The Dealership Fixit Podcast

Jacob Berry

Welcome to the Dealership Fixit Podcast, a show dedicated to power sports dealership professionals! In today's ever-evolving market, staying ahead of the game is vital. We invite you to subscribe to our podcast and gain access to the secrets of success in the motorcycle and ATV dealership life. In each episode, we dive into the challenges and opportunities each power sports dealership faces today. Our expert insights from various industry leaders, seasoned professionals, and innovative thinkers have significantly impacted the industry. After All, In Your Dealership, You Are The Fixit.

  1. 5d ago

    Dealers for Dealers: Why DealerConnect 2026 Is the One Event You Should Not Miss This Year | Tigra Tsujikawa & Steve Gotoski, NPDA

    Most industry events are big trade shows where you get talked at all day and everyone is trying to sell you something. DealerConnect is the opposite. It is dealers sitting across from dealers, trading real numbers and real fixes, in a room built for it. I have been to every DealerConnect since the beginning, and it has a different feel than the big shows. More intimate. More real. This year it runs September 19 to 21 at the Hilton in downtown Columbus, Ohio, presented by AppOne, and it is the biggest one yet. I sat down with two people from the NPDA, the National Powersports Dealer Association. Tigra Tsujikawa is the Events Director who builds DealerConnect every year. Steve Gotoski just joined as Membership and Marketing Director after over a decade at the AMA. We get into what the event is, what you will learn, and the real reason a dealer should make the trip. What we cover: Why the NPDA is the missing third leg of the stool: the MIC serves the OEMs, the AMA serves the riders, and the NPDA finally represents the dealers who connect themWhat the association does behind the scenes so a busy dealer does not have to, from FTC advocacy to legislation that could hurt your businessWhy every dealer belongs, from a one-person shop to a 300-employee groupWhat DealerConnect actually is: education and networking built by dealers, for dealersWhat a day looks like: the schedule, the meals, the AppOne welcome reception, and why the moments in between the sessions matter most20 sessions this year, double the education, covering sales, employees, finance, AI, succession planning, pre-owned strategy, and dealership cultureThe brand new FTC compliance session and why it is the most timely one on the agendaWhy the room is intentionally intimate, and how less noise means more real conversations and better takeawaysThe NPDA partner ecosystem: insurance, financing, training, and legal partners who get powersports and are there to help, not just sellThe honest logistics: how to plan your trip and why DealerConnect is worth the time out of the storeThe week-stacking angle: the Harley-Davidson dealer meeting starts the day after in Milwaukee, so DealerConnect ends early to make it easy to hit bothThe education workbook and post-event QR code so you can catch the sessions you missYou do not have to be a member to attend, plus a special this year: buy a DealerConnect ticket and get membership for $99The big beautiful bill win: how the NPDA helped get a tax write-off for financing interest on American-made powersports vehiclesWhere to register and why the hotel block closes August 28th Use code MotoHunt20 for a discount on registration. Service and accessory dealers, contact connect@npda.org or Tigra directly about a special registration built for you. Watch on YouTube: ⁠https://youtube.com/@dealershipfixit⁠ Register for DealerConnect 2026: ⁠https://www.npda.org⁠ Connect with Tigra Tsujikawa: ⁠tigra@npda.org ⁠Connect with Steve Gotoski: ⁠steve@npda.org ⁠Connect with Jacob: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacob-b-berry/⁠ Follow the Fixit Online: ⁠https://linktr.ee/dealershipfixit⁠ MotoHunt for Dealers: ⁠https://dealers.motohunt.com⁠

    Dealers for Dealers: Why DealerConnect 2026 Is the One Event You Should Not Miss This Year | Tigra Tsujikawa & Steve Gotoski, NPDA
  2. Aug 12

    Yamaha Stops Building Its Own Side-by-Sides, Polaris Drops a 275HP RZR, and 7 More Stories Dealers Need This Week | The Rundown

