It is with great sadness that we must announce a change in direction for The Scooter Shop Launceston, and ultimate closure. It has been an eventful 3 ½ years for us, and whilst we still have the energy, drive, and passion for scooters, we no longer have the cash to sustain our business in its current form.

I guess I have a lot to say about all the things we have learnt along the way- the relationships we built, the expectations people have, the difficulties of small business especially in relation to things like red tape, but I’ll try to keep this blog entry within reason; although I am wearing my heart on my sleeve at the moment. When we approached this new concept 3 ½ years ago, we did so with an accurate and comprehensive plan. We also did so knowing that most businesses fail in the first five years, and we wanted to make sure we weren’t one of them. And we did so knowing we would be the first in Tassie- the groundbreakers, heading into unchartered waters.

We initially forecasted the entire Tassie market could easily sustain 2-3 scooters a week, and with almost no-one accommodating scooters on any level, we were confident we would see most of this business. And we were right…. mostly. What we couldn’t forecast at the start, was our margins being reduced significantly. In the good ol’ days, we could make quality margin that allowed us to sustain our business, and offer the level of service that we did. This included monthly rides, 24 hour phone support, event attendance and sponsorship (MRA awareness rides, Toy-Runs, BBQ’s, Ross Motorcycle Show, sale evenings etc) and free statewide delivery, amongst many other things. But within a matter of months, competition (primarily with Chinese brands) saw margins drop by 50% on those same scoots. We were certainly getting the sales we first forecasted, but with reduced margin we needed twice as many sales and this just wasn’t available in Tas, and wasn’t a scenario we could have predicted.

Nor could we foresee every corner store stocking Chinese shockers. I say this, because many of them are shockers, and without a dealer licensing structure in Tas, every man and his dog can stock and sell what they like. But the nature of the Tassie market meant that many people were easily sold on the idea that they are all (supposedly) a copy of a Honda- which must mean they’re good, and this has certainly been a common sales pitch. I’d be even more frustrated if I was a genuine Honda dealer…

And then, of course, there are the big bike dealers. These are the dealers that initially scoffed at Rosemary and myself when we were first looking for a scoot- so were the catalyst for us opening a shop of our own. One major Jap dealer actually laughed, turned his back and walked away when we asked about scooters, while another dealer (coincidentally the same brand franchise), referred to scooters as ‘poofter bikes’. Now, these same dealers see the value in scoots, and their showrooms reflect this. And when push comes to shove, they’ll undercut us to get a sale, because their businesses are buoyed by big bike sales and busy workshops. And unfortunately, with the average Tasmanian rider clocking up approximately only 3000km a year, our own workshop has not been enough to sustain us.

And then, of course, the GFC of the last 12 months has been devastating. Commercial TV keeps telling us that life is good in Australia (they have a vested interest), but the reality is very different. Not only for us, but for many dealers nationwide. A common misconception is that when things get tight or petrol goes up, people buy scoots. Only a few people do, but not many. If anything, money gets harder to find for everyone else, so sales go down. All of a sudden, that two to three scooters a week has become harder to achieve, and when we do achieve it, it is barely profitable.

There have been some great highlights in the sales race though- during one quarter last year, our VS125 was the single biggest selling road registered motorcycle in Tasmania! And we have worked to make the Bolwell/Select brand the biggest scooter brand in the state- not an easy task given the aggressive competition we’ve seen come out of the woodwork. But at the end of the day, these highlights have not been enough to keep us afloat. And just the other day (after finding a rapid solution to a mechanical issue that another bike dealer couldn’t resolve in 9 months!), I received a text message from the customer saying “thanks Cam, you have renewed my faith in quality service which I thought had been lost forever”. Sadly, in the brave new world we now live where everyone is driven by price, quality service and approachable personalities alone, are not enough to pay the bills.

But in saying all of that, only because of us, scooters are now an accepted thing in Tassie. Only because of us has one of the states’ Piaggio dealers quadrupled his floor stock simply because of the need to compete and 'cash-in'. Only because of us and the proliferation of scoots in Launceston, do we now have some (limited) free motorcycle parking in the CBD- something the MRA and TMC has been trying to achieve for many years. Only because of us, every new awareness/safety/parking/rider campaign now says ‘bikes AND scooters’. These are some wonderful achievements, and I strongly believe that we alone, have set in motion a chain of events that will see scooters continue to grow in Tasmania. Perhaps not ‘prosper’, but certainly grow. But all of this has been at massive financial cost to us- the numbers are quite sobering, and I’m not even leaving the business with a scooter of my own! But with a new fulltime job to step into, I am confident we can rectify our situation over a number of years.

