While your market can certainly vary depending on the location, local economy or your customer make-up, as far as trending data is concerned from a national standpoint, there are some valuable takeaways that provide you with insight and a positive outlook to the year ahead.
Every year, we survey shop owners and technicians to get an understanding of the trending tool purchases in the coming year. Not only do we ask about general shop information (shop location, number of bays, how long in business, etc.), we also take a deep dive into who, what, how and why technicians and shops are purchasing certain tools and equipment. Beginning in 2016, we decided to share this information with our readers with a now-annual report called the Aftermarket Profile.
The second annual Aftermarket Profile provides some excellent insights into your independent repair shop customer base. This year’s survey results provided a positive outlook for the year ahead.
Here are some of the biggest takeaways from this year’s Aftermarket Profile, as it relates to your business:
- Shop owners are certainly an important part of your business; but don’t overlook the technicians - 80 percent of techs are responsible for buying their own tools and equipment. And, 89 percent of techs influence or approve tool and equipment purchases for the shop.
- Shop budgets are up for tool and equipment purchases - 95 percent of shop owners anticipate their tool and equipment budgets to be the same or higher in 2017. Of those respondents, almost half (48 percent) have increased their budget compared to last year (a 15 percent increase year-over-year).
- Techs and shop owners are buying more tools and equipment. When asked “Where do you buy tools?” We saw at least a 10 percent increase year-over-year for each retail category - mobile tool distributors (89 percent), online (72 percent), auto parts stores (60 percent) and retail stores (48 percent).
- Shop owners and technicians are buying from mobile tool distributors more than any other retail option - 89 percent of respondents say they buy from a mobile tool distributor at least some of the time (up from 78 percent in 2016). And, if they had to choose one retail option, 63 percent of respondents say they would buy from mobile tool distributors the most.
- Keep up with how your customers learn about tools and equipment. 85 percent of shop owners and technicians ask their mobile tool dealer about new tools and equipment they see in trade magazines like PTEN. (Many of the products in the pages of PTEN are also featured in Professional Distributor. Check out the latest products by turning to the Sneak Peek section on page xx, and the latest diagnostic tools on page xx.)
All of this information, and more, can be found in the 2017 Aftermarket Profile.
(Download a free PDF of the 2017 Aftermarket Profile.)
