“The NMDA is pleased to see that this year’s Autumn 2018 Dealer Attitude Survey received a high response rate of 30% made up of eight main brands. Participants in this survey were made up of 79% of independently owned franchise dealers, and 19% privately owned groups. 59% were single brand dealer’s whist the remainder of 41% were multi-franchised.†commented Stephen Latham, Head of the National Motorcycle Dealers Association (NMDA).
The NMDA Autumn 2018 Dealer Attitude Survey, published today (Monday 5 November 2018), shows that the all dealer average when asked about the overall value of the franchise declined by 0.1 points to at 6.2 since the last survey in Spring 2018.
Harley Davidson, Kawasaki and Triumph were recorded as the top 3 franchises
The least valued franchises by respondents were Piaggio Group, Yamaha and Honda
When asked about their ability to do business with their manufacturer on a day-to-day basis, the score average improved by 0.1 since the last survey in Spring 2018
The partnership dealers have with their manufacturer scored an all dealer average of 3.6
Piaggio Group dealers were the most dissatisfied with the partnership they have with their manufacturer having reported a score of 3.0 since the last survey (where they scored 3.2) and fall to 8th position in the ratings chart
Kawasaki was the top scoring dealer with a score of 4.8, up 0.9 points from last year and knocking Harley Davidson off the top of the ratings chart
Dealer profit and future profitability both declined in this survey from Spring 2018
When rating the profit return by representing their franchise, the all dealer average went down by 0.1 points from 2.9 to 2.8
Harley Davidson, Kawasaki and Triumph were recorded as the top 3 franchises
When asked about the future profitability of their business, the all dealer average went down by 0.1 points from 3.1 to 3.0
Harley Davidson, KTM and Kawasaki were recorded as the top 3 franchises
Latham continued, “Overall the survey suggests that dealers are fairly satisfied with the business relationship they have with their manufacturer. The only two manufacturers who saw their scores across all questions improve were Harley Davidson and Kawasaki. Again, Harley Davidson saw a significant increase and stood out as the only manufacturer making positive progress in the eyes of their dealers.
“Dealers are on average most satisfied with the image of the brands they represent and products they sell. This suggests that dealers are brand patriotic and confident in how the consumer views their manufacturer. Particularly, dealers were satisfied with brand and product image, and warranty policy and time allowances.
“With the declines in scores for certain key questions, there is still scope with certain manufacturers to develop their relationships with their dealer networks as some still fall well below average in many areas of the survey.â€