But as unkind as this process has been to us, I feel like I could do anything now. Some people think they work hard, because they were paid for a few extra hours overtime this week- they don’t know what hard work is. Firemen and coal miners think they are courageous, but their risks are always controlled. Courage and hard work to me is risking your family and your home to try and make something. And when you’ve given every ounce of your being and you are unable to make what you first set out to, coming out the other side not only in one piece, but in a stronger relationship than when you started, is by far and away a bigger success. I reckon I could be a firefighter, with my eyes shut.

Our customer base, whilst not big enough to help keep our doors open, is a dedicated group of people that we have had great pleasure in serving and I wish to thank them for choosing to start their scootering experience with us. And some of these customers have grown to become close friends- friendships that will far outlast the negatives. And we have also built friendships within the industry; an industry that we will be a part of for a long time to come- just not in the form of a retail shopfront. Some of these relationships have come about through the forum too, which we will treasure and continue to be a part of, although I should create a different log in, rather than being ‘the scooter shop’.

And in many respects, we are still in business. We still have our business name, after-hours number and (at this stage) supplier accounts, so after sales service and warranty support, especially on scoots, will remain the same. Just our opening hours won’t be the same, as I’ll be working elsewhere- something we’ll all need to work around. Launceston is a small town, so I’m never far away. We’ll remain open on Saturdays for some time yet, and can also open by appointment.

We’ve already seen people come out, claiming they were going to open a scooter shop, even though they never did, or they were always big supporters of scooters or they were always talking about getting one, even though they’ve never owned one or even come close. I’ve yet to sell a scoot for the back of someone’s motorhome, despite entertaining a different enquiring grey nomad every couple days. Everyone likes to pretend they have a part to play in something positive, pretend they influenced another’s prosperity, but then claim they had no part to play in something negative- like the suffering of small businesses around the country, or even world economy falling over. We humans love that warm fuzzy feeling we get when we can make a connection with an event or idea that is positive or successful, but are quick to distance ourselves when it’s not. I just hope all those ‘gonnas’ out there do a little more to support small businesses, rather than pretending they do- this is especially important as we head towards Christmas.

So what positives have we come away with? Of course, there is the better business acumen and a greater understanding of small business issues. But of great importance to me- I come away with a sense of pride. We have achieved something here, in this fragile, small and sensitive market, that others are unable to achieve in larger, more populous or buoyant markets. Even as I write this, I hear of yet another quality dealer in Melbourne closing up, and I know others around the country are also hurting. I am fiercely proud of our plan, our shop and the brands we chose. Every time I see a scooter (even if it’s not one of ours); I know it was as a result of us. The only reason people buy Piaggio, Yamaha, Kymco and Honda scooters in Tasmania, is because we made scooters ok- no one else, just us. All of this was as a result of us and us alone.

As we slowly fade from memory, others will try and take credit for what we have achieved or started- whether it’s the parking, the proliferation of scooters, the awareness, the acceptance etc, but we will know it was all our doing. The big franchise dealers and dirt bike shops will relish the opportunity to suggest or imply that they’re doing the scooter thing better, hence they’re still in business- when in fact I know that none of them sold the numbers that we did, they aren’t selling any scooters now, and their businesses are only driven by (and focused on) their other products. We wanted to remain true to our passion- which is scooters, so we didn’t go down the path of stocking high margin, cheap Chinese junk like pushbike engines or dirt bikes. And we’re proud of the fact we have remained true to our roots, and are the foremost authority on scooters in the state- hell, even the other shops ring us for scooter advice! But a ‘scooters-only’ business is not sustainable at the moment, so I’m going to work elsewhere.

We also come away with some terrific memories- not the least of which have been some of the delivery adventures to far away places that I have blogged about in the past. We all loved it when our grandfather used to tell us funny stories about things we would never experience ourselves, and now we’ll have stories to tell our kids and grandkids- something that 9-5 drones won’t be able to share as they get older. And that’s something pretty special really.

