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Shopping early for Christmas?
Page 68
Page 69
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Our man on the inside is threatening to mention the 'C' word — even though it's still only September dealers are seizing its opportunities.
Christmas.Allow us to be the first to mention it. Operators working in the retail sector with busy schedules ahead will have already allocated their budgets for stop-gap trucks over the next three months as the big build-up begins.
No trees in supermarkets yet, but dealers should certainly be thinking of what offerings they should hang from their Norwegian Spruce (picea abies) to attract operators. Rental, of course, is the obvious answer but by and large only 20% of that stock lies dormant at any one time, catering for spot-hire customers. The extra volume of vehicles, from vans to tractors, needs to come from somewhere.
One cockney dealer aims to make a quick buck out of vehicles that would normally be exported. By leasing' them to operators in and around the capital he gets an extra three months' cash before shipping them out.
What has made this possible is the fact that exported trucks are newer and in better condition than they have ever been. The dealer has earmarked 25 trucks ranging from 18-tonners to three-aided tractors to fill the void created by the buying public."You buy,we supply" has never rung so true.
Another dealer from the capital is bemoaning the dwindling numbers of operators who buy second-hand. Working out of the Home Counties is hardly cheap, he argues; those already doing it successfully are looking to replace tired trucks with new products or at the worst those with only a couple of years under their tyres.
Bigger picture
The bigger picture seems simple enough: fewer operators running bigger fleets. Small concerns are packing up and leaving transport to those with purchasing power — or those who can use storage facilities to subsidise the road haulage side of the business. If you possess the last two, he says, then the used market becomes less of an option because only stateof-the-art vehicles with 54 on the number plate will do for image and driver retention.
There is still custom to be had, and simply having storage and gleaming fleets of new trucks doesn't mean you meet everyone's criteria of the perfect logistical outfit.
And, having spouted doom and gloom, he was at pains to point out he is on course to boost sales for the fourth year in a row. He was even looking at new premises to house the increasing number of trucks on the forecourt.
Two of his first-time customers have worked their proverbials off and look set to expand their freight-forwarding and container businesses — they're buying second-hand and giving the dealer first dibs at providing the trucks. 'Irony' doesn't do it justice. •