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posted by Bob | January 29, 2012 | link
It looks like at least fourteen folks will be sporting new rides this Spring as a result of some
fantastic deals going down this weekend at our seventh
Cabin Fever Rally and sale. We were pleased and surprised by a last minute visit from Philip and Paul who made the journey from Genuine Scooter Company in Chicago aboard the Scooter Love Bus. They came bearing various gifts and swag for the attendees. Appropriately enough, the first two scooters to sell on Saturday morning were the brand new special edition model, the Psycho.
As promised, the winning numbers in the blind raffle are as follows (numeric order):
238010 238011 238021 238033 238035 238051 238064 238071 238084 238087 238094 238103 238114
If you're holding a winning ticket contact us next week to collect your prize!
Cabin Fever VII?
posted by Bob | January 22, 2012 | link
How can it be seven years? It seems like yesterday that we followed the suggestion of Philip McCaleb, founder of Scooterworks and Genuine Scooter Company, and threw a mid-Winter party. Well, time does fly. In May we will celebrate ten years since the day we opened for business. We have already been in our current location for nearly five years! The BIG weekend is coming up in just a few days. Friday and Saturday, January 27th and 28th, are the dates this year. As usual, we are keeping the deals under wraps until Friday, though some teasers are going out on our Facebook site. Check out Scooterville on Facebook and give us a like. More hints will be coming along as we lead up to the big weekend!
What's New For 2012?
posted by Bob | November 22, 2011 | link
A lot has been happening in the world of scooters in the past year. We have witnessed the demise of many of the Chinese importers, while the stronger OEM distributors have gotten their inventories under control.
The huge boom that occurred in scooter sales in 2008, combined with the economic downturn that hit in the autumn of that year, led to an overload of inventory in some dealer's showrooms, and all distributor's warehouses. The high profile bankruptcy of Scooter Superstores, which operated several locations in Florida and Georgia, compounded the oversupply problelms that were plaguing the "big three" of the U.S. scooter market: Genuine Scooters, Kymco, and Piaggio/Vespa.
Speaking of bankruptcy, Vectrix has risen from the ashes of their bankruptcy filing with one new model (the VX-2) and two new battery platforms for their larger bike (VX-1). While the specs for the VX-2 have an indicated top speed of 30 MPH, the controller can be easily set to extend that to 40 MPH. We have done mileage testing of the VX-2 and have established a 45 mile range in city riding.
Check out this review on JustGottaScoot. We really love this bike! Come in and schedule a test ride.
The long (version) anticipated wait for the Stella 4T is over!
posted by Bob | June 05, 2011 | link
Rumours of the Stella 4t have swirled around the internet almost since the Stella 2t was introduced back in 2003. The Stella was an instant hit when it came to our shores but it was excluded from sale in California due to their stricter vehicle emissions standards.
Naturally, the vast network of scooterists in the Golden State cried, "What about us??!" Granted, they'd had access to the four stroke, metal bodied, four speed, traditionally styled Bajaj Chetak as an alternative. But the Stella was housed in an actual Vespa P-series chassis. The lines of the Italian design trumped the more utilitarian cut of the Indian styled Chetak. Then Genuine painted the Stella in a variety of both traditional colors and lively pastels. The battle between Bajaj and Genuine for the hearts and minds and wallets of the scootering public was over before it began.
Whille the speculation and debate circulated through on-line scooter chat rooms (who knew?), the concept for a four stroke Stella was being discussed between Genuine and the Stella manufacturer, LML. The solution was not a simple one. Significant modifications would have to be made to the P-series chassis to accomodate the 4 stroke, 150cc engine and the neccesary emissions equipment that would make the Stella exceed the strict C.A.R.B. (California Air Resources Board) standards. The process ran into a variety of hurdles along the way. Not least of which were financial and labor/management problems at LML which shut down the factory for over a year in 2006-07.
In the summer of 2009 at least a couple "concept" models of the Stella 4t arrived inthe U.S for extensive E.P.A. testing and scrutiny. She passed with flying colors! LML began retooling for assembly of the new model and Genuine announced that the long awaited arrival of the 4t Stella would hit dealwer showrooms in early summer of 2010.
Dealers began taking deposits from eager customers lining up to get their hands on the first ones available. Barry Gwin, the proprietor of San Francisco Scooter Centre, had received deposits from literally dozens of long suffering Californians. At Scooterville we had sold out our initial order. Great excitement accompanied the news that the first shipment had arrived in Chicago. Then came the next barrier.
The arrival of the 4t Stellas coincided with a recent dragnet by the U.S Customs to catch vast numbers of illegal scooters coming in from mainland China. Many of the Chinese models were coming to the U.S. with improper emissions documents and forged EPA stickers. Public and industry outcry about these scooters resulted in a long overdue inspection process by Customs of newly arriving scooter shipments. Agents in Chicago uncrated the first of the newly arrived Stellas and, during their inspection process, discovered that the factory had installed the wrong type of adjustment screw on the carburetor. The shipment was impounded by Customs while they decide their fate. Finally, after weeks in limbo, it was determined that the scooters would have to be returned to the factory in India to have the required adjustments made.
Fast forward to March of 2011. The first shipment of Stellas went to the long awaiting dealers and customers in California. Our first batch arrived this week. While many of the people who had placed deposits with us in 2010 had tired of waiting, demand has remained high and only a small portion of our first batch remain.
