asselstines closing

shadowman said:
Definitely a shame. I'll miss them for sure. I don't even know where the next closest Suzuki dealer is.
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Cameron Cycle in Peterborough is also a Suzuki dealer. I bought my Bandit from them used. Pretty typical dealership. Salesman there is a lifelong bike salesman and can play the game but still treated me fairly. I haven't had any dealings with their service department so I can't comment.
 
-D- said:
seriously, the 80's

higher insurance + less riders = less shops
watered down guys = less riders = less shops
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If it was you who dealt with the screw up you'd probably feel the same way. Botched was an appropriate word. The quad never did run right after they rebuilt the engine and the transmission had an incredibly loud whine in it as well that was there till the day we sold it. Needless to say we didn't get market value for it.

So yeah, I do hold a grudge. As mentioned they never would make right on the situation.

bobbyh said:
Spoiled sports might have Indian in mind now. Every one waiting to see how that deal shakes out. Just my opinion though from casual / informal conversation/ BS chatter.
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I deliver to Spoiled Sports all the time. I can say with certainty, having discussed that option with the owner, that they will not be an Indian dealer anytime soon - Polaris requires a crazy investment in facilities and such that wasn't justifiable apparently.
 
Polaris is probably trying to emulate the modern HD dealerships with the big, fancy "lifetyle" stores. A smaller place like Spoiled Sports would need to rebuild from the ground up and their location is lousy for window shopping or people just dropping in because they were driving by.

Longly's HD in PTBO did a re-locate and rebuild a few years ago and I can't imagine the cost but I'm sure they're passing it on to the customers.
 
Morrissey said:
Polaris is probably trying to emulate the modern HD dealerships with the big, fancy "lifetyle" stores. A smaller place like Spoiled Sports would need to rebuild from the ground up
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I think that's pretty much it. Think of the difference between, say Mackie Harley Davidson in Whitby now vs Ab's in Oshawa in the 80's/90's, for those who remember it. Harley would never give a dealership to a place like Ab's anymore, they want the huge fancy monolith dealerships that keeps the HD image. If you can't afford to build that, or simply don't want to, well...HD isn't interested in talking to you.
 
Asselstine's is hoping end of May for a closing. That's if they find someone to buy it out. If they don't find someone it will potentially stay open longer to get rid of inventory.
 
PrivatePilot said:
I think that's pretty much it. Think of the difference between, say Mackie Harley Davidson in Whitby now vs Ab's in Oshawa in the 80's/90's, for those who remember it. Harley would never give a dealership to a place like Ab's anymore, they want the huge fancy monolith dealerships that keeps the HD image. If you can't afford to build that, or simply don't want to, well...HD isn't interested in talking to you.
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I do remember AB's well! My Dad bought his Virago there when he got back into riding. Later he bought his '97 Electra Glide there. Then I bought my '84 Maxim 400 from them when I started riding and a year later I bought my '96 Virago 1100 there! The building was really oddly cobbled together. I remember that they dropped my Dad's Virago one time coming up the ramp from their basement service bay! He was NOT impressed.

The thing is, I miss those types of dealerships. Asselstines is one of those dealerships. An odd building with a couple of additions tacked on, a funky collection of parts, advertisements etc inside and a bunch of "thank-you" pictures on the walls from past racers that they sponsored. The owner is usually on hand, not dropping in once or twice a week and hiding in their office, the parts guy behind the counter is grumpy but knows how to get anything/everything you need. You can tell that everyone working there is passionate about bikes. Not like the big, soul-less dealerships like Mackey or Ready or SoNM. You walk into Mackey's and you are often greeted by a young girl who doesn't really know about bikes, but knows which jacket you'll look really cool in (spoiler alert* it's the expensive one!). The sales staff are sharks and usually have you sized up the minute you walk in the door and want to do as little as possible to make the sale. I guess I just don't get that personal touch at these new, mega dealerships. I don't feel like the care at all about the service or sales that I bring to them. I understand why things are moving in the direction they are moving, keeping those smaller, personal dealerships going is difficult even in the good years and is really a labour of love rather than a sound business venture. But I really like that personal touch. I like it when the service guy or the salesperson (sometimes they're the same person) know me by name, know my bike and remember the last time I was in their shop and what it was for. They go above and beyond to make sure I'm fully satisfied with everything. There are still a few places like that around. Clarington Cycle, which isn't too far from Asselstines is one of those places. I've had all of my service done their for over a decade now and will keep going there as long as their doors are open.
 
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Due to Greenbelt land use restrictions, running battles between developers, municipalities and the OMB, any sort of building lot in Ontario is basically gold. 99.9% chance it will become residential housing of some kind, maybe with a Tim Horton's tacked onto the side. That's where the sweet assessment money is generated.
 
The listing is down now, so at least the property is sold. New owner not listed in land registry yet.

Interesting to note that the Asselstines bought the property in 1986. 30 years in business at that location.
 
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Nothing official but I hear the person that bought the property is negotiating to keep the business and is negotiating with Suzuki and Yamaha. Hopefully should lb confirmed later this week or next.

..Tom
 
V-Tom said:
Nothing official but I hear the person that bought the property is negotiating to keep the business and is negotiating with Suzuki and Yamaha. Hopefully should lb confirmed later this week or next.

..Tom
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Let's hope this goes thru.
 
Was there today,booked the FJR for some service and tires,and they said the people who bought are talking to both Yamaha and Suzuki to keep the dealership going.
 
I just bought my first bike from them yesterday. They were super nice and it was an UNREAL price!!

I really don't want to drive all the way into toronto if i want any service done.
 
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