Auto Industry News Articles

General automotive and automotive aftermarket industry news and comment

2012 Online Sales of Auto Parts Growing

April 17, 2012

With the Catalyst 2012 conference in full swing this week in Las Vegas — ChannelAdvisor’s annual ecommerce gathering — we thought this would be a good time to examine online sales of auto parts, statistics and multichannel shopping. The growth in online sales of auto parts has been outpacing the rest of the industry for many years. In 2009 we saw the slowest growth rate at just under 10% over 2008. More recently, we’re seeing a robust growth rate again and we’re projecting online sales of auto parts to be just under $3.5 billion...

Americans Spend More Income on Auto Parts, Reversing Long-Term Trend

January 23, 2012

A bit of good news to add to our post last month that sales of auto parts for 2011 will show an increase over 2010: Our market research shows the amount of auto parts purchased as a percentage of personal income has reversed a downward trend of more than 10 years. In 2010, retail sales of auto parts represented about half a percent of personal income (0.0513% to be exact). Preliminary numbers for 2011 show the first increase in that percentage in more than 10 years, to levels not seen since 2008. We’re projecting...

New Automotive Market Research Reports Available for Purchase

December 19, 2011

New automotive aftermarket market research reports are now available for purchase online, direct from Hedges & Company’s new Market Research Store. These marketing research reports are based on consumer perceptions and opinion data, gathered after inviting over 100,000 automotive enthusiasts to participate in a market research survey, and include data never-before reported in the automotive aftermarket. These new research reports fall into two categories. BuyerZoom™ research reports are part-specific and analyze how enthusiast consumers shop for specific products including gaskets, camshafts, cylinder heads, carburetors, engine blocks, intake manifolds, valve springs, valves, rocker arms, pistons,...

2011 Auto Parts Sales Looking Good

December 13, 2011

2011 has been a strong year for the performance & accessory and replacement parts market. Auto parts sales are up and there are several positive year-end economic indicators. The auto parts industry is poised to come into 2012 with momentum. We are projecting retail sales of auto parts to have a 4.5% increase over 2010 (including replacement parts, performance parts & accessories, tires and wheels). The graph shown here shows two consecutive years of growth, a far improvement over 2009. (Readers of this blog know retail sales of auto parts went into negative territory...

Financial Benchmarking Program Allows Automotive Distributors, Manufacturers and Retailers to Measure Business Performance

September 22, 2011

The SEMA Financial Benchmarking program administered by Hedges & Company is accepting new participants. This market research program provides auto parts and accessory distributors, manufacturers and retailers exclusive, industry-specific sales forecasts and key performance indicators, with the ability to confidentially compare their company’s performance with other companies in the industry. The SEMA Financial Benchmarking program collects data from respondents through a simple questionnaire. Responses are aggregated and program participants receive a monthly report of metrics including year-to-date sales, sales forecasts, quick ratio, gross margin, inventory turns, customer return rate, sales per employee, operational overhead...

Hedges & Company: Two New Affiliations

August 26, 2011

Hedges & Company is not only growing, but we’re proud to be affiliated with two new trade associations as well. We recently joined the Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association (AAIA) and the Marketing Research Association (MRA), in addition to our long-standing affiliation with the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) where we’ve been members since 2004 (although, through various employers, we’ve been associated with SEMA going back to 1985 and of course SEMA is a valued client of ours). Our affiliation with both associations is representative of our expanding client list. AAIA is the trade assocation...

Hedges & Company Ranked #33 in 2011 Direct Marketing Agency Standings

July 24, 2011

Hedges & Company was named one of the top direct marketing agencies in the 2011 Agency Business Report released by Direct Marketing News. The report ranked Hedges & Company as the 33rd leading direct marketing agency in the US. The report ranks agencies across industries by reportable US revenue and can be viewed here. As a leader in database marketing, market research and strategy, Hedges & Company is grateful for the recognition. We are proud to be part of the automotive aftermarket industry and will continue to thoroughly serve our customers.