We thank those customers that have supported us over the years, and we thank those that have supported us via the forum. We also thank the suppliers that have supported us when business has been far from booming. And remember; we are still here to support warranty and parts, we’re still alive, we’re still available- mostly just on Saturdays or by appointment. We’ll endeavour to re-instate the monthly rides we used to do, and we could even work towards creating a proper club for the north. But these ideas or events are more of a ‘wait and see’ at this stage.

But above all I am fiercely proud of my other half. Small businesses and money (read: lack of it) destroys people and relationships, and she could have left me a long time ago. Financial difficulties can be so corrosive and destructive, yet not only are we still together, we’ve had a baby (officially judged ‘cutest in the world’ by an internal staff survey), we’ve had a wedding (bride judged ‘most glamorous’ by another internal staff survey) and our relationship is stronger than ever. Rosemary worked with me to build this, and is now supporting me as we wind it down. Her support through the stresses and losses has been unwavering, when she didn’t have to hang around- and no amount of money can buy that sort of commitment. We look forward to taking our long overdue honeymoon in the coming years, at a time that we can reflect on what has been. My biggest thanks must go to my amazing wife- Rosemary.

Cheers

Cam

Well, maybe some do, but not Tasmanian elephants. I stumbled upon this intriguing fact recently when we took an opportunity to escape to Tasmania’s beautiful east coast for a weekend getaway. We actually had some accommodation and restaurant vouchers to use before they expired next month- the joys of small business means the opportunities to get away are really quite limited. This is contrary to what a hairdresser told me once in her truly ditsy voice as she massaged my scalp “oh, you own the scooter shop… it must be great being the boss and having all the time off you want”. Needless to say, I don’t frequent that salon any more; instead, I go where the intelligence of conversation is commensurate with the premium price being paid.

So anyway, to get to the east coast’s Bay of Fires from Launceston, you can take one of three routes; Weldborough Pass, St Mary’s Pass or Elephant Pass, and you’ll note a common denominator here- the word “Pass”, which immediately conjurers up imagery of epic adventures, snow capped peaks and even Tibetan porters and their donkeys. While this is not quite the case, very narrow, twisting roads (frequented by log trucks), blind corners hiding landslides and rock falls and obscure signs which are almost a government acknowledgement that their roads aren’t up to standard, are the norm in this area. Without a doubt some of the best riding or driving roads in the country, if a little ‘challenging’. For us the journey was made all the more enjoyable by borrowing a new Golf GTI- an awesome car that just revels in this sort of environment- small enough to dart around like a go-kart, powerful enough to take advantage of the very limited passing opportunities- an absolute pleasure to drive.

For those that may not have heard of the Bay of Fires, it’s a sleepy little seaside spot, 5 minutes north of St Helens, and was recently voted the best place in the entire world to visit (by Lonely Planet, not another Scooter Shop internal poll). The scenery here is to die for; crystal blue waters, starkly clean white sand and secluded, twisting coastal roads that are punctuated every now and then by a discrete driveway entrance to the small acreages hidden within. And this is where we found our accommodation- the Bay of Fires ‘Retreat’. Ten minutes walk back from the beach, a beautiful stone and corrugated iron house that was once an art gallery, showcasing slates, timbers and stonework from the region and offering a majestic view of the bush around through a 18 foot high window in the sunken lounge area. But possibly my most favoured feature of the house was the shower which situated in a windowed corner, offered a 180 degree view of the bush around the house and with a shower head the size of a dust bin lid, I found the little laminated sign- “remember we are on tank water” a little ironic. I could spend hours, if not days, in this shower…

But that’s just the accommodation. The main draw cards for the area are (without a doubt) the pristine and awe inspiring environment, but also the award winning restaurant/café “Angasi” that has the most stunning position overlooking the beach. There’s not that many restaurants in Australia where you can come away 100% satisfied. Plenty that offer 99% satisfaction or less, but few offer that complete 100%. And where else in Australia can you take a magical and invigorating 2 hour drive out of a major center and end up in a place like this? Where you can walk on the beach in the morning, and be the only ones there. A place where you’d be lucky to see just a couple cars during the whole day. Where you can watch the wallabies chewing the grass while you have a shower. Where you can have a meal worthy of all the Michelin hats in the world, but the chef cares more for your personal satisfaction and the surf forecast for the morning. I’d argue nowhere else in Australia. Joining the Sunday morning peak hour traffic on the way to Katoomba or Torquay only to fight for a table at the overpriced café just isn’t the same experience. What we were enjoying was a true ‘getaway’.

