Dealers interested in keeping up with the aftermarket will find that, while parts supply remains a problem, sales continue to boom.
In working with the Automotive Aftermarket Retailers of Ontario (AARO), DesRosiers Automotive Consultants (DAC) gathered industry feedback on the Canadian automotive aftermarket for the first six months of 2023. They also have an outlook for the remainder of the year.
“The aftermarket has been a pillar of strength and consistency for the automotive space in recent years,” said Andrew King, Managing Partner at DAC, in a statement. “While pricing remains a concern, parts supply issues have shown some signs of improvement and industry optimism has increased in turn.”
Most aftermarket retailers said sales were noticeably up in the first half of 2023; 40.7% cited a sales increase of between 1-10%, and another 35.6% noted increases of more than 10% compared to the first half of 2022. “When asked about their sales performance compared to pre-pandemic, the overwhelming majority of respondents noted that their sales are above those levels,” said DAC.
As for 2023 sales expectations compared to the previous year, most respondents (53,5%) anticipate growth of between 1-10%, and 29.3% expect more than 10% growth. Early in the year, only 12.0% of respondents expected sales to increase more than 10%.
DAC said the “well-established” issue around parts supply continued into the first half of 2023. “From jobbers, 67.3% of aftermarket retailers cited sourcing issues. This figure for new vehicle dealers reached 84.6%,” they said. But while the numbers are troubling, they are also an improvement from the situation in January.
