U.S. Car Dealers See Protection Products Gain Momentum as Consumers Hold Vehicles for Longer

U.S. dealers continued to generate profits from accessories sales in 2011; average dealership generated over $260,000 for the year, with 45% average gross profit margin, says trend report.
Izmocars (http://www.izmocars.com) released its annual AOA Auto Accessories Trend Report in conjunction with the 2012 National Automobile Dealer Association (NADA) Convention & Expo.
In aggregate, they sold $39 million in accessories in 2011.
The average dealership analyzed generated over $260,000 in annual sales of accessories to new car buyers in 2011–in addition to pre-installed parts and options, with an average of over $475 in accessories sales per vehicle sold, an average gross profit margin of 45%, and an after-commission net profit margin of 32.3%.
The report analyzes accessories sales data from dealerships across the country and highlights the accessories that were most popular with consumers in 2011; the categories that had the most traction across different U.S. regions, and the vehicle models that attracted the highest volume of accessories sales.
“In spite of economic pressures – and the residual impacts of the tsunami – dealerships continued to generate solid profits from accessories sales in 2011,” said Izmocars vice president Sidney Haider. “With improved new car sales on the horizon, dealerships who have cracked the code of selling accessories are in a unique sweet spot for 2012. And, as the economy has driven consumers to hold onto their vehicles for record lengths of time, dealers and OEMs should note a key trend that surfaces in this report: more and more car buyers are opting for protection products, reflecting an emerging new car buyer mindset focused on a longer vehicle life.”
Report Trend Highlights:
–spurred by economic conditions, lengthening car ownership cycles and a year filled with extreme weather, protection and convenience accessories were the overall winners for 2011, with paint protection ranking number one in dealer profits, knocking Upholstery from its top spot for the previous year.
–OE products also thrived throughout the year, gaining the 2nd (factory exterior), 3rd (body side moldings), and 8th (factory interior) spots in volume of parts sold for the year. ‘Guard Thy Car’ was a definite theme in the breakdown of these categories, with consumers purchasing plenty of mudguards, splash guards, door edge guards, bumper protectors, nose masks and door sill protectors.
–By region, long-life vehicle trends and the weather made for a common theme, with protection dominating products sold. Window tnts, predictably, remained strong in the Southern U.S. although the category did not make the top five in other less sunny regions. Floor mats remained the most popular category across regions in 2011, grabbing first place in the Northeast and Western regions and placing in the top five in all other regions.
The 2012 AOA Auto Accessories Trend Report is based on complete year sales data from a diverse sampling of 150 dealerships who utilized the AddOnAuto sales system from Izmocars.