But alas, we couldn’t stay there forever and it was time to get out of the shower and move on. Having taken the challenging Weldborough Pass on the way over, we thought we would mix it up a bit by taking the Elephant Pass on the way back. This decision revolved in part around the fact there is a very remote, secluded, yet renowned pancake parlour on the Elephant Pass. Built on a steep rainforest block on the low side of the road, it’s the sort of surprise that comes upon you unannounced, just around yet another blind corner. It’s been there as long as I can remember, and looking at it now, the décor hasn’t changed as long as I can remember either. One of those anomalies that you wonder how they stay in business- but they do.

Despite not seeing any cars on the way up there, or on the way out, there were already a few customers in the dining room when we arrived, and a few more wandered in during our brief stay. And ‘brief’ is a good description, which brings me to the point of my blog. I have a small business, and have a great deal of respect for those that also have a small business. It’s a hard slog. Harder than any normal ‘paid’ job. Sure, plenty of people work hard in their workplace, but you haven’t really experienced true hard work, until you’ve had a small business. Everyone is after a pound of flesh- a business name renewal fee (for what??), a yearly fee to ASIC because we operate as a company, another fee to ASIC because we got married, we even have to buy special pink garbage bags from the council chambers in order to have our waste collected. This is on top of wages (everyone else gets theirs before the business owner gets his), rent, power, phone, fax, internet, mobile phone (emergency contact for my customers), ever increasing Yellow Pages advertising, other advertising, loan repayments, overdraft interest and bank fees, thousands in insurance a year, alarm monitoring fees, business cards, letterheads etc etc etc. But one of the ‘costs’ that I hate the most is the EFTPOS fees. We pay the bank thousands of dollars a year for the privilege of borrowing some money and having an overdraft- literally thousands a year. But it’s when a customer comes in and says “that’s a nice jacket, I wish to buy it”, and they invariably pull out a little rectangle of plastic that my heart sinks. The customer doesn’t often realise that he or she is not actually giving me the amount printed on the receipt. This is because the bank acts like a stand over man or a mobster, skimming a bit off every plastic purchase. So sure, your receipt shows $400, but that’s not what went into my business bank account, it’s not what you actually gave me for that purchase. So on top of all the thousands in interest and account fees we pay them already, we pay them thousands again from what we earn. This is my money, yet we (all small businesses) are effectively penalised for selling something.So it’s with this intimate working knowledge and hatred of the little keypad machine, that I respect those businesses in city environments that don’t offer EFTPOS, or businesses that apply a fee for EFTPOS payment. A city business without the little money muncher on the counter is only ever a minutes’ walk away from an ATM or branch where the customer can access their funds.
 
But as it would turn out, there were no ATM’s on the remote, twisting, treacherous Elephant Pass, and the only branches I could find were attached to trees. I mean, as much as I hate the EFTPOS machine and what it takes from us (and other small businesses), who in their right mind would have a remotely positioned restaurant without an EFTPOS facility on offer? It’s this sort of small business that I would respect for adding a processing fee- even a huge 10% would be a fair thing ($4 on a $40 meal is a fair thing). They could push customers to pay cash, and penalise those that aren’t carrying any with them. And as there are no ATM’s at the Bay of Fires, we had nearly spent our allocation for the weekend at the other small businesses that drive the small coastal economy. So the famous Mt Elephant Pancakes is doing themselves out of business because unfortunately, we could only share the cheapest pancake on the menu and have a cup of tea and coffee. And how many customers may have overlooked the fine print on the bottom of the menu card, leading to major embarrassment at the register after their meal, and how many other customers may have set off to the nearest town with the promise of returning with payment, only to be never seen again? In a society that is starting to accept card payment fees as standard, and in a world where no one carries the folding stuff anymore, there really is no excuse for not offering the EFTPOS service (even with a fee attached), more especially in a remote environment where there is no other option for accessing cash. A somewhat disappointing finish brought about by an elephant without EFTPOS, to what was an absolutely fantastic and unique weekend away. I'd encourage everyone to take the time to visit Tasmania's Bay of Fires, just be sure to pack some cash...

This probably sounds like a bit of self promotion…. And in reality, I guess it probably is. But that’s not the intention; I just want to share some of our experiences. You see, we have always offered free scooter delivery statewide. No hidden or surreptitious fees/charges- just good ol’ fashioned free delivery.

