Skid Steer Attachment Sales Slowed by Long Winter

Skid Steer attachment sales, usually higher in spring and summer time, were slowed down this year by the longer-than-usual winter. That is because a longer winter means delays on spring and summer building projects, which means landscapers and construction contractors do not need to replace their skid steer attachments as soon as usual.

The net result for skid steer attachment dealers is their equipment projections are also pushed out a few months, while customers look at projected sales and profits for the year. A six-month landscaping season that is turned into a five or even four-and-a-half month season may mean lower profits, which means making some tough decisions about purchasing a new skid steer attachment. However, a weather shortened landscaping or building season does not have to mean lower profits.

Some contractors look at their projected profits, and wonder whether they will be able to afford their new skid steer attachments, and delay making a purchase. This may be a mistake, because contractors — especially those who have survived the economic downturn — will find the same amount of work, but they will have a shorter time to do it in. This will mean longer hours, overtime, and even the hiring of temporary employees. The bigger problem for a winter-shortened season is not whether there is enough work, but whether there is enough time to get all the work done.

But contractors who hold off on purchasing their new equipment may find that they will have to turn down work because they do not have the equipment, or they have to wait through down time because the old equipment broke down right in the middle of a job. That is why contractors need to anticipate their needs, even with a winter-shortened building season, and speak to other contractors they can trust. They need to find out what long winters have meant for their industry in the past, whether shorter seasons do mean lower profits, or longer hours.

A longer winter does mean increased sales of winter skid steer attachments, especially if it is a winter with a lot of snow. Some skid steer attachment dealers anticipated the heavy snowfall and built or purchased as many snow plows as they could. Our company managed to sell a higher-than-normal number of snow plows this year, because we believed there would be a heavier snowfall. Other companies ran out of winter equipment early on, and many landscape contractors lost valuable time while waiting for their skid steer attachments on back order.

It does not help when the economy is in its own winter either. As the economy suffers, sales of new homes drop, which in turn means fewer contractors are building houses. Fewer contractors means skid steer attachments are lower as well. While the late spring did see a rise in sales, an admittedly-sluggish start to the recovery is also seeing an increase in sales.

However, contractors should be able to recover from the long winter, because of the shortened work time. Despite the cold weather, people will still need to have homes built, still need to have landscaping, still need fences and decks built. Skid steer attachments like backhoes, brush rakes, and post hold diggers will still be necessary, so even if one breaks during the season, they will still need a replacement.

A weather-shortened season does not necessarily mean fewer projects or lower sales for contractors. It also does not mean they should automatically assume they will not need to purchase any new skid steer attachments. They should work to line up extra jobs and contracts to make up for the shortened season, make sure they have the equipment they need, take extra care to keep it in working shape, and try to anticipate future skid steer attachment purchases to avoid any downtime from broken equipment or double-bookings.