Dealer Direct added another manufacturer partner to its network last month, the off-road utility vehicle manufacturer American LandMaster, Powersports Finance has learned.
The partnership was spurred by an “out of the blue” direct contact, said Lindsey DeLong, national sales manager at American LandMaster.
“Jon [Vestal] called me out of blue and told me he had some programs, and he wanted to share them to see if they work for us,” she told Powersports Finance. “We’ve only ever used Sheffield Financial in past, but we are always willing to look at new programs. They are hungry for new business, and we wanted to provide more than one option.”
The partnership officially kicked off Sept. 1, she said, and it includes a promotion. American LandMaster is offering 0% financing for 36 months, 1.99% financing for 48 months, and 4.9% financing for 60 months through Dealer Direct, she said. The incentive will end Nov. 30.
Also last month, Dealer Direct added Royal Enfield North America to its OEM network. The companies kicked off the partnership with a promotion offering consumers $99 monthly payments with no down payment required on current models, Vice President of Sales Mike Roark told Powersports Finance. Dealer Direct is offering the program through Dec. 31 in the 48 continental states as well as Hawaii.
Dealer Direct aims to be the “one-stop-shop” for small- to mid-size powersports manufacturers, National Sales Director Jon Vestal told Powersports Finance last month. The lender works with several other manufacturers, including Argo XTV, Rival Powersports, TrailMaster Go Karts, and golf cart manufacturer Tomberlin ParCar.
Dealer Direct targets smaller manufacturers because “most of the large manufacturers have in-house financing, like Honda Financial Services,” he said. “In powersports, most of those OEMs are going to have that opportunity, because they understand the revenue stream and can build financing into their pricing. For a mid-size manufacturer, it takes a lot of cash to launch a captive,” he said.