Usually this is no big deal to us, as Launceston is centrally located, and if the customer is in the greater Launceston area, I usually just ride the scoot to their house after we close the shop in the evening. If the delivery is a little further afield, like on the North-West coast, we make a bit of a ‘thing’ of it. For example, the Burnie and Devonport cinemas are far better than Launceston’s, so it’s a great opportunity to catch a flick (even better now that we have a bub, and Devonport has a glass booth in one of their cinemas, so we can take the baby in without disturbing anyone else).

For example- when we sold an HD200 to a lady in Burnie, I took the opportunity to ride it up, taking in the picturesque and twisty Frankford Highway, instead of loading it onto a trailer and hauling it with our poor little Getz like we normally do. Even though we have a scooter shop, we don’t get to ride all of the scoots as far as we like, as often as we like, so I relished the chance to take the mighty HD for a good, 120k+ run, and the scenery was fantastic- especially the massive Wedge Tail Eagle that swooped across the road in front of me, before deploying her air brakes and pulling up on top of a dead tree in the middle of a roadside paddock.

But every now and then, we come upon a customer that requires delivery to a part of the state we didn’t even know existed! Or, if we did know of its existence, we didn’t really think anyone actually lived there…
Up until the weekend, the best example of this was a customer at Rosebery on the state’s rugged and awfully isolated West Coast, who purchased a Mio100 from us. We threw the visiting mother-in-law in the back, hitched up the trailer to the little Getz, and off we went on the Saturday afternoon, after we closed the shop. In hindsight, going in a straight line from Launceston to Rosebery, OVER Cradle Mountain, through a monsoonal downpour complete with lightning- probably wasn’t the best choice. The poor little auto was working overtime, and we used an entire tank of juice in the 4 hours it took us to get there. And it turns out the Rosebery servo closes early on Saturdays… Luckily for us, our customer phoned ahead to another town- Tullah, and they stayed open just long enough for us to fill up our thirsty little tow vehicle. A quick chicken schnitzel at the lakeside pub, and we were on the road again, finally getting home at about midnight, with our eyes hanging out of our heads…

Another classic example was a trip down to O’Possum Bay in the state’s far south. O’Possum Bay is one of those spots that is absolutely stunning on a good day, but total misery on a bad day. Fortunately for us, it was a good day; the views across the water to Hobart and Mt Wellington were fantastic, and the beachside homes sitting just meters from the water lapping on the white sand were to die for. Delivering a scoot to a location like this, and to a warm, inviting, appreciative and excited customer, makes the 500km round trip worthwhile. Even though it is pretty tiring doing this on a Saturday afternoon after manning the shop…

But anyway, our most recent delivery run was easily one of the best adventures we’ve had so far. This time, a gentleman purchased an SYM VS125 as a surprise birthday present, and we offered to deliver just as we do for everyone else. Trouble is, I didn’t realise where this gentleman lived when I hastily offered our free delivery services. Google “White Beach” in Tassie, and you’ll soon see it’s nearly as far south as you can get, down past Port Arthur- about a 600km round trip for us, after closing up on the Saturday arvo. This time we had sprung for a rental ute rather than flogging the bejeezuz out of the Getz. BUT, the rental was an AU Falcon with 400,000km on the clock (which had me worrying, unnecessarily, about reliability) and being an XR6 model was sporting some big wheels and low profile tyres.

Now, not having been to White Beach before, we put faith in the ability of Google maps to choose us the best route- which suggested we turn off the main highway at Oatlands and take the backroads through places like Parratah, Whiteford, Buckland, Nugent, and Copping, before rejoining the Arthur Highway about 70kms from our destination. The map I printed out certainly looked like a logical route, but as it turns out, something that appears logical is not always the best. The deeper we headed into the wilderness, the more worried I became of our high mileage sport-tyre-shod rented delivery vehicle. What were meant to be bitumen roads, soon turned to gravel, and we were in vastly unfamiliar territory. Still, can’t be any worse than our adventure to Rosebery I told myself, so forward we ploughed.

Recent heavy rains in Tassie have left many roads (including the main ‘Midland Highway’) potholed and shabby, and these unsealed sections we found ourselves on were no exception. Interestingly, however, we later found out these ‘second hand’ looking backroads were actually in better condition overall than some parts of the more frequently travelled main highways, but this was cold comfort to us when we we’re in the middle of nowhere in someone else’s vehicle. The only time I’ve driven this slowly is in school zones, or that time we had the Getz fully laden heading up Cradle Mountain.

