Can-Am has got a tiger by the tail with the Spyder. The Spyder has received overwhelming interest and support from the population at large. Releasing them in limited numbers and taking deposits, combined with an extensive public relations campaign, test rides for all, and an immense lead time were all brilliant strategies. We give up, we’re hooked.
When the first Spyders start hitting the street in earnest, and those lucky few owners take them to the back roads and restaurant parking lots and everywhere else they will go, people who never would have seen them, those not in the loop or those disinclined to travel to a test ride event, will start laying their eyes on the Spyder, and they will lust.
For some, the Can-Am Spyder will be the opportunity to realize unfulfilled dreams, for others, it will beckon a return to a lost love. Many of these brand new fans will find themselves gravitating towards their local Can-Am Spyder dealer, blind with passion, ready to pay, daring to dream.
When the dealer tells them that they are sold out, that they are pre-sold a year in advance, what do you think these people will do? Some may leave a deposit. Others, not of the type inclined to do so, will still, when the Spyders return to availability, find the passion remains. But all of them will go home empty handed that day, and most will not return. It simply is the nature of this kind of purchase.
Sure, there are those now who have laid out a deposit in the heat of passion, those that will either decide in the long run it isn’t worth it, or they can’t afford it, or some life changing event will render the purchase absurd. The Spyders they have reserved will be available. But these will be few and far between.
I can understand that, with Can-Am at one point not being certain as to how well the Spyder would be accepted, it would start with a very limited run. But we are past that concern, aren’t we?
The best thing Can-Am could do right now is ramp up production, make all pre-sold Spyders available to their new owners within a week of the official release, to include those expecting to wait until spring, and then announce that, due to the overwhelming popular demand, the next round of Spyder would be available within six weeks. That is a much more reasonable time frame to ask people to wait, and still reap the benefit of apprehension.
Will Can-Am do this? Who knows. They are notoriously closed-lipped about their plans. But I wouldn’t put the idea past them. They are novel and creative thinkers who seem to understand market opportunities others miss. For proof, look no further than the Can-Am Spyder itself.