Slight Decline In Aftermarket Stock Index While S&P Gains

May 5, 2011

January 2011 saw the first decline for the Hedges Aftermarket Stock Index since July 2010. The 5% decline in stock value was halted in February and the Index rebounded 4% through April. In comparison, the S&P 500 increased 2% in January, 2% in February, and 3% in April. The S&P increase may be attributed to an uptick in the Consumer Confidence Index that is approaching a 9 month high. However, a combination of a strong new car market and increased oil prices may negatively affect the aftermarket in months to come. Automakers are expecting...

Groundbreaking SEMA Show Opinion Leaders Report Released; Measures Online Behavior

February 23, 2011

The Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) has released a new market research report prepared by Hedges & Company covering results of the SEMA Show Opinion Leaders program. This is important to aftermarket companies because the feedback from the Opinion Leaders market research program is a big opportunity to better understand the buying process used by automotive enthusiasts. As with the previous year, Opinion Leaders Program participants were granted access to the SEMA Show. These enthusiasts completed a detailed survey to share their opinions and buying habits, and shared impressions from the SEMA Show through...

Hedges & Company on RSS Ray: Email Marketing Best Practices

February 22, 2011

Hedges & Company was featured on RSS Ray’s radio show February 9, covering email marketing and email best practices. The landing page on RSS Ray’s site is here and a link to the podcast is available on that page. Topics covered on the RSS Ray show included: Managed email marketing vs. self-serve email marketing: Hedges & Company manages email marketing and customer segmentation for clients, there is no software to buy, no training, no additional employees to hire and no learning curve. Hedges & Company also manages customer databases and is able to provide...

How will 2011 be for the Automotive Aftermarket Industry?

January 3, 2011

Happy New Year for the automotive aftermarket industry! Following up on our popular blog post “What If You Invested $1,000 in Automotive Aftermarket Companies” the Hedges & Company Automotive Aftermarket Index finished 2010 with a 48% gain. In a dramatic comparison, the S&P 500 only increased 11% in 2010. Not only did the Hedges & Company Automotive Aftermarket Index outperform the S&P, but aside from a slight blip in June and July, the rise was steady and constant. Compared to the 2008 baseline (gray line in chart), 2010 was clearly a breakout year. The...

Auto Aftermarket is a Bright Spot In A Cloudy Economy

November 2, 2010

While economists report that the U.S. economy is “bumping along the bottom,” the Hedges & Company Aftermarket Stock Index continues its climb that started in March 2009. That’s right, March 2009, three months before the “Great Recession” was officially declared over. The stock index is comprised of over 20 publicly-traded automotive aftermarket SEMA-member/AAIA-member companies and has steadily grown over 72%, March 2009 to November 2010. The chart below compares the stock index with the S&P 500. The S&P 500 does appear to bumping along the bottom with a hint of a slow recovery. In...

When Is The Best Time To Send An Email Campaign?

October 11, 2010

Rising above the clutter and noise in the inbox is your goal. First impressions are critical in email marketing and although the subject line grabs attention, when does it grab attention? If your email is sent at the wrong time, your message may be buried by emails received after your email. Your prospect may start with the newest emails first, ignoring older emails further down the queue. Here are some examples of what we’ve observed in our email marketing, but all audiences are different and you need to design tests on your customer list...

Why Was This Recession Different? It Was the Double-Dip In Auto Parts Sales

September 28, 2010

When looking at the auto parts retail segment of the economy, the Great Recession not only lasted longer than previous recessions, but our market research shows auto parts retail sales also had a double-dip. For all the talk in the news media earlier this year whether the recent recession would fall into a double-dip recession, the automotive aftermarket already had one.* And ironically sales for the aftermarket went into negative territory June 2009, when the current recession is now officially defined as ended. Confused? Read on. From December 2007 (the start of the Great...

Are Manufacturers the Catalyst for the Specialty Equipment Industry?