Still, we made it through the unsealed sections in one piece, without being shot, and even managed to fire off a couple quick snaps along the way. Just don’t turn the engine off when you stop… And full kudos to our half-million km workhorse. Four point one liters of Aussie persistence didn’t miss a beat. But despite our little “that-wasn’t-too-bad-after-all” foray into the depths of Tassie’s South East, I can’t tell you the sense of relief I felt when we came upon the Arthur Highway and started to see some familiar sights. Dunalley, the Tessellated pavement, Eaglehawk Neck (a very narrow strip of land that had dogs chained across it to prevent the Port Arthur inmates escaping) then Port Arthur. Phewww…

This customer appreciates his privacy, so I won’t detail where in White Beach he is exactly, but let’s just say his place is no beachside shack out whoop-whoop. Unfortunately for us, it was dark when we arrived, so we didn’t get to have a peak at the views he enjoys every day off his deck, but if the setting sun on the way down was anything to go by, then I’m one jealous man. Please excuse my constipated appearance in the sunset photo; a dozen camera flashes will do that to you, especially when you’re driving…

Funny thing is, when our customer asked us which way we came down, and we explained, he looked at us fairly confused, then suggested we simply take the main highway back like he does- a decision I had already made about 120km ago!

So, to keep our ‘scooter delivery adventure’ theme happening, we stopped at the Dunalley pub for a great chicken schnitzel, before hitting the main highway home. And despite the rain damaged road surface in places, and the extra km’s, the trip home was actually quicker than the trip down, meaning we were home by about 10:45pm. A big day, no doubt about it, and the ute hire and $90 in petrol makes a significant dent in the very skinny scooter margin, but c’mon… who else did something like that on their weekend..?

Some of the rain we've had...

Ready to go

Some amazing countryside I'd never seen before

Although a little isolated

Fantastic sunset ruined by a constipated bearded dude...

Chicken Schnitzel 8/10...

Mechanic Required

 

We require a suitably qualified scooter mechanic to work casual hours.

Must be fully qualified, reliable, well presented, motivated, polite, enthusiastic, extremely thorough, trustworthy, be able to string a sentence together, smile and have own tools. Being literate is an advantage, and must hold a current motorcycle licence.

If this description does not fit you, then don't apply.

If you think scooters are "****ter machines", then don't apply.

If you think everyone should "get a real bike", then don't apply.

If you're a heavy handed gorilla, then don't apply.

We don't stock Chinese rubbish, and never will, and need a qualified mechanic to properly service our scooters as per the manufacturer's schedules.

We only offer the best quality product available, and service to match, and as such, we are unrivalled in Tasmania.

We are the first, and still the only dedicated scooter shop in all of Tassie.

We offer a fantastic work environment, and really look after our employees like family.

But in return, we need someone who is reliable, polite and happy to be here. We don't take too kindly to people who call in sick on the Monday after a grand final, or on the Friday before a long weekend. However, we pay above award rates, we bend over backwards for our staff, and even offer additional opportunies to the right person- like attending mainland trade shows and heavily discounted motorcycle gear.

Although we welcome all applications, this position would ideally suit a semi-retired mechanic, stay at home dad, mature aged/appropriately qualified uni student or similar.

We are an equal opportunity employer, and encourage everyone to apply, provided they meet the criteria laid out above. We would also strongly encourage appropriately qualified girls and other people to apply who might not fit the stereotype of a motorcycle mechanic

Please apply in writing (or you can type it, but one way or another, it needs to be on paper), including résumé to:

The Scooter Shop Launceston

141 St John St

Launceston, 7250

 
Note: If you're on the dole, don't come in asking me to sign your diary just because you spotted this advertisement, you can submit an application like everyone else.

 
As you can probably tell by the frankness of this notice, we are not interested in entertaining time wasters, so please don't come in to discuss the position. If you're genuinely interested, apply in writing ‘old-school' style, and we'll take it from there...

