Spring And Summer Of 2020: A New Era For Powersports In Prince Edward Island
SUMMERSIDE, PEI – JULY 24, 2020 – At Centennial Auto-Sport And Tire, we're in the business of getting Islanders into the great outdoors. It's the goal of Centennial Auto-Sport And Tire to reduce screen time and increase the time that Islanders can spend actually seeing Prince Edward Island. Not just parts of PEI, but all of it.
The spring and summer of 2020 produced seismic shifts in the way business is completed. Between temporary business shutdowns, limited staffing, curbside pickup, and a dramatic increase in online activity, Centennial Auto-Sport and Tire constantly evolved the means by which every transaction could be completed since the middle of March. Through the pandemic-related difficulties of late March and early April, consumer tendencies began to more accurately reflect Centennial Auto-Sport And Tire's mission, albeit not inside the showrooms. Online traffic at CentennialAST.com surged to record levels in April, smashed those records in May, and then instantly broke May's new traffic record in June.
Compared with June 2019, website traffic at CentennialAST.com was 70 percent stronger in June 2020.
The result – as Centennial looks back over the second-quarter of 2020 and into the early part of Q3 – is unbelievable demand for powersports in Prince Edward Island. That includes all youth-oriented machines plus motorcycles, dirt bikes, and all-terrain vehicles. Prince Edward Island's rapidly growing network of ATV trails – open to dirt bikes, side-by-sides, and ATVs via a simple $60 annual trail pass – is becoming a massive economic driver for the province.
From the western end of the Island with the Tignish Sportsman Riders, to the thriving Evangeline ATV Club; East Prince Quad Trax's network of trails exiting from Kensington, Kinkora, Borden, and all points in between; Red Isle's vast trail system in the central part of PEI; a rejuvenated Eastern Kings ATV Club; and the new Cornwall Trail Blazers, the support of an entirely volunteer-powered PEI ATV Federation is powering the industry forward.
Centennial Auto-Sport And Tire is thrilled to play a part with three key brands that have long been leaders in the industry: Honda, Suzuki, and Yamaha. CAST is working diligently with all three companies to maintain a steady supply of ATVs during a period in which dealer throughput has reached record levels. Never before has there been such a collective Island movement away from screens and onto trails.
The challenge of maintaining inventory levels is quite literally keeping CAST busier than ever, as evidenced by empty warehouses that supply our Charlottetown and Summerside showrooms. This season has proven just how deeply Islanders care about supporting local. And as a beneficiary of that support, Centennial Auto-Sport And Tire urges all riders to buy a trail pass, volunteer with your local club, stay safe, and stay on the trail.
[Images: Honda, Yamaha]