The Buddy 170i is here!!
posted by Bob | May 21, 2011 | link
The Buddy 170i has existed in rumor for a while. Many wondered what it would achieve versus the Buddy predecesors in the 125 and 150cc versions. The short answer is.......Faster!! It achieves in up-hills what the 125-150s would do in down hills. Great brakes? Yes. You'll need them.
Supplies are severely limited in the early release period. Grab one while you can!!
Supply crisis?
posted by Bob | May 08, 2011 | link
I don't like to toss around words like crisis or panic without a very good reason. I especially don't when it comes to scooters. But after a Minnesota spring that has not been great in terms of average daily temperature, we finally saw a couple of decent days in a row and sales just exploded!
Supply: How it works.
Every fall, usually in October or November, scooter dealers are required by their suppliers (Genuine, Kymco, Piaggio/Vespa in our case) to place orders for the upcoming year. Using a complicated metric of tea leaves, Ouija board, prior years' sales data, and current inventory, we come up with the formula of what to order. We take the over-all order and specify which scooters we want in which months. The monthly order usually comes to us in the second or third week of the month. We order the most scooters for the months that have the strongest sales data. In Minnesota that has been heaviest in May and June.
Mother Nature's role.
The earthquake and tsunami that devestated large areas of Japan also took a toll on their power grid, requiring periodic power shortages throughout the country. Although we do not sell any Japanese manufactured scooters, many Kymco models use parts that come from Japanese factories. We are sold out of one of our most popular 50cc models, the Kymco People 50. They are not able to tell us when they will be available, but our May allotment will not be fulfilled.
When gas prices go up, scooter sales follow.
We saw it happen in 2008 and it is happening again. Gas prices are hovering around $4 per gallon and, depending on whom you're listening to, predicted to go up (or down). Those fuel prices drive up the demand all over the country and in the warmer climates, scooter dealers bought up the remaining 2010 inventories that distributors had in their warehouses.
How about those inventories?
I just came across a fuel receipt from November 1, 2010 when premium was selling for $ 2.99 a gallon. That was when we were putting together our 2011 scooter orders. Inventories were a bit higher than we like to see them at that time of year and 2010 sales figures were well off the all time highs of 2008. Oil prices had not seen much upward movement, awaiting some positive word about the global recession. Even the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico had not had produced much upward pressure on the price of gas.
There was still snow on the ground when we began to notice a larger than normal amount of floor traffic in Scooterville. The inventory of scooters we thought would carry us well into May was getting bought up and forecasters started to speak of $4, $5, even $6 dollar gas. That's when we took a closer look at our orders for April , May, and June and noticed that there could be some shortage if sales kept up their pace.
The pace has kept up and we are already starting to see shortages, especially in the 50cc up to 150cc models. We're taking deposits for the next shipment of Buddies, and People 50s are sold out until further notice. If you're looking to upgrade to a larger scooter (250cc and up) this will be a great year to do so. Demand for the larger scoots is still a bit soft, while trade-in value for a used 50 or 125 cc should be strong.
A Long Time Coming.
posted by Bob | April 14, 2011 | link
Spring has taken its' sweet time ariving this year but that hasn't seemed to matter too much to people in the market for scooters. The return of four dollar gas and a vast improvement in the economy has gotten people's minds focused on the scooter as an alternative transportation mode once again. Customers ask why they see so many scooters when they visit Europe and Asia. The answer is simple. The combination of high fuel prices and urban congestion make the scooter the ultimate transportation alternative.
It's an especially exciting year for scooters with several new models poised to shake things up.
From Genuine Scooter Company, the Stella Four stroke is finally here! Well, not quite HERE, but there has been a shipment that fulfilled several years of orders from long suffering Stella fans in California. The next delivery will hit our showroom in early May! The 150cc Buddy International series and the Buddy Blackjack have been discontinued with the advent of the soon to be introduced Buddy 170i. The Blackjack and Pamploma are sold out. Limited numbers of the Italia and St. Tropez remain available. Watch here for updates on the 170 release. Buddy and Rough House 50cc models are hanging on to their traditional popularity.
Get your order in soon. Availability is limited and inventories are zero.
Kymco will be introducing some new models this year but the biggest news comes by way of a price reduction for the new Like 200i. Introduced last Fall at $ 3299, Kymco has turned this fuel injected 163cc with dual disk brakes into an industry value leader with a price reduction to $ 2599.00. Quantities are limited.. Don't miss out!!
Let's think warm thoughts!
posted by Bob | February 07, 2011 | link
I've just returned from a week of curling competition in the Boston area. Our team was trying to win the honor of representing the U. S. in the up-coming world championship being held in St. Paul, Minnesota. We made it to the final 8 teams in a tough field, including the defending world champion. Our hopes were dashed in an elimination match against an opponent from Alaska.
While we were there, it was reported that the groundhog did not see his shadow! According to legend, Spring should be just around the corner. Predicted snowfall of 6 inches in the Boston area came in the form of rain and knocked down some of their massive snow banks. When the sun came out, there was definitely a feel of Spring in the air.
Upon returning to the Twin Cities, the temperatures are diving back below zero. It's only for a couple days before a steady warming trend begins.
There are a couple of bright developments on the scooter horizon. At long last, the much anticipated Stella four stroke is set to arrive in March. Limited numbers are available, an a $1000 deposit will get you in on the first batch. Also, there will be a fuel injected Buddy 161cc in new color choices hitting the showroom this Spring. The 150cc Buddy Internationals and the very popular BlackJack are being discontinued, as well as the traditionalist Stella 2 stroke. Very limited numbers of these are still available at close-out prices.
