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Mpl ?

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spoonz

Thought i would run this past you guys for some opinions cos i'm in a dilemma.

Without going into too much detail as there are many bridges to cross yet i'm considering the MPL importership.
They are pushing me quite hard to do it but i have reservations.

Simply put do you think the stuff would sell. As a punter if you could buy a slave from Herman the German via Ebay would you do so if it saved you £10 or would you go down to a dealer and pay a bit more but have it there and then.

In the current climate is a bit of bling on your bike the last thing you will spend money on ?

The Aprilia side of things is quite small in their products but you are all representative of biking in general.

Here is a new catalogue if you want to see the stuff they do.
Speak your mind if you think it's guff. I'd rather know.

http://www.mpl-tuningparts.de/english/downloads.html
 
No way if you ask me! Most of these parts will be bought for cosmetic or planned upgrades and therefore will not be needed in any hurry and most will be happy to wait a week to get it. If they didn't have a presence on ebay UK then i'd say go for it but i can't see it being worth it as stock holding dealer versus their ebay shop. Then again there is something to be said for seeing an item in the flesh but this will only apply to cosmetic stuff.

Overall i'd say don't bother unless you are getting a serious mark-up.
 
Sorry Spoonz but in general i agree, I think you hit the nail on the head by saying "in the current climate!" Possibly when things are more back to normal on the credit crunch dilemma then i certainly would by from you at a slightly higher cost but being a Scot, a bargain always feels better than full price.....:devious

Cheers......
 
Spoonz,

Computer says 'NO'

Given what's happening to the economy you won't see many people spending money on their bikes.

Trust me I'm in the Insurance sector and when my prestige customers start making cut backs then things are gonna get seriously **** and very soon.

Tempting offer as it is, I would have to say no at this point in time, unless they are doing you a sale or return deal!
 
It is a very specialised and fickle market so you ought to concider products for different bikes also. I reckon people will always buy performance enhancing products if the price is competative but to get the sales the marketing has to be right. Look at all the adverts in 'Fast bikes' 'fast car' etc. Theres obviously a market. Someone out there made a fortune selling 'cherry bomb' exhausts and dayglo wheel stripes!! Have mpl got an advertising campaign? Assuming you make a fair commision from MPL you need to decide if the time and effort is worth it.

Ebay works to a point as the overheads to sellers is almost zero but i'm always suspicious of counterfiet products appearing on Ebay re. Brembo master cylinders on sale last year that turned out to be cheap reproductions.

Most would prefer some sort of after sales incase there are problems. This will always be a problem with ebay as its culture is a little 'sell and forget'. So i dont reckon people with much sense would risk using Ebay, therefore the competation wont exist in that sense.

I think it would be worth gambling as a sideline to suppliment your main income as long as any financial layout by yourself is kept to the minimum to avoid the risk factor. Mpl dont sell them onto you at a fixed price with no buy back option? If they do then their 'risk' has been greatly reduced as they have the money from you already. Tread carefully and dont gamble more than you can afford to loose.

The credit crunch has meant cutbacks in most sectors but RSV's, sports bikes in general are luxeries and such like are bought by most who proberbly have a little expendable income as well as a passion for what they like. People will be more careful about what they buy and not stop spending altogether. We will still buy decent tyres, good oil, upgraded brake pads as this is what we need. Mpl are hardly chrome indicators, tinted screens or flashing valve caps.
 
I have to agree with the others (to a certain extent), My family comes first and therefore protecting the roof over their heads is prime, so the bike only gets what is absolutely urgent (tyres,chain/sprocket, oil change and brake pads) and even then its one of those things a month or every other month, which means the bike is off the road for now as it needs that new back tyre.
While I would love to put things like the MPL products on the bike I cannot justify any bolt on performance or enhancement goodies at present.
However there are people with money out there and they are willing to spend ( I work in the financial services sector and we are seeing quite an upbeat market, dont believe all that doom and gloom **** its 70% hype from the media and the doom merchants which is leading to people panicking).
If you can afford to stock such products and dont rely on daily sales of them then go ahead , but any stock sitting on shelves for any length of time is lost profit.
One last thing if something untoward was to happen to my standard cylinder I would look to replace it as an upgrade to a failed part.
 
If it was me, then I would try and find it cheaper online and wait. Now if it was a part I needed to keep the bike going then I would want it now and the price would not come into it.

