New Partnership Driving Growth at Cycle Salvage

Cycle Salvage has seen many positive changes since Ryan Matthews came on as partner and now offers a full line of Arctic Cat vehicles

When one of the partners at the Cycle Salvage business was looking to retire two years ago, Ryan Matthews was ready. Having working as a mechanic in the business for 20 years, he knew the business and had a few ideas of his own about how to grow it. Apparently they worked, as in the two years since Matthews signed on as a partner with the remaining owner Gerry Young, the business has doubled in size, and now has 14 full time staff. They have expanded the showroom of their shop located in Springville on Highway 7 and the firm is now the largest supplier of new and used parts and accessories for motorcycles, snowmobiles and ATVs in the Kawarthas. It has also become a fully licensed dealer for new Arctic Cat ATVs, UTVs and snowmobiles.

Behind the expanded store on the two ½ acre property lies a full salvage yard loaded with used parts. There is also an area reserved for test drives, so customers can try out a vehicle before they take the plunge. For a more dramatic test drive experience, Cycle Salvage offers a virtual tour experience, as they are one of only two locations in the province equipped with Arctic Cat 360 Virtual Reality, providing an extremely realistic ride in mountain or desert conditions on one of two new models. Be prepared: the trip is not for the faint-hearted!

The business offers a complete line of services performed by licensed and Arctic Cat factory-trained technicians, and also provides MTO safety certifications. They also provide a full range of parts and accessories that can be shipped worldwide for customers wanted to do their own service work.

It’s hard for the owners to choose which part of the business is doing the best, as it seems to be firing on all cylinders. They have sold all but 6 of the 40 used motorcycles they started with this spring, and despite the lack of snow last year, they are gearing up for a big snowmobile season, with 95 new vehicles already in stock and more in their warehouse in Quebec.

Matthews notices changes in the industry as the customer base is broadening as more women are adopting the lifestyle of power sports and trail riding. He attributes this partly to improved safety of the vehicles, which are much larger and offer more features, but they have also become much faster. The business offers ATV’s at all price points, with the least expensive models starting at around $3500 and the super, 4 seat models displayed out front approaching $21,000, the equivalent of the price of a small car.

In addition to driving this business to a new level of success, Matthews is also dedicated to contributing to the community. Every Thursday during the spring and summer months, Cycle Salvage hosts a free Bike Night event, with themes, prizes and 50/50 draws where funds raised are donated to Big Brothers and Big Sisters. A free BBQ dinner is provided to all riders, and the last event this year happens on September 22^nd.

For more information, visit www.cyclesalvage.bike or drop into the store located at 6860 Hwy 7 and see the vast array of sporting machinery parts and accessories available at this thriving local business. KG