Cheers, Cam

1st July sees The Scooter Shop launceston voted "Best Scooter Shop In The World"

The recent internal staff survey at The Scooter Shop Launceston (TSSL) produced an overwhelming result, voting The Scooter Shop Launceston as the best scooter shop in the world. The comprehensive survey carefully examined all facets of The Scooter Shop Launceston's business, with a very strong emphasis on quality of service and product.
All survey respondents agreed that while The Scooter Shop Launceston isn’t the largest scooter shop in the world (in fact, might actually be in the running for the upcoming “smallest scooter shop in the world” award), the quality of product on offer, at competitive prices, as well as the superior customer service, easily cemented TSSL’s position as the number one scooter shop in the world.
One respondent noted that the free state-wide delivery on all scooters was a customer service highlight, while another survey participant commented that TSSL’s website was particularly well presented and up-to-date, even calling it “a rarity in the motorcycle trade”. The Scooter Shop Launceston was also commended for displaying ride away prices from the day they opened 3 years ago- something the rest of the automotive trade has only recently been obliged to do.
Owner/manager Cameron Saunders was flattered at winning the accolade, commenting “it’s easier to be nice to our customers and offer good service than it is to offer bad service, in the same way it’s easier to smile than it is to frown… I can’t understand why some businesses really struggle with this formula…” Cameron also noted that scooters, protective gear and accessories were not the only reason people came to the shop- “we make some of the best coffee around. No chai’s, no latte art, just bloody good coffee from fresh Australian roasted beans”.
When asked what this award meant to The Scooter Shop Launceston, Cameron replied “we’re not perfect, in fact we’re a long way from it, but it’s great to be recognised by our internal peers for the hard work we’ve put in. Now we have another year ahead of us, and another opportunity to set the bar higher…”

The classic old Suzuki is back together at long last, and boy have I missed it.

A bit of history: The opportunity came along to get this 1982 GSX400F a couple years ago, it was dead cheap (the guy was desperate to sell), and I figured it would perfectly serve the purpose of mucking about on country roads. And it did… for about the first 12 months.

But, as anyone who has decided to fix anything up like a house or car could relate to, you start tinkering… and tinkering….and tinkering…and the next thing you know, you’re much further in than you expected. This tinkering saw the Suzuki off the road for about 9 months!! In hindsight, we could have ‘blitzed’ it and knocked it over in just a few weeks, and that way I wouldn’t have had withdrawal symptoms, but this was ‘tinkering’ not ‘blitzing’.

The intention initially was to just refresh her a bit, tidy her up and bring back a little bit of the zest that was missing after 27 years (most of which was probably on the redline). First we whipped the head off for a squizz and found that years of running without an air filter had taken its toll on the valve seats. Despite the rarity of these bikes (there’s a number of the old, unreliable, 2 cylinder versions around, but the renowned fours are very rare) they are actually bulletproof and long lasting. With an acid bath, new valve stem seals and a re-seat of the 16 little valves, the head was as good as new. Next were the barrels and pistons. Easy, I thought…oops, how wrong was I? After much searching, I was able to locate the last set of genuine Suzuki pistons in the country (thanks to Suziparts), something Suzuki Australia didn’t even have!! Given the age and capacity of the bike, we couldn’t get aftermarket pistons either, but that didn’t matter because we had some on the way from SA.

Given that these engines are apparently the donk of choice for nitrous charged drag racers, it was decided the bottom end didn’t warrant a rebuild, so in with the new pistons and rings, on with the re-bored barrels and on with the refreshed head.
The next really big task was the exhaust. Trying to repair the rusty headers on a budget was harder than I first thought. I think the bottom half of the header pipes now consists of MIG wire more so than original pipe, but it works, and looks fine, and that was all I was after. And when I start it on a cold morning, it no longer looks like Puffing Billy with steam coming out everywhere.

Nice… is it ready to go now? No… The tacho cable needed replacement… and then the fork seals needed doing… and a couple new mufflers… oh, and then I decided to fit heated grips, with a relay, so they couldn’t be left on… then I decided to tidy some wiring while I was there… then I found the previous owner’s home made voltage regulator brackets were broken, so I had to sort that… oh, one of the carby diaphragms had a hole in it… and new front brake pads… and some new rubber mounts for the tail piece… and a lick of paint on the headlight and rear indicator brackets… and a new “plus 50” headlight bulb. And finally… a lick of paint, with 2 pack clear over the top and some custom decals to complete the image.

