Posts Tagged ‘ financial benchmarking ’

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 in June, 2009, the same...

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 and more. Now in its...

How A Price Increase/Decrease Affects Gross Profit vs. Unit Sales

October 15, 2010

(Note: if you need to calculate gross margin scroll down.) If you want to increase gross margin with a price increase, you should know how gross profit is calculated and assuming a drop in unit sales, how many unit sales are needed to maintain the same gross profit. On the other hand if you’re considering a sale you should know how many additional unit sales are needed to maintain the same gross profit. You need to know how total unit sales can drop (for a price increase) or need to increase (for a price decrease) for gross profit dollars...

Rule of Three Marketing: Market Share and Market Dynamics

October 15, 2010

Why do some companies thrive and dominate their market, only to later become an afterthought in history? Most industries and market segments, including the specialty aftermarket industry, will have market share dominated by three competing companies. This article will take that a step further and show how companies can plan a market share strategy that will help ensure profits in the coming years. Rule of Three reviewed To revisit an October 2003 article we wrote for SEMA News, market share is the result of a complex combination of market dynamics, strategy, products and consumer demand, among other things. In...

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 first half of 2010. Their...

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, such as: how year-to-date sales...

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