It's 'snow' time to rest on their laurels, as Gander businesses adapt to mild winter

If atypical winters become the norm in Newfoundland and Labrador, businesses in Gander say they can handle it.

Diversification, though, is key. Art Woolfrey has spent nearly 40 years in the business of selling recreational vehicles and accessories. He's seen trends come and go: winters with lots of snow, and those — like this one — with very little.

"Winters have changed several times since I've been in this business,," said Woolfrey, the general manager of C&P Motorsports. "I started at this business in Gander in '87. In, '96, '97, '98 we had pretty much the same snow conditions as what we're having these days."

C&P Motorsports doesn't just sell snowmobiles. They also carry different lines of ATVs, side-by-sides, motorcycles and boats and outboard motors. That's in addition to the clothing and accessories that accompany each.

The amount of snow, and length of winter, factor into sales, he says, but what makes it more difficult is that orders need to come months and months ahead of time.

"Our snowmobile orders have to be done a year in advance," Woolfrey said. "It would be really nice to have a crystal ball and see what next winter is going to be. We've got dealers on this island now that are sitting on 60, 70, 80 snowmobiles … these are all interest-bearing units that cost money year round. To adapt to that, we diversify."

Recreational time is important to most people in this province, says Woolfrey, whether that's on the snow, the dirt or the street.

Pricing of the recreational vehicles has climbed over the years, as has the price of trail stickers and fuel. This may deter some from the investment, but not all, says Woolfrey.

"People are still going to have their recreation equipment," he said. "They're just going to find something else to purchase. They're going to find their side-by-side. So they're going to find their ATV. You know, a lot of people, I find, are getting back into motorcycles."

Saying goodbye to snowmobiles

Across town, Outdoors 1983 Ltd., has been selling the Yamaha brand since their doors opened more than 40 years ago.

Like other dealerships, snowmobile sales were brisk for decades. Rick Gillingham is the manager, and has been working at the dealership for 32 years.

Yamaha slowly started changing the focus of what it produced over that period, he says.

"At that time, we didn't realize what they were up to, but it seems like the Japanese [owners] knew more about what was going to happen in the world than what we did, I guess," he said. "Our inventory has come down, so we just declined, in a way, to nothing. And last year, Yamaha decided to get out of the snowmobile business altogether."

Local staff were skeptical of the move at first, said Gillingham, but over time, as winters became shorter, it made more sense to them. And he says the pivot to ATVs, side-by-sides and boating, seems to be going well.

"As we speak, we're installing a couple of new outboards on a boat today," he said. "They're getting ready for the spring. ATVs this week will be a little slow, but a few nice days now the temperature has been, you'll see a lot more people get your sides-by-sides and their quads out."

Back when he started working at the dealerships more than 30 years ago, Gillingham said it was normal for ATVs to be parked for half the year as snowmobiles ruled the trails. Now, he's finding people are buying tracks to put on their ATVs and side-by-sides, making for year-round fun.

"People are realizing that they can get on an ATV ... and use it for eight months a year," he said. "Rather than going out [and spending] thousands of dollars on a snowmobile, which may get used one week a year, we're finding a lot of people start getting into ATV tracks so they can use it for the 12 months of the year."

In addition to the trail machines, Gillingham says demand is climbing for boats and personal watercraft as well.

"A lot of people will probably hate me for saying this, but I don't think you're going to see a comeback  [in snowmobiling] … It's been too long."

Tractor sales up

When it comes to tools and toys for all season, NL Kubota says the mild winter means some adjustment, but not a major shift in business focus.

The company — with locations in St. John's and Gander — moves a lot of snowblowers during the winter months. 

Owner Darcy Tucker says the company moves a lot of snowblowers in the fall and winter months. The difference between that and recreational winter machines, he says, is that many people who buy snowblowers say they hope they don't have to use it.

"If we have a lot of snow, we get a little busier," he said. "We may not ride quite as high as we would sometimes expect to. The nice part of that … in terms of winters with less snowfall, like this year, we also know we also don't fall too far. We're not as cyclical sometimes as the seasons get here."

Besides snowblowers, weather plays a role in the sale of other machines with winter application. He sees companies and individuals using tractors and excavators during the winter months, and usually is busy in the early part of winter with sales and servicing of them.

"What we sell, yes, is sold with winter in mind," he said. "Whether it's a primary purpose of a machine or just an added purpose. But certainly most of the machines we sell, versatility comes to mind — they're 12 month-a-year machines."

When he started in the business 25 years ago, he said there were 39 tractors, loaders, excavators and mower decks sold across the province. Now, his dealership alone moves in the vicinity of 400 units.

"The public's perception of what they can do with the tractor now is far greater than it was five years ago, 10 years ago," he said. "There doesn't have to be as much emphasis on it being just a winter tractor. There's a lot of emphasis placed on 'What can I do with this machine?'"

This winter, with less snow and milder temperatures, Tucker says the shift to spring and summer inventory has started earlier, but has meant little other change. And Tucker says he expects there will be some semblance of winter for years to come.

"I do not honestly see that much of a downward shift in terms of the winter products we sell, the focus on, the winter products we sell," he said. "I don't see a significant downward shift anytime in the near future, to be completely truthful.

"Even with winters, maybe getting a little warmer or a little shorter, we're still going to get snow."

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