September 13, 2010

Are specialty equipment manufacturers the light at the end of the tunnel? In a recent SEMA Financial Benchmarking research report, 70% of manufacturers reported an increase in year-to-date sales through June 2010. This optimism seems to continue through the fall months as 64% of the manufacturers expect sales to improve by an average of 17.5% through August, September, and October. However, retailers and distributors do not share that nearly unbridled enthusiasm. In the same market research report, 48% of retailers report an increase and 52% of distributors report increase in year-to-date sales for the...

What if You Invested $1,000 in Automotive Aftermarket Companies?

September 7, 2010

Also see our update on this topic, posted November 2, 2010 If you invested $1,000 in the S&P 500 and $1,000 in a representative group of publicly-traded automotive aftermarket companies on January 1, 2008, how would your investment look today? You may be surprised. Starting with a baseline of January 2008, Hedges & Company tracked over 20 publicly-traded automotive aftermarket companies and compared that to the S&P 500. As the chart reveals, the downturn in the economy devastated the S&P 500 but the stock value of aftermarket companies did very well starting in the...

Ideas For The Best Email Marketing Subject Lines

September 3, 2010

Email marketing best practices call for analysis of subject lines which have a huge influence on the open rate. An appropriate subject line also influences the click-through rate. Why is this so important? Let’s say in a year you send 100,000 emails. Improving your open rate from 15% to the industry average of just over 19% means over a year’s time your messages are seen by 4,000 more sets of eyeballs. Clearly the entire email message is important, but the first few words of the subject line, the overall approach and the call to...

What Should You Budget for Online Marketing?

September 3, 2010

Bryan Robb posted some interesting automotive marketing information over at Digital Throttle. He points out three compelling facts why he feels you should allocate at least 35% of your automotive marketing budget to online advertising. 1). The average consumer in the United States spends 12 hours per week on the Internet compared to three hours reading magazines. 2). 40% of consumer’s media time is spent using the Internet. 3). Consumers aren’t thinking in terms of “offline or online” any longer. Visiting an automotive enthusiast website is an extension of their hobby and lifestyle, like...

Hedges & Company Principals To Speak at SEMA Show

September 1, 2010

Tuesday, November 2 at 11:00 am, Julie Hedges, President of Hedges & Company, will speak about the SEMA Financial Benchmarking program in room N259 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. How does your business compare? The SEMA Financial Benchmarking Program was developed in order to provide SEMA members with financial benchmarks they could use to help measure and compare their business operations with others in the industry. Industry-specific key performance indicators are reported that can then be used by participants to improve or grow their businesses. The program provides business owners and managers information,...

A Checklist If You’re Thinking of Selling Online

August 30, 2010

A friend of ours, Rob Eberhart, posted a good checklist to follow if you’re considering selling automotive performance parts and accessories online. Rob’s an expert on selling auto parts online and works at Direct Communications, Inc. (DCi), and his blog is over on the CatalogRack eStore site, found here. His checklist is good advice for anyone starting out. His six most important things to check off: 1). First, decide how you’ll sell online: turnkey website, through shopping sites like eBay, or build your own site from scratch (very expensive!). 2). Don’t forget the data!...

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Auto Industry News Articles

2012 Online Sales of Auto Parts Growing

Americans Spend More Income on Auto Parts, Reversing Long-Term Trend

New Automotive Market Research Reports Available for Purchase

2011 Auto Parts Sales Looking Good

Financial Benchmarking Program Allows Automotive Distributors, Manufacturers and Retailers to Measure Business Performance

Hedges & Company: Two New Affiliations

Hedges & Company Ranked #33 in 2011 Direct Marketing Agency Standings

Slight Decline In Aftermarket Stock Index While S&P Gains

Hedges & Company on RSS Ray: Email Marketing Best Practices

How will 2011 be for the Automotive Aftermarket Industry?

Auto Aftermarket is a Bright Spot In A Cloudy Economy

Why Was This Recession Different? It Was the Double-Dip In Auto Parts Sales

Are Manufacturers the Catalyst for the Specialty Equipment Industry?

What if You Invested $1,000 in Automotive Aftermarket Companies?

What Should You Budget for Online Marketing?

Hedges & Company Principals To Speak at SEMA Show

A Checklist If You’re Thinking of Selling Online