Read Case 4: WindVest Motorcycle Products: Down the Windy Road in your text on page 666. In a two to three page paper, present an overview of the company and identify its products. Discuss at least three recommendations to improve the domestic marketing

CASE 4 WindVest Motorcycle Products: Down the Windy Road

WindVest, a small family business, has a unique product, one that is designed to keep the bugs out of your teeth. Motorcycle windshields were once big, awkward, and incredibly uncool. That changed when Norm Dober started manufacturing small, aerodynamic windscreens at a factory in Silicon Valley. This rigid piece of transparent plastic mounts to a motorcycle’s handlebars with a crosspiece and two simple clamps. Despite its small size—just 14 to 18 inches high—the screen deflects wind and bugs from a much larger area around the driver. WindVest Motorcycle Products (http:www.windvest.com) sells thousands of windscreens every year, has experienced an annual growth rate of 10% over the last six years, and generates $1.5 million in annual sales. Business is good.

The Dobers want their family business to continue to grow and to increase its profit margins. “I want to see WindVest on as many bikes in South Carolina as I do in California,” declares Doug Dober, Norm’s son, who handles the company’s manufacturing and marketing. The company advertises in several biker publications and on four California radio stations. About one-third of all sales come through a handful of national distributors, which in turn sell the screen kits to retailers. WindVest sells another one-third of its products to retailers. The balance of WindVest sales are directly to bikers who purchase the kits at motorcycle shows, online, or by phone.

Geographically, the majority of the company’s sales are in California, Arizona, Colorado, Texas, and Wisconsin. Without any real marketing effort, WindVest’s sales also are strong in Florida. Domestically, Doug wants to reach new markets throughout the South and the Northeast. He is convinced that the best way to boost sales in new territories is to demonstrate the product at bike shows and rallies. That approach has worked well in California and other western states, but Doug has found he does not have the time to take his show across the country and manage the business. “There’s a biker rally in New Hampshire that draws 300,000 people every year, and I can’t get there,” Doug laments. Some would argue that only a fraction of bikers at the New Hampshire will actually visit the WindVest booth and that Doug should concentrate on marketing where bikers live, not where they visit for a week. In fact, Doug has discovered that the company’s success in Florida is the result of an enthusiastic distributor who has been promoting the WindVest to his customers. Doug is beginning to wonder whether the key to boosting sales might be cultivating more distributors like the one if Florida rather than attending bike shows. One potential strategy is to offer incentives to the salespeople who work for Windvest’s distributors.

Manufacturing is also a growth-related issue. Doug would like to improve the company’s manufacturing efficiency by restructuring its supply channel and finding suppliers closer to WindVest’s headquarters in Campbell, California. The parts WindVest purchases to make its windscreens are relatively expensive, particularly the molded plastic and the chrome-plated components. The Dobers realize that competitors might enter the market and sell low-cost versions of the WindVest, which would put pressure on their company to lower its costs and prices. The Dobers want better prices and service from their current suppliers but are not sure how to negotiate those arrangements. Like many small U.S. companies, they have a tendency to underestimate their negotiating power with suppliers. “I’m afraid of them telling me to get lost,” says Doug. One factor in their favor is that U.S.-based auto-parts manufacturers are losing work to overseas suppliers, and these suppliers should be eager to keep a growing client such as WindVest. The good news is that WindVest has the potential to stay ahead of any future copycats by having the labor-intensive parts made in Mexico, where labor costs are a fraction of those in the United States. However, they wonder about the best way to find suppliers who have operations in Mexico.

This family-owned business does experience conflict. Norm Dober turned over most of the daily operations to Doug. However, Doug, who has worked at the company for seven years, is hesitant to delegate responsibilities. Doug is a self-confessed micromanager who takes on more tasks than he can handle. With 10 employees, Doug still handles all complaints and returns from customers, a complex and time-consuming task. Norm’s wife, Marilyn, 63, keeps the books, assisted by her daughter, Tami, 38, who joined the company three years ago. She works with her mother in accounting, with a desire to take on more responsibility, such as handling receivables and collections. Marilyn worries that she will become irrelevant to the business if she delegates too much. The result: Family disputes often get heated.

The Dobers have share many common interests, including Harley-Davidson “hogs” equipped with WindVest windshields. Harley owners are a key component in the company’s marketing mix. The business began exclusively marketing windshields designed for Harley-Davidson motorcycles. As the four major foreign manufacturers entered the American “cruiser bike” market in the 1990s, WindVest followed suit. “If it were not for the fact that we adapted and supported the foreign cruising motorcycles, we would not still be in business,” says Doug. There are 348 authorized Harley-Davidson dealers located in 47 states (see accompanying table).

WindVest continues to look down the road to the future. With a constant focus on quality, the Dobers have restructured their management team in the areas of administration and manufacturing, are applying more effective internal communication techniques, and have learned the benefits of delegation. “As a result,” says Doug, “margins are strong, profits are up, and we make fewer mistakes.” With plans to enter the European market, the road to success for WindVest looks bright. “Go big or go home,” states Doug.

(Zimmerer 666-667)

Zimmerer. Essentials of Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management, 5th Edition. Pearson Learning Solutions. VitalBook file.