Rise in light truck sales puts accessories in high gear

Discount Store News, May 19, 1997 by Richard Halverson

Fueled by the boom in light truck sales, truck accessories sales more than doubled over the past decade, while passenger car accessories rose only 10%. Including pickup trucks, sports utility vehicles, mini-vans and full-size vans, Americans are expected to buy 6.5 million light trucks this year out of a total of 15 million vehicles sold this year in the United States.

And either to increase comfort or utility, buyers of light trucks--who increasingly are women--spend about $1,700 more on accessories to customize what often are trucks used for basic transportation rather than work.

Truck accessories run the gamut from pickup bed accessories, such as bed liners mats and caps, to grill guards, tool boxes, trailer hitches, running boards and steps, and specialty lighting such as fog and bar-mounted off-road lights.

Given the bulky nature of many products, such as bed caps and tonneau covers, specialty shops grab a major chunk of the most common accessories, such as bed liners.

But auto parts chains find they can also compete for sales of bulky items through special-order programs. Discount stores also offer a sampling of truck accessories, but surrender the special-order business to parts chains.

Retail sales of all truck aftermarket replacement parts and accessories doubled from $13.3 billion in '85 to $26.2 billion in '95, The Lang Report said in a December '96 issue (the report does not break out accessories from replacement parts). Accounting for 40% of aftermarket accessories sales in '95, light truck accessories will expand to a 45% share by the year 2001, the report noted.

Light trucks accounted for 44% of U.S. vehicle sales in '96, up from 22% in '83.

Of all vehicles on the road, excluding medium and heavy-duty trucks, light trucks represent close to one-third of all light vehicles in operation.

By the year 2000, total registrations of light trucks will grow 12% to 51.7 million from 46.2 million in '97, the Automotive Parts and Accessories Association noted in a '96 Light Truck Market Study.

Americans bought 1.8 million sports utility vehicles (SUVs) in '95, the report noted, up from 927,8000 in '90. SUV sales now surpass the sales of mini-vans.

In a survey of new light truck purchasers, the APAA found that for two-thirds of the buyers the truck was the primary household vehicle.

The most use was for driving to and from work, 60.9%, following by errands and shopping, 18.4%. Off-the-road use accounted for only 2.6% of the total, while vacations accounted for 1.7%; hauling and moving, 0.9%; and hunting, camping and fishing, 0.6%.

The most common aftermarket DIY accessory purchases were floor mats, tool boxes, bed mats car phones and running boards, the study found.

Almost one-half, or 47.8%, of DIY purchasers bought their truck accessories at an auto parts chain, while 17.4% bought them at new car dealers. Discount stores, with their limited offerings, trailed at 14.2%.

Tonneau hard covers for pickup trucks are one of the fastest-growing truck accessories, Frost & Sullivan concluded in a '96 marketing study, The North American Truck Accessory Aftermarket.

Hard tonneau covers, a cross between a pickup truck cap (or camper shell) and a soft tonneau cover for a pickup bed, grew at a rate of 23.4% in '96, said Danielle McDonald, author of the Frost & Sullivan report. As a specialty shop product-since it must be matched to fit each size truck, along with its color--the manufacturer's price averaged $325.

In a sampling of seven of the most popular accessories, including tonneau covers and bed liners, McDonald estimated that sales for those accessories totaled $1.45 billion in '96 at manufacturer prices. The study surveyed mostly special shops, since this type of store is the largest outlet for specialty items, such as bed caps and camper shells.

Soft tonneau covers, which snap in place, grew 5.9% in '96, McDonald said, but will become more popular now that more chains such as Pep Boys and AutoZone are carrying them. The average manufacturer price was $125 in '96, down from $127 in '95, she said.

When parts chains start carrying an accessory, the price usually goes down because retailers can order directly from the manufacturer McDonald pointed out.

Special-order programs for truck accessories are essential, McDonald said, and larger retailers are starting to get into special orders.

A hot new trend that started in California is to special order accessories, such as fiberglass running boards, bug shields, tonneau covers and fender flares in colors that match the truck. The monochromatic approach, where less is more, allows a truck buyer to accessorize his or her vehicle without taking away from the basic look.

Paccar Automotive, Renton, Wash., expects an "aggressive increase" this year in truck accessories, thanks in part to an innovative merchandising system: a poster rack of the most popular pickup trucks equipped with various accessories.

Last August, Paccar, parent of Grand Auto and Al's Auto Supply, set up a 4-ft. swinging poster rack in each accessories department, said Mike Stefano, buyer. The six poster photos depict the most popular pickup trucks equipped with different accessories so customers could see what they look like installed.