Good Economy

[Anthony]

The media is always talking about the doom and gloom and the fact that the sky is falling. I thought something positive would be nice for a change. This past Sat. in SE PA the weather was pretty decent. I had a feeling that the dealership I operate would be pretty busy. Pretty busy was an understatement. Myself and my staff could not physically handle all of the customers. Everyone was busy from open to close with people not just looking but spending. Spot delivering bikes , servicing bikes like crazy etc. As a result of this Sat we will probably sell another dozen bikes this week. At one point I counted 40 plus people in the store plus those in the parking lot. Several asked if we were having an open house. My point is that I think people are sick of the media , the President and the winter.They are just going for it. It is good to see that people are choosing not to participate in the recession. It is not all doom and gloom out there. People still want to spend . People still want to have fun. Please dont turn this in to a political debate. Just trying to start Monday on a positive note !       Anthony

[ULTRADOG]

that is definatley a positive the shops around here have been busy also but then again it was bike week last week

[willymax4]

uncle sam's handing out tax refunds right now. you put a little jingle in folk's pockets and they get in a spending mood. i suspect this is what's going on and sooner or later it'll slow down a bit.
then on the other hand there's always that slice of society that's not been affected by the economy yet.

[Wingnut]

I work for a large beer distributorship in the western New York area.  Beer sales have not fallen off because of the economy.  At least not yet.

[Panzer]

Anthony,
On the other side of "gloom", this past Friday I was at a viewing.......gloom.
On the way home I stopped at your store just to look, if you will, to cheer myself up a little.
In my dress trench coat, I was greeted by my salesman "Terry" and we shot the bull for a few.
Even the fellow that was rearranging the bikes in the showroom, asked if I rode and what I owned.
Terry, without hesitation told him what I rode and model, which surprised me.
I thought I was just another customer to him.............NOT.
With the bikes all lined up, shinning and the personal greeting the gloom disappeared.

Now, on leaving, I picked up a free Harley keychain that you had by the front door.
I went to a friends house visiting an old timer that I look in on from time to time, who lives alone and is 78 years young.
I told him I have a little something for him and gave him the keychain.
It wasn't much I know, but anything to him is a big gift.

While there, we talked and had friendship for 1 1/2 hours.
When I left, we were both happy.
I just wanted you to know that the little keychain is not only for keys, but for smiles too.

Your store is 5 star and the staff.
Much good luck to you sir and to Hannum's HD.



Panzer

[JamLazyAss]

Panzer, excellent job.   

[HV]

I think the Media have more to do with the Doom out look then any one ... her at our store ( Eastern Canada ) our HD Sales are up over this time last year and every person I talk to in Business around here says they have not seen any decline in sales ....the only rough spot seems to be the Car dealers... GM in particular


Hannum's HD  / Anthony 

[FLH]

I was at my local dealer here in Mass. (sorry, but the money's good here, and I vote for the good guys even though it doesn't matter here) and there was no doom and gloom at all. In fact, the place was crowded, and new big twins were flying out the door. Talked to a salesman at length, and he said they had sold 20 bikes this month (it was only the 6th) and the parts and accessories are selling faster than they can stock the shelves. They sold 800 bikes last year, and are on track to sell another 800. They had plenty to pick from. There were a eight street glides alone. And they have tons of used bikes that were traded in. It was a sunny warm day, they had the grille fired up, Bikes were coming and going... all was right with the world.

It was like pre- Nov. 4th all over again.... Sorry, just had to say it

[truck]

Then there is the other side of the coin.
My wife was laid off from her insurance office job that paid her a good wage and provided the both of us with health insurance, this happened July 4th 2008.
She applied for jobs everywhere, good paying jobs with benefits right down to cashier at K-Mart and anything and everything in between.
Finally she was accepted for a minimum wage, no benefit, must be available seven days a week for an eight hour shift anywhere from 10:00AM to 10:00PM.
Maybe the bike buyers got spring fever and are having one last fling before the hammer drops.
It doesn't look to Rosie from where I'm sitting.

I should add that it will have been 10 months at the time she starts the new job from the time she was laid off.
It is an amusement park job and she will be unemployed again in November.

[CraigArizona85248]

I'm glad to hear there are pockets of prosperity.  It's not like that among the people I know.  I have two friends who both work for the same company.  They have to take 6 weeks off out of every 13 weeks without pay.  That's ~45% hit to their income.  But at least they still keep their insurance during the weeks off with no pay.  One of the guys lives within his means and has savings.  The other guy owes on everything he has.  He's in danger of losing his house. 

I'm not making any big ticket purchases.  Cancelled our big vacation plans for this year too.  I'm not going to be caught off guard if something happens to my wife's job or mine this year.

-Craig

[sfarson]

Yes, I agree.  Doom and gloom feeds the markets, market declines feed the doom and gloomers, and around it goes.  A vicious cycle.  There are many companies making serious money yet one wouldn't know from most media sources.

[HyperDetroit]

Anthony, it's great to hear your store is doing well; after all, like others have said, your customer service is second to none.  I decided to not participate in recession, got myself a new GMC Sierra pickup 5 weeks ago, it's a great truck, much better than my old Silverado, which I got 232K miles out of with no major work.  I paid a lot less for the new truck than I did for my previous one 9 years ago.  I figure no time like today, and with the inflation just around the corner (I do believe it's coming simply because we just print more money now), the $500 payment is going to be more like the $300 before long.