    Here is what matters in powersports this week, and what each story actually means for your store. The Dealership fiXit Rundown cuts through the headlines and tells you how the week's news lands on your floor, in your service bay, and in your next conversation with a customer. This week's rundown: Yamaha is ending in-house side-by-side production in the US after the 2026 model year. What that really means, why it is not the same as quitting the category, and how to talk to your Wolverine and Viking customers about parts, service, and warranty Why your 2026 Yamaha side-by-sides on the floor right now might be the last in-house units ever built, and how to tell that story to a buyer Polaris reveals its 2027 lineup: a 275 horsepower RZR Pro R Boost, a brand new air-controlled CVT called Numatix that cuts cabin noise up to 40%, and a $6,999 Sportsman 500 that covers the budget buyer CFMoto's new X-Force: 154 horsepower for under $24,000 and why the value brands are not the joke they were 10 years ago Sea-Doo rumored to push its top skis to 350 horsepower for 2027, and why the current 325 units are where the value is sitting right now New motorcycle sales up 1.9% through Q2 per the MIC, and what a cooling but growing market means for how you sell the back half of the year Sonic Automotive's powersports arm is on fire, up 53%, and what big money buying into powersports means for what your store is worth BMW spy shots point to an M 1300 GS, the first M badge on its flagship adventure bike, and why a halo bike drives showroom traffic An Italian firm claims a 2.5 billion euro bid for Ducati while Volkswagen says it is not for sale, and the one line to know if a customer brings it up KTM recalls Husqvarna and GasGas dirt bikes over a front brake defect, and how to turn warranty work into traffic, trust, and a possible sale Plus DealerConnect 2026 is coming to Columbus, and why this dealer-to-dealer event is worth the trip NPDA Dealer Connect 2026 discount code: MOTOHUNT20 Watch on YouTube: ⁠https://youtube.com/@dealershipfixit⁠ Connect with Jacob: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacob-b-berry/⁠ Follow the Fixit Online: ⁠https://linktr.ee/dealershipfixit⁠ MotoHunt for Dealers: ⁠https://dealers.motohunt.com⁠

    Yamaha Stops Building Its Own Side-by-Sides, Polaris Drops a 275HP RZR, and 7 More Stories Dealers Need This Week | The Rundown
  3. Aug 8

    Fix Your Pricing Before the FTC Does: What Every Powersports Dealer Needs to Know Right Now | Anne Gambardella, VADA

    The rule everyone was scared of got struck down. The enforcement did not. And the people who watch this closely believe powersports dealers are next. Anne Gambardella is the General Counsel and Executive Vice President at the Virginia Automobile Dealers Association. She has spent years helping dealers navigate advertising and pricing compliance, and she came on to break down exactly what the FTC wants, what it is going after, and what a dealer needs to do about it this week. In plain English, with real steps you can take at your store. This one is tactical. We get past the headlines and into what actually has to change on your website, your third-party listings, and even your salespeople's social media posts. What we cover: Why the CARS Rule getting struck down did not make dealers safe, and how the FTC enforces one dealer at a time under its existing authorityThe core rule in one sentence: the most prominent price in your ad has to include every fee except government chargesWhat actually comes out of the price, only tag, title, and registration, and what has to stay in, freight, setup, and doc or processing feesWhy the low-advertised-price game that has run for 30 years is now the thing that gets you flaggedHow rebates work now: you can list them, but you cannot pull a rebate most people do not qualify for out of the advertised priceThe 97 warning letters, what they really mean, and why a dealer who did not get one is not safe, just not on the list yetWhy this is not really a new rule in many states, and how it may already be illegal where you operateThe powersports reality: freight and setup fees the dealer did not create but still has to include in the priceWhy "call for price" is not the loophole dealers think it is, and how lying on the phone is still a deceptive practiceThe social media trap: how one salesperson posting a price can become an advertising violation for the whole storeWhy your price has to match everywhere, your site, third-party listings, and social, and how to document your pricing updatesThe trust numbers that prove customers want this: 86% worry about hidden fees, 76% do not trust dealer pricing, 29% walk to another dealer over price doubtThe real cost of getting caught: penalties north of $50,000 per violation, plus state action, franchise risk, and reputation damageWhy transparency is a competitive edge, not a loss, and the exact three moves to fix your pricing this week Watch on YouTube: ⁠https://youtube.com/@dealershipfixit⁠ Learn more (VADA, FTC resources): ⁠https://www.vada.com⁠ Connect with Jacob: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacob-b-berry/⁠ Follow the Fixit Online: ⁠https://linktr.ee/dealershipfixit⁠ MotoHunt for Dealers: ⁠https://dealers.motohunt.com⁠ Get $20 off your Dealer Connect 2026 registration with code "MOTOHUNT20"

    Fix Your Pricing Before the FTC Does: What Every Powersports Dealer Needs to Know Right Now | Anne Gambardella, VADA
  4. Jul 24

    Why Your Dealership Keeps Hiring the Wrong People: Two Powersports Recruiters Break It Down | Jaye Sanders & Kevin Vaughn

