By Duck Paterson
Being from the ‘other side of the tracks’ used to have dismal connotations, especially in some country and western tunes.
But for the folks at Ladysmith Motorsports, it means nothing but success.
This coming May 1 will see the business celebrate its 10-year anniversary in Ladysmith.
According to Sebastien Asselin, general manager, “We’re a family business. We always have been and always will be. We pride ourselves on being a welcoming place for all kinds of customers and we’re very thankful for the 10 years we’ve had.”
The business is located across the highway from Bob Stuart Park and employs 11 people. “We are effectively an independent store with a sister store, Courtenay Motorsports, up north,” said Asselin.
To celebrate the company’s milestone Ladysmith Motorsports will hold a special day-long event on Saturday, May 4.
“We plan to have all sorts of promotions taking place, but right now we’re holding some of that information close to the vest,” Asselin said. “What we can say at the present, is that we’re going to have Trios Mac & Cheese here as well as some games for kids from Inflatafun as well as some fun stuff from the folks from LaFF.
“The mid-island area is the ideal spot for us. The area has some of the best off road areas and great lakes and on top of that being right on the salt chuck, it’s an amazing playground.
“We can offer almost any type of machine to fit whatever platform folks want to play on.
“We carry dirt bikes, street motorcycles, power equipment and ATVs from Yamaha Motors Canada. Our showroom also features three-wheel vehicles, ATVs, side-by-sides, personal watercraft and pontoon boats from Canadian company, BRP.”
It’s anticipated that BRP will soon be introducing a line of electric motorcycles with Ladysmith Motorsports hoping to bring those products to town the minute they’re launched.
The company not only sells a huge assortment of outdoor recreational machines, but has a fully facilitated service department to look after all the products.
“Our service advisors need to have the most up-to-date knowledge of the machines as well as an excellent demeanor for helping customers that are experiencing unpleasant situations,” Asselin said.
“Our technicians complete intense training and must complete comprehensive exams annually to keep their accreditation with our OEMS.”
On the water activities are becoming more and more family activities and Asselin explained about new products to the area being pontoon boats. The Sea-Doo Switch pontoon boat has become extremely popular.
“We’re finding that people love our machines because they handle as if they were a personal watercraft, but you can take the whole family,” Asselin said.
“Plus, all of the deck furniture is modular and can be configured and re-configured at your desire.”
A variety of personal watercraft have become a large part of the recreational business.
“We sell a large number of water vehicles each year,” Asselin continued.
“They continue to be the driving force for our business.
“The thing with personal watercraft is that it connects all of us to a pure and fun experience.
“We see videos of celebrities riding Sea-Doos all the time. We have local families coming in and purchasing the very same machine for fun in the waters surrounding us.”
Getting parts for a multitude of products seems to be a problem a lot of businesses are facing.
When asked about how that affects Ladysmith Motorsports, Asselin replied, “We have a fairly large parts department and carry a large amount of stock, so we feel confident we can handle almost anything.
“The supply chain issues have mostly sorted themselves out…we’re dealing with some changes in pricing on a few items, we’re able to get most orders in a few days or less.”
In the past couple of years, Ladysmith Motorsports has seen an expansion.
“Our renovation was done explicitly to ensure that we can stay in Ladysmith for years and years to come. It allowed us to bring on the Sea-Doo Switch product line as well as the ability to continue to expand our staff as our traffic continues to surge,” Asselin said.
“We’re thankful that our showroom can match the beauty of our machines and our customers get an exciting environment to shop in.”
Asselin is looking forward to hosting several special guests at their anniversary party. “We’ll have representatives from BRP as well as the Vancouver Island Spyder Ryders and the Cowichan Valley ATV Club on hand to answer questions and provide information. Lots of exciting new products and we will be offering great deals on family fun.”