;When Kelly stopped in the following week, the shop owner had spoken to some of his customers in the interim about race fuel and concluded he would give it a try.
Within three weeks, the shop ordered its third skid of 5-gallon pails, with cases of VP’s popular 5-gallon plastic Motorsport Containers on top. With $5000+ in new revenue after the first 30 days, the dealer was off and running.
So why are many dealers reluctant to take on race fuel as a product line? “Like the shop owner we’ve been discussing, many question whether there’s sufficient demand for race fuel among their customer base,” said Kelly. “Naturally they don’t want to get stuck with inventory. Others assume it will get them crossways with the fire marshal. Still others think it will be difficult to handle a product classified as hazmat, or don’t know how to market it, or are simply reluctant to try something new.”
“The facts, however, disprove all these preconceptions,” Kelly continued. “Regarding demand, there are many thousands of racers at all levels all across the U.S. plus recreational motorcycle and ATV riders who crave better performance than pump gas can deliver. Many have figured out that race fuel can deliver bigger performance gains for the money than virtually any hard part. So the demand for race fuel is high, particularly for VP Racing Fuels, which has the strongest reputation among fuel companies and has been the most popular fuel among competitive riders for decades.”
When it comes to the hazmat issue, race fuel packaged in a sealed 5-gallon metal pail renders most of those concerns moot according to Kelly. The pails are a simple cash ‘n’ carry proposition — there’s no transferring fuel from one container to another, no vapors, no spills, no heavy drums to move around, and stacked in a pyramid or against the wall, the pails even make an attractive retail display. In VP’s experience, only a few of the many thousands of store owners across the U.S. have experienced any resistance at all from fire marshals. Generally fire marshals have been very accepting of VP’s 5-gallon pail packaging when accompanied by reasonable precautions taken by the store owner.
“Significantly, race fuel is consumable so it generates repeat purchases when customers need to replenish,” Kelly added. “Each of these visits to purchase race fuel also represents an opportunity for cross-sales of other products, for example our ‘VP Power Spout’ that affixes to 5-gallon pails for quick fills, VP’s Motorsport Containers, or any other product in the store.”
Some shop owners aren’t that knowledgeable about the technical aspects of fuel and fear being unable to properly consult with and service their customers. To support them, VP has a lot of printed materials and online content available, including a Fuel Selection Chart that helps customers determine the appropriate fuel depending on their application, series fuel rules, etc. VP also maintains a full-time professional technical support staff that’s easily accessible by phone or email at 210-241-1192 or [email protected].
Dealers interested in learning more about opportunities involving race fuel sales can contact their VP Regional Distribution Center, each of which is listed at VPRacingFuels.com/ContactUs.html.
They can also visit VP’s booth (#1516) at the upcoming AIMExpo in Orlando.
More information is available online at vpracingfuels.com.