[HyperDetroit]

Yes, I agree.  Doom and gloom feeds the markets, market declines feed the doom and gloomers, and around it goes.  A vicious cycle.  There are many companies making serious money yet one wouldn't know from most media sources.

Those companies that make great money now sure as hell don't want it to become public knowledge because they will be the next target in the war on prosperity.

[Kansas]

I am in the guitar and sound system business and business has been quite good.  I found back in the Jimmy Carter days people may skip some types of big purchases, but when it comes enjoying life, they'll splurge on a little self indulgence.  My church sound business is holding up too.  People still go to church.  It's my retirement savings getting whacked that hurts.

[Skin]

Our Dealership, Tri-County HD in Fairfield, Ohio has been "crankin'" for about a month now. We actually stayed busy in the shop through the winter. It's almost getting to the point I have to have a tech just for new bike sales. We've tripled our sales from this time last year and in the service dept, we're not lacking any work. Jenni is selling parts like there's no tomorrow AND we just got word that in about 2 weeks, we'll be selling parts on line the same as some of the other bigger Dealers. I don't see any "gloom" around here.
Skin
Service Manager
Tri-County Harley Davidson

[jimrookie]

 I do hope the good run continues for those with a positive note.its been kind of glum
here and I would really like to get back to Full Time as this really puts the clamp on any
spending for fun stuff.

[payday]

Hi Anthony,

  Glad everything is going well in your shop, however, the overall econmy is in grave danger. I am 61 and have never seen things like we are experiencing today. Banks failed, GM on the verge of bankrupcy, 1.6 million Americans laid off in the past 3 months. Neighbors on both sides of me out of work with no hope of finding a job soon. I know the media likes to play things up for coverage, but this thing is real and it is going to last a while longer. Hope your good fortune lasts!

[texaskatfish]

Our Dealership, Tri-County HD in Fairfield, Ohio has been "crankin'" for about a month now. We actually stayed busy in the shop through the winter. It's almost getting to the point I have to have a tech just for new bike sales. We've tripled our sales from this time last year and in the service dept, we're not lacking any work. Jenni is selling parts like there's no tomorrow AND we just got word that in about 2 weeks, we'll be selling parts on line the same as some of the other bigger Dealers. I don't see any "gloom" around here.
Skin
Service Manager
Tri-County Harley Davidson

Skin ya rascal!! I had no idea you are there with MsJenni. Please pass along all our best and we hope yall keep on rockin!!!

[tipper10]

Rocket HD Huntsville Al
WE HAD A GOOD JAN OVER QUOTA, OVER QUOTA IN FEB AND MARCH IS LOOKING SUPER OUR QUOTA ON BIKES FOR MARCH IS 100 AND PRESENTLY WE WILL HIT IT. I WORK IN PARTS THERE ARE 3 OF US AND ITS GOING GREAT...

[Big_Bulky_RK]

When I watch the news, I want to hear the newscaster says the the employment rate is at 92% or better.  I  want to hear the weather forecaster say there is a 70% or better chance of sunny skies.  Positive newscasting at it's best.
My glass is half full.
Opps it's almost empty..... Panzer, Got an extra beer?

[V24me]

I'm happy for the one's that are living in an area or working in an industry that's doing well, but don't think for a minute that it's not bad out there.  I'm optimistic, but I have been laid off and at least half of my family or friends are laid off.  News does engage in fear mongering, but it is slightly better than blindly thinking things are great.

I try to keep my opinions to myself, but for those that want to slip in a political jab, at least know what you're talking about.  Reagan/Bush 1 did this in the 80's and Bush 2 did it now.  Just watch the companies that claim to be hurting and laying off and they will soon start hiring back workers at nearly half of the old pay.  If you want to have it explained in detail, email me,  I have 7 years of college studying Economics.

[specialx1]

ya but ya didnt pass sorry i coudlnt resist

just so you all know that was personal shot from me to V24me cause i know him:)

[mark61]

  Yeah I think a lot of companies are using the media's doom and gloom as one more tactic to "grab all they can" for their selves. Done moved almost all the manufacturing jobs out of the country and since the new administration is not going  to favor the businesses like the old did they use what ever means they can. Same old story---rich get richer and poor get poorer.
    Where I work we manufacture rail road wheels and axles. Been making real good profit for the last couple years. Now orders are starting to slow down. Not real bad  but slowing down. So the management want us workers to "loan" them all of this year's profit sharing to come for 1 year. Say they will use it for improvements. And they are NOT offering to pay any interest on it!   Where is all the profit they made last couple years? Our profit sharing don't kick in until the company makes X million profits first so they just now decided they don't want to share the profit for 1 year cause of doom and gloom media.....Dam smart people white collar schemers!

mark61

[V24me]

Mark,
kinda sounds like tax payers building a new stadium for a Billionaire sports team owner.  Then, the stadium increases ticket prices because they have a nice new stadium.

Special,
didn't realize we could take personal shots, when I can think of one, watch out!!!

[specialx1]

had to clarify it for others  so war didn't start lol