
www . OPEBusiness . com September 2023 OPE Business 19