Southend Motorcycle Service
 Making
ends meet through diversity
In 2004 Jim Croning was a lead tech at Seattle’s University
Honda/Yamaha shop.
Five years later he was running his own shop and seeing good
sales increases despite a down economy.
Southend Motorcycle Service was opened by Croning and his then
partner, Darrin Howard. The shop dabbled in restorations and
modifications of Japanese bikes for the first several years.
In 2008 Howard exited and Croning put his creative nose to the
grindstone to figure out how to make it through the new recession.
Continuing on the one sided path he was on was going to cut it.
Prior to working at U Honda/Yamaha, Croning had worked as a tech
inside Kasea’s SODO district warehouse, fixing issues revolving
around the company’s Chinese and Taiwanese scooter and buggy
operations. During that time he’d learned his way around working
with the Asian markets for parts sourcing.
As the years went on the Asian scooter market exploded in the US
with literally hundreds of brands arriving on shore under names like
Twist & Go, Tank and Diamo to name a few. The trouble was franchises
would come and go and often buyers we’re stuck figuring out who
carried their brand this week. Enter Croning, who, without a
franchise of his own, was one of the first shops to offer
‘independent Asian unit service.’
But Croning loves the Japanese bikes which today are still his
primary bread and butter. He and his staff are masters of sourcing
hard-to-find parts. Over the years the space that SEMCS occupies has
doubled and several additional techs have been added to keep up with
the customer demand.
After U Honda/Yamaha shuttered its doors in late 2009, Croning
recruited one of the shops out-of-work parts specialists, John Bundy
(aka Froggly Pondscum). Bundy has been instrumental in bringing in
more business including the CB160 crowd that we’ve mentioned in
several articles in this publication over the years.
Another new venture for Croning is offering first and some second
level services for other brands including Harley-Davidson, Ducati
and Triumph. With a lower overhead and good track record, Croning
and his staff are able to compete with some of the larger OEM shops
in the area that run at a higher hourly labor rate.
And yes, Croning will take in a project bike that others may
refuse, as long as the customer understands the time and money
involved in the project – and as leaves a healthy deposit for
Croning to work with when they drop the bike off.
For paintwork, fabrication and frame straightening, Croning has
several sources nearby he can tap.
Another sector of the business at SEMCS is used bike sales.
Croning is making plans to expand that as well in the coming year.
2009 is shaping up to be a banner year for SEMCS and Croning
doesn’t foresee any layoffs within his shop as the winter months
approach, already sitting on a good load of project bikes to keep
each staff member busy on cold days.
TM/Fall 09 |
