may2021 - 4

EDITOR'S NOTE

Published by Endeavor Business Media, LLC

Progressing our
profitability
Positive industry trends have shops
looking forward to an uptick in 2021.

T
BY KRISTA McNAMARA
EDITORIAL DIRECTOR

KMcNamara
@EndeavorB2B.com

he past 12-plus months
have highlighted the
aftermarket as an essential industry and one very ready
to transcend the " new normal "
to simply return to the way
things were.
There are some challenges in
getting the pendulum to swing
back in the right direction. The
continued lapse in the daily commute is not great news for the
aftermarket. Miles driven saw a
more than 13 percent decrease last
year, as many companies rolled out
long-term flexible working situations that allowed the daily grind
to happen from home. In many
industries, this culture change is
taking root going forward, with
more than 20 percent of companies surveyed in a recent Upwork
poll stating that a remote working
structure in some form will continue at least through 2025.
Despite these challenges, miles
driven are slowly ticking upward,
closer to pre-pandemic levels.
And as multiple associations
have reported in recent months,
several trends are impacting the
demand for vehicle service and
repair. Personal vehicle ownership
is on the rise, with The New York
Times dubbing automobiles the
" ultimate P.P.E. " and instrumental
in fostering a " society on wheels. "
There's been a large shift
toward purchasing trucks and
crossovers, which is good for
aftermarket dollar growth, as
maintenance and repair is typically
more expensive for these types
of vehicles.

4 Professional Distributor I May 2021 I VehicleServicePros.com

Used car sales grew in 2020,
and the average age of vehicles on
the road - currently 11.9 years -
is expected to climb even higher
in 2021.
People are less comfortable
using mass transit and ride-hailing services, with Uber and Lyft
both seeing year-over-years sales
declines in 2020 of more than 70
percent. Urban populations, which
typically rely on less vehicle ownership and more public transportation, are continuing their mass
exodus into the suburbs, where
having a vehicle is often a very
important part of daily life.
Months of quarantining, curfew, and stay-at-home orders have
exhausted even the most skilled
homebody. Americans are venturing out - taking road trips, renting RVs for family vacations, and
putting the pedal to the metal to
reach any destination other than
the four walls of their home.
Not all motoring trends and
behavior will go back to what they
once were, but our readers tell us
that profit margins are returning
to - and beyond - levels seen in
early 2020. As reported in last
month's Aftermarket Profile,
more than half of the PTEN shop
owners surveyed anticipate higher
overall revenue in 2021 when compared to last year. Hopefully, this
is translating into more tool and
equipment investments with our
Professional Distributor readers,
as well. So maybe this is, in fact,
the start of a " new " normal - one
that brings more stable success
for all.

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Printed in the U.S. Volume 29, Number 4; May 2021
EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT - TRANSPORTATION

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VP/GROUP PUBLISHER, ENDEAVOR VEHICLE REPAIR GROUP

Kylie Hirko 630-253-4034 Kylie@VehicleServicePros.com
EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Krista McNamara

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EDITOR Amanda Silliker

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may2021

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