    Most hiring conversations start too late. They start with where to post the job. This one starts three steps earlier, with whether you even know what you are hiring for. We brought two powersports recruiters together for this one, and they come at it from opposite sides of the table. Jaye Sanders is a Talent Partner at Dream Team Referrals and Managing Director at Powersports Listings on the M&A side, so she sees how your team affects what your store is actually worth. Kevin Vaughn, who goes by Elvis, just founded Coreline Search, and he was a General Manager at House of Harley-Davidson until a few months ago. He has been GM at three different dealerships and came up from the sales floor all the way to the top seat. Between the two of them you get both sides. Kevin speaks for the dealer who has to make the hire. Jaye speaks for the person deciding whether to take it. It gets honest, it gets a little spicy, and it is packed with things a dealer can act on this week. Watch on YouTube: ⁠https://youtube.com/@dealershipfixit⁠ Connect with Jaye Sanders (Dream Team Referrals): ⁠520-850-0236 Connect with Kevin "Elvis" Vaughn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elvisvaughn/ Connect with Jacob: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacob-b-berry/⁠ Follow the Fixit Online: ⁠https://linktr.ee/dealershipfixit⁠ MotoHunt for Dealers: ⁠https://dealers.motohunt.com⁠

    Why Your Dealership Keeps Hiring the Wrong People: Two Powersports Recruiters Break It Down | Jaye Sanders & Kevin Vaughn
  5. Jul 22

    Throwback: Why the Best Dealers Learn From Outside the Industry | Tristan Wright, The Business Sherpa

    This one is a throwback and the lessons apply to every dealer principal and owner listening. Tristan Wright is a business coach from Australia known as the Business Sherpa. He is not from the powersports world, and that is exactly why this conversation is valuable. Tristan built his first company to seven figures by his mid-twenties, then lost it all, over $200,000 in debt and his marriage along with it. He took ownership, rebuilt the business, systematized it so it did not need him, and sold it. Now he helps other owners climb their own mountain. In this conversation, Tristan makes the case that the principles holding a dealership back are the same ones holding back any business, and that the owners who win are the ones willing to step outside their own industry, step away from the daily grind, and stay open-minded enough to change. What we cover: What a Business Sherpa actually is and why every owner climbing a mountain needs a guide who has been to the topTristan's story: seven figures by 25, lost it all by 27, and the ownership mindset that turned it aroundWhy letting go of ego and arrogance is the first step to growthThe 90-day rule: why Tristan will not coach a client unless they commit to four days fully disconnected every quarterWhy running at 60 to 70% all the time is what happens when you never step away to rechargeWhy working on the business matters more than working in the businessThe trap of the owner who will not delegate the mundane jobs and stays stuck because of itWhy 20 groups and masterminds help, but are not enough on their ownWhy so many dealers do not dream big enough and just aim to match the shop down the roadThe real difference between open-minded and closed-minded owners, and why it determines who succeedsWhy what worked in the past will not carry you forward, and why growth requires discomfortThe one or two dealers in any market who already look outside the industry and are pulling ahead because of it Watch on YouTube: ⁠https://youtube.com/@dealershipfixit⁠ Connect with Jacob: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacob-b-berry/⁠ Follow the Fixit Online: ⁠https://linktr.ee/dealershipfixit⁠ MotoHunt for Dealers: ⁠https://dealers.motohunt.com⁠

    Throwback: Why the Best Dealers Learn From Outside the Industry | Tristan Wright, The Business Sherpa
  6. Jul 17

    Throwback: The Passion Problem Killing Dealership Profitability | Michael Jones Sr, Master Technician

