AT an industry conference we organised over 20 years ago, one speaker was a US garden machinery dealer. On the subject of running a profitable service department he said “We had it really good until some clown invented electronic ignition!”

And he was right. Sorting out starting issues on small engines was a major source of income for dealers over many years.

I was reminded of his remark last week with the inclusion of two separate news items. One concerned MTD who had recently acquired two innovation companies, one in the field of battery technology, the other in robotics for golf course mowers. The other was the news that Briggs & Stratton has developed an engine that would never need an oil change.

Predictably, there was a snort and grunt from sections of the dealer community, not unlike that from my father back in the 1950s when he bought his first car that didn’t come with a starting handle!

It stands to reason that such innovations will impact on service revenues for dealers, and it is futile to imagine that it will stop there. Consumer demands are driving the market everywhere you look. Where’s Blockbuster now? Where are the record shops? Milk and paper deliveries? The projectionist at your local cinema?

Service intervals on cars and trucks are out at intervals unheard of 20 years ago. Convenience and ‘no hassle’ is the watchword, along with economic ownership.

What B&S is doing is responding to the strong indication from consumers that they don’t like the idea of changing the oil themselves (even if they knew how to do it) - and they are darned if they are going to pay someone else to do it.

The concept of machinery, its design, use and upkeep is changing before our eyes. Robotic mower sales are soaring ahead. In Sweden where they have been exceptionally strong, it has changed the dynamics of the dealer business. 

My point is this. The future of the specialist dealer network as we know it is at a tipping point. The core consumer business for many dealers comes from the 'Saga' fraternity. Nothing wrong with that. Most are adventurous, young-at-heart and comfortable with the notion that ’70 is the new 60 or even 50’.

It’s what the generation behind are going to require is the question that dealers ought to start asking themselves.

We don’t need knee-jerk reactions to change. What do they say?  “In business, the only constant IS change”. We need considered, practical and open-minded thinking on the shape of the dealer network over the next five years. What will the dealer of 2020 look like, what services will he offer, what will the market look like then?

In my view, the specialist dealer network has a bright and profitable future, but it may not quite be in the format we have at the moment.

Having opened that can of worms, it’s a topic I’m going to come back to over the next few weeks.