Has it brought back the zest? Sure has. The throttle feels like it’s actually, physically connected to the carbies now, and out on the road it no longer feels like a travel hairdryer when the right hand is wound on. Something like 40hp in a 200kg chassis is not setting any records, but it’s now a pleasure to ride and the open road is no longer a place that need be feared or avoided. I still have some work to do with the fine steel wool and the Autosol, but it’s rideable, usable, and leaves me with a smile on my face every time…

If anyone else has one of these classics, I'd love to hear from you. And, if anyone is interested, I have a PDF version of the workshop manual on the computer. Haynes/Clymer manuals are not available for this model...

White is the new black, or so it would seem. If you said to your friend 18 months ago "how about a white scooter?" you could guarantee your friend would recoil in a "oh my god, he's turning into a Camry-driving-fluffy-seatbelt-comforter" kind of way, and you'd never be invited to your friend's social gatherings again for fear of turning up in a beige cardigan. But not any more…

Blacks, greys and silvers have been done-to-death, and some of the really adventurous importers would mix it up a bit by adding a blue or red to the range (and maybe even yellow) but whites were few and far between. Reds, blues, silvers and blacks are safe, conservative colours, whereas I think yellow looks too much like Lego. I personally, don’t like to be seen as riding a ‘toy’. But think about it- some of the best looking cars in the world are white- BMW M3, Lotus Elise, Merc S63 AMG , Lambo Gallardo even down to the diminutive little Fiat 500. But we’re scooter riders so we can’t afford AMG’s and M3’s (maybe only the little Fiat at a stretch…).

Over the years, there have been scoots with white on them or variations in the white theme, but we believe the scoot that really changed the perception of white was the VS125. I'm pretty confident that I wasn't the only dealer that thought "hmmm... a white scooter.... that's a gamble..." but boy were we proven wrong. The VS125 is our most popular scoot, and white is by far and away the most popular colour in the range. I think this is reflected nationwide too. And why not? The white looks modern, crisp and clean. I think the white also looks dearer than it actually is- maybe because if you squint when you look at a white scoot, it almost, nearly, maybe, might just look like a Lamborghini Gallardo.

Now, there’s a new whitey on the block- the new Daelim S1. Quite possibly one of the best 125’s on the market, full stop. And in white, well that seals the deal for me. The Daelim’s unique slab fronted, angular appearance is fairly unique in itself, and now with white on the menu, it’s the closest most of us will get to actually owning something that resembles the Gallardo. Just squint a little more… The only question now, is do I wear the white overalls and Simpson helmet or the Stormtrooper outfit…?

But apparently it is Christmas time again. Though, as I look out the front door at this monsoonal downpour right now, you would swear it was winter. Surely someone else could do with this rain more than us…

Anyway, this is my first blog entry, and seems like only a month or two ago that Al' asked if I would like a blog on the new Scooter Community. How time flies, and especially for us here at The Scooter Shop Launceston. Easily the biggest thing in our lives this year has nothing to do with scooters- not even remotely related to scooters. On the 7th October, our little Abigail (or ‘Abby’ as I have very quickly adopted) came into our lives, and what a monumental change it has been- a change for the better of course.

It’s funny because when you don’t have kids, you hear people prattling on about what a life changing experience it is, and how it changes your perspective on life etc. It’s usually our own parents preaching this dribble and we all sit there thinking “yeah, yeah, yeah, whatever mum…” But that’s until you have one of your own. Now, somehow, the switch in my head has been tripped, and I too have become just like my mother!! Crikey, I never thought I would say that!!! Those that have kids will know what I mean, and those that don’t have kids will never understand until they have one of their own. Only then can they join this very exclusive club.

So anyway, I’m now going to prattle on about what a life changing experience it is. Those without kids are tuning out right about now and going back to the forums to debate buying cheap helmets on EBay, while those that have kids will be sitting there with a warm smile on their face, remembering what a magical time parenthood is. And we wouldn’t change it for anything in the world would we? I was one of those guys that thought I had to paint the whole house, re-landscape, buy a new car as well as hit the gym and shape up. Well, I achieved some of this. Didn’t get to the gym, and as Rosemary wasn’t drinking anything for a long while (and still isn’t) my weight actually went up, the garden actually ended up dishevelled, and the paint only ended up half way up the architraves, but when I see my little princess, it doesn’t matter a bit. And that’s the best thing in the world…

Click on the attachment below for a sneak peak into our new world.