    This one is a throwback and the lessons still land hard. Michael Jones Sr is a master technician out of Charlotte, North Carolina, with a couple of decades in the automotive world before he gave it all up to go twist wrenches on motorcycles. He spent about ten years across nearly ten different powersports and motorcycle dealerships, and he came on the show to talk about something a lot of people in this industry feel but do not say out loud: the passion has slipped, and it is costing dealers money. In this conversation with, Michael makes the case that passion and professionalism are not soft ideas. They are directly tied to how profitable a service department is, how loyal customers become, and how a dealership stands out when everyone is pushing the same metal. What we cover: Why passion starts in the employee parking lot and how to spot a disconnectThe gun store comparison: why every employee there knows their product and why motorcycle shops often do notHow employee burnout and social media scrolling quietly drain the profitability of a service departmentThe parts-guy-at-the-bench workflow that saves the mechanic time and makes the shop more moneyWhy the 10-year-and-older rule is a mindset, not a fact, and what dealers miss by turning that work awayPulling back the curtain: why engaging service customers in how things work builds loyalty and repeat businessWhy so many younger customers have never been around machines and how dealers can bring them inMichael's own story as a customer and the service manager who always tells him what is nextWhy texting a customer the owner's manual PDF beats hoping they read the paper copyThe professionalism gap that separates a confident dealership from one that gets caught flat-footedThe Chrome Mafia story: how one independent shop built a riding culture that a four-brand, 30-year dealership could not matchWhy getting 30 to 40% of your staff riding changes everything Watch on YouTube: ⁠https://youtube.com/@dealershipfixit⁠ Connect with Jacob: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacob-b-berry/⁠ Follow the Fixit Online: ⁠https://linktr.ee/dealershipfixit⁠ MotoHunt for Dealers: ⁠https://dealers.motohunt.com⁠

    Throwback: The Passion Problem Killing Dealership Profitability | Michael Jones Sr, Master Technician
  7. Jul 3

    1,200 Used Bikes a Year, No Dealer Fees, and a Second Store in 120 Days: Inside Lucky U Cycles with Jeremy Coon

    Jeremy Coon sells around 1,200 pre-owned motorcycles a year out of a single store in Wildwood, Florida. No new franchises. No floor plan. No dealer fees. Just a used-bike machine he built from the ground up starting at 23 years old. In 2026 he took over a second location in Fort Myers and tripled the store's sales in his first 120 days. He went from 19 units a month to 70. This is one of the most honest, tactical conversations we have had on the show. Jeremy does not hold back. He walks through how he sources at volume, how he prices to turn, why he refuses to charge dealer fees, and what actually changes when you go from one store to two. If you sell used, want to sell more used, or are thinking about opening a second store, this one is a roadmap. What we cover: Why pre-owned is a full-time job with no truck dropping off new bikes every weekHow Jeremy sources 1,200-plus bikes a year and why trades and street buys beat the auctionThe stat that says it all: 1,200 bikes sold last year, only 5 bought from the auction, about 30 sent to itWhy chasing the auction is where a lot of dealers go wrong on fees, freight, and bikes they never even rideBuying right: why he makes his money the day he buys the unitThe 20,000-mile rule his full-time buyer is not allowed to breakHow the market shifts under you: nobody wants the bike today that everybody wanted three years agoPricing to the real market and why NADA is always chasing behind the actual selling priceWhy a bike sitting 30 days is devaluing every single day and wasting your ad spendThe no dealer fees philosophy and why it is a marketing weapon when everyone around you piles on feesThe buy here pay here lever most dealers do not have, and the $1.5 million on the books bringing $30,000 a month in interestWe Sell Fun: how a real riding culture turns into a sales and marketing engineWhy customers drive two hours and pay full price to buy from a store that feels like familyThe blueprint approach to building a team that stays 16 to 19 yearsThe honest story of acquiring a 25-year-old dealership and taking it from 19 to 70 bikes a monthGoing from pure pre-owned to running Piaggio new-unit franchises with Vespa, Aprilia, and Moto GuzziWhy watching your expenses and floor plan is the number one thing that keeps a used operation profitableHis honest advice for any dealer thinking about opening a second store Watch on YouTube: ⁠https://youtube.com/@dealershipfixit⁠ Connect with Jeremy Coon: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeremy-coon-b5107a289/⁠ Lucky U Cycles: ⁠https://luckyucycles.com⁠ Connect with Jacob: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacob-b-berry/⁠ Follow the Fixit Online: ⁠https://linktr.ee/dealershipfixit⁠ MotoHunt for Dealers: ⁠https://dealers.motohunt.com⁠

    1,200 Used Bikes a Year, No Dealer Fees, and a Second Store in 120 Days: Inside Lucky U Cycles with Jeremy Coon
4.8
out of 5
21 Ratings

About

Welcome to the Dealership Fixit Podcast, a show dedicated to power sports dealership professionals! In today's ever-evolving market, staying ahead of the game is vital. We invite you to subscribe to our podcast and gain access to the secrets of success in the motorcycle and ATV dealership life. In each episode, we dive into the challenges and opportunities each power sports dealership faces today. Our expert insights from various industry leaders, seasoned professionals, and innovative thinkers have significantly impacted the industry. After All, In Your Dealership, You Are The Fixit.

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