Over the past 5 years, I would say I have kept most of my bikes going and all upgrades have been via the net. Nice Idea, but not great in this moment in time :)

Convert it all online then great do it :)
 
Spoonz.
I deal with a lot of small businesses in my job and the number of times I've heard a business founded on the 'my friends said they'd buy one' school of market research defies belief. And of course, many of them are no longer in business.
You need some serious market intelligence before you can make informed decisions about such a business opportunity. For instance, here's one guy you're up against.
http://stores.ebay.com/gas-cap-dude_W0QQcolZ2QQdirZQ2d1QQfclZ3QQfsubZQ2d999QQftidZ2QQtZkm

I am of course assuming that MPL require a substantial amount of in money from you. If you're getting the stuff SoR then it's a no braineras long as you have the space.
If you are going to putting money into this though, you need to know all sorts of things - do they have a UK distributor now and if so, why are they finishing that relationship?
What sort of marketing support are they prepared to give you? Wholesale pricing, credit terms, returns policy, technical backup, ect.
My buying habits? 1. Ebay
2. The Web generally
3. Phone call/mail order in response to ad in mag or MCN
4. Visit dealership only if it's local or I have a reason to go that way.

If you are considering anything like this you MUST have a web site (or have all UK sales/enquiries routed to you through MPL's site). Convenience is king - if I can hit the button and pay by Paypal (on my credit card!) then I'm happy. I'll only go out of my way for something very special or very cheap.
By the way, almost anything 'bling' on my Mille was bought second hand!
 
gotta agree with the above, personally I would wait if it was cheaper on line. think these guys hav a bit of front if they are selling on ebay & under cutting their own franchises? Not that I can afford bling at the moment anyway:roll
 
Spoons,
As said above, and especially A303, with the convenience of on line shopping, people will wait for 'Bling' at the right price. So when Helmut the hun is selling on flebay for 2 quid more than trade cost from the manufacturer, most will buy from him and take the risk.
Also the range is fairly small, and i wouldn't buy the slipper clutch for example when there are more proven units for sale for similar price.
If you can get it by sale or return so no outlay by yourself then go for it, or, if they can send you goods by return to keep your stock to a minimum.
(Still want some frame plugs if you want to split the postage!!)
 
Thanks all for your thoughts and you have kind of confirmed the way i was leaning but i needed re assurance i wasn't making a mistake.

Money hasn't really been talked about just words like "competetive rates".
I had a long chat with a mate who is a director of a big company and he agreed with most you.

His comment was that if they have faith that they have a good product and it will sell then ask them to back it up by offering SOR. If they are not prepared to do that then they just want your money and if it goes belly up then at least they made a few quid.

His other point that i agree with is there will always be an element of impulse buying even if it's a bit more than Ebay etc. It's here now and i want it cos it made me go wow. But that only happens if it's in a dealer showroom and you can touch it. What chance of getting dealers to buy it as stock at the moment. Nil. They will want SOR as well for sure.

On that basis and what you have all said that's exactly what i shall say. It was always a sideline so i won't lose my house over it but i'm not into pissing money into the wind either.
At the end of the day even on SOR they have to be marketed which is not free.
They are fully aware of my thoughts on the Ebay situation but not sure anything can be done about that.

We shall see what develops but it looks like SOR or no go

Tin Tin yes sure if you want the frame plugs. Might try and swing some samples.
 
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I think your making the right decision spoonz, i am in the motor factor trade and it has slowed down, now is not the time to be taking this on. If it wasnt for the ebay side i can see it being tempting as the product is proven. :thumbup

did someone mention frame plugs:biggrin
 
Well i got the dealer price list today from them.

It's good and bad.

Good as in i can now see how the ebayers are selling at the price they are and it's not unbeatable either.

The bad being i am now naffed off that we paid what we did for the slave's. cheaper than retail but not the deal that 17 units or their comments at the time suggested.
 
thanks for you honesty spoonz but we was all happy with what we paid when we did, I wouldnt beat yourself up about it.
As for ebay , do you want to get into a price war ?
 
personally unless you have a bike shop and have a big market in rsv's I wouldn't
 
No i wouldn't get into a price war but the few dealers i approached to gain feedback all said unless we are close or better than Ebay they wouldn't touch anything.

At least i know the ebayers aren't giving them away and can be matched if need be.
The proposal i have put to Uli is that i don't want an importership as things stand.
I will however consider being a dealer but only on the proviso i buy what i want when i want. I am confident of shifting certain items and evo have just pulled out of certain products that Mpl can replace. One retailer has already lost sales to this.
In short i'll buy to order unless it's SOR or forget it.


re frame plugs for those that expressed an interest i think we can make that happen but i want dealer price from them to me. That way they will be a bargain.
 
If its any help I have just bought a set of MPL frame plugs in black, from Tecmoto in London, and I paid 40 squid delivered.
 
The MPL rrp is £33.40

I'm hopeing to do them for less than that as a group buy if poss.
 

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