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Bearing in mind I'm 61 this year, and bought my first 4x4 when I was 17, and still run one, it's fair to say I've been around the off road scene quite a while. Used to repair land Rovers, had a stall selling at shows for years, trialled for what seemed for ever, had more 4x4's and off road toys than you could shake a stick at.
So you see, I've been around. Been to play days, been to shows, been everywhere to do with off road.
worked around trucks, earth movers, plant, drilling rigs. Worked in quarries, rubbish tips, landfill sites, demolition sites, parks and recreational area's.
AND NEVER ONCE HAVE I SEEN ANY FORM OF ADVERTISING FOR MUDD-OX OR MAX OVER HERE !!! More to the point, I've never seen one in real life
Until I googled it I didn't even know Mudd-ox had a dealer here, and when I google Max it comes up with a site that specialises in events by the looks of it (no address either) Looks like the max dealer's just in it to get cheap toys for his events ??
If the UK is a market of any interest I suggest the dealers get a kick up the backside (or got rid of)
Honestly, the Mudd-ox and Max dealers want tying up and beating with a large stick. If i was Mr Mudd-ox I'd want to know WTF are they playing at, here's someone that's been around the off road / working vehicle scene for 40 odd years and he didn't even know they existed !!!
Perhaps it's just the American attitude to business though Tom, they may be a little more chilled than the UK ?
I would have thought with all the shows we have around the country they would have had a "try it now" at a lot of them ???
I am not sure you should be blaming this situation on the fact that the machine is made in the USA. It seems like your (British) dealer is the one who has not really advertised the machines. As you say, he is probably only interested in obtaining relatively inexpensive machines to support his real business. I would agree that it would be good for the MuddOx/Max brands to get them out in front of the public in general. We have them here and the folks in the know are familiar with the brand, but the general public does not know anything about them. In that regard, Argo does a much better job. However, I think Matt enjoys playing in AATVs as much as he enjoys building them. That is a good thing because it gets him out amongst the customers who give him feedback to help improve the designs. The fact that he does not spend a lot of time traveling to set up international outlets probably has to do with having his hands full with the business he already has.
I think, if you really feel strongly about this, you should look into becoming a dealer. I spoke with the local dealer and he said it is a very simple process. I suspect international dealerships are probably a little tougher, but he said all he had to do was visit the factory and buy 2 MuddOxes. I guess he probably had to fill out some paperwork.
Your idea of having a couple of machines at local shows for folks to try is a good one. Why don't you do it?
Obviously with more marketing and advertising these machines (Mudd-Ox/Max) would sell alot more. These machines appeal to a very, very, very small public sector. Alot of Max dealers have closed up shop around the country and I'm not sure msafi65 (2dMax) in Fairbanks is a dealer anymore as I have not spoken with him recently? I have a feeling though that we might start to see a few more dealers again soon. It seems Mudd-Ox/Max is making leaps and bounds with upgrades and improvements and soon maybe a little or lot more marketing for the public. It seems everyone is fixated on the UTV's/side by sides up here in Alaska but most of the terrain up here dictates the use of a good amphibious ATV. Almost every side by side I went by this hunting season was buried in the mud or having a tough time going although a couple 6x6 Rangers I saw were doing pretty good. Rodp I think the UK is being targeted by Mudd-Ox as there is MuddoxInternational and Hi5ATV Max dealer and hopefully more to follow. I think when the economy improves so will the AATV market.
I'm not blaming American machinery, it's the UK dealers who need a poke with a sharp stick. There's money about over here again, and getting more by the month. The dealers should be advertising (it's relatively cheap if you use your head and offer mags / newspapers a free ride). They should also be visiting the game fairs, country shows, farmers shows etc with demo units.
I'm not too interested myself in investing my pension fund in a new venture to be honest, I'm 61 and already have a business with my son. We do OK so no need to venture further than our little niche market.
I have however spent years as a works manager or proprietor (had 4 businesses, sold 3 and joined buyer as manager / consultant) and the inefficiency of these dealers makes my blood boil.
Suppose I should just chill out and stay out of it really, it's nothing to do with me is it. The Max dealer gets cheap stock for his core business and the Mudd-ox dealer trundles along selling other stuff, so be it.
Well as you know Rodp I'd happily be the dealer for both and I have family in the 4x4 world and other areas
Yet I've sent emails to both muddxo and max and heard nothin from them at all about becoming a dealer
You have enquired then Tom ? Good for you mate. You could become a dealer, sleep all day and still outshine the existing ones
Do you see anything of the dealers down your way ? Never see sight nor sound of them around here. All the shows we have, being in the middle of the country, and nothing, zilch, a big fat zero
I've spent a lot of my life in quarries, farms and landfill sites etc, never seen a mudd-ox or Max anywhere. You see Argo's about on farms, shoots etc and that's it.
Maybe the market over here just isn't big enough to bother with, thought you would have at least had a reply one way or another.
Nope nothin at all and all I know is they have a facebook that only shows his events/business and there in reading and I've contacted him about becoming a dealer for him and got nothin back at all as well
I agree as the overland show was on this weekend been and I had family there speaking for Landrover and he said he saw a few argo and nothing else
Maybe it's not Rod but still it could be if people were able to work at it and given a chance like me
I think one of the reasons you don't see a lot of dealers is because of the proportion of risk you have to assume when you become one, especially compared to the minimal amount of risk the factory assumes. For example, if you want to become a MAX dealer, you have to buy two machines from the factory just to start, not to mention some spare parts to go along with them. That is a big investment that you have no idea whether you will ever see the money for them from a customer, let alone make a profit. I know MAX dealers that don't even stock a single vehicle anymore because they bought some to get into the business and then had a hard time selling them so they really are dealers in name only, if you want to order one without test driving it they will be glad to take your money but other than that they are pretty useless. Now look at the risk that the factory takes, or should I say doesn't take. You order the vehicles as a dealer and pay the factory for them to become a dealer and the only downside for the factory is that they give you a discount on the sale price, virtually no risk on their part. If you don't sell a single vehicle as a dealer the factory doesn't lose anything, they already have the sales of the vehicles to you and if you don't sell a certain number of vehicles they will allow someone else to become a dealer in your area and everything you invested in becoming a dealer is out the window. I think this is why you don't see more people becoming dealers. I think if the manufacturers want to get more exposure and recruit more dealers and get their product out there for the world to see they need to make the process a lot less risky for the dealers. I would propose that the manufacturers lend someone a vehicle and let that person try to establish a business around it, that way if there is no interest in that part of the world for an AATV then the vehicle would go back to the factory and parsed out to someone else that would like to give it a try. The potential dealer would also be an employee of the manufacturer so that they don't have to go through all the trouble of establishing a business with all the paperwork, fees and taxes that entails. If a machine were sold the dealer trainee and the manufacturer could split the profit that is made from the sale. This way the risk is shared evenly between the potential dealer and the manufacturer. If the process were like this I think a lot more people would give it a try and you would see a lot more dealers around the world because people wouldn't be risking as much to get started. I know I would try it if it were like that. The dealer trainee would still have to make the effort to market the machines and deal with test rides, showing the machines at popular venues, etc., but the financial risk would be considerably less. And if the manufacturer saw the benefit in this arrangement it could continue on indefinetly this way or be converted to a regular dealer/manufacturer relationship, depending on how much risk each side wanted to take.
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