As we are already well into the second half of 2016 (can you believe it?) we wanted to take some time to update our friends, families, fans and customers past, present and future, on what's been happening here in Abington. We are nearing our 5th year in business and have hit some pretty significant milestones in the past, especially this year. From adding new manufacturers to our inventory and becoming Super Regional Dealers to expanding our social media presence and joining forces with local vendors and shop, this has been a very busy year for us!

First off, we've been selling and promoting Rock Krawler Suspensions for several years now and finally got one of their systems on Frankie Van Halen. In the spring, we were given the opportunity to become a Super Regional Dealer for them which, in our opinion, is a serious milestone! This means that we are their preferred point of sale dealer in the area and are knowledgable of their parts, our services and installation procedures. We always have their parts in stock and have first hand experience with their products. This creates more buzz about our name, brand and integrity as well as brings in more customers. Since my Jeep is running their 3.5" Flex System with 2.0 Shocks, we are able to give our honest opinion on how the parts and systems run, feel and rank against competitors. You can view their entire line of suspension systems, components, upgrades and more here!

As many of may have noticed, we have been able to vend and attend more events in and around New England this year. Sadly, there have been, and will be in the future, events we miss due to scheduling conflicts or time spent away from the shop. With only 2 full time employees (Eric and myself) and our part time badass (Mike), it's difficult to justify even closing for one day to travel to events. Our phones ring off the hook 7 days a week and our inboxes flood with messages. Since we treat Offroad Elements like it's our child, our priority is here. We were, however, able to make it to the Ultimate Offroad Event in Connecticut this spring. This was our first time going so we attended, rather than vended, and that way we could gauge the crowd and find out what type of interests this event brings. Our friends have been a HUGE help at events, giving us time to wander, check out the demographic, see what we need to change or add to our inventory and even a chance to casually hang out with friends and customers. Being able to attend events here and there also gives us a chance to get out of the shop for a bit- for those who know us well, we practically live here! We're also able to meet the manufacturers we talk to on a daily basis, say hi to friends and create long lasting Jeep family friendships!

Another milestone for us has been our ever-growing presence of social media. We are very active on Facebook (Offroad Elements page and Team Offroad Elements page), Twitter (@OffroadElementsInc), Instagram (@offroadelements), YouTube, Pinterest (yeah, I went there) and more. We've build some of the best and most memorable customer relationships as well as friendships from our constant presence on these platforms. Shout out to #JeepMafia for all the support! In the beginning it was a challenge trying to juggle social media, sales, remaining in touch with customers and manufacturers and keeping up with the day-to-day tasks that keep a company running. Now we're able to track the forever changing algorithms on each platform and engage with people everywhere! Make sure to follow us for more updates, good laughs, reviews and more!

One of our proudest achievements so far this year is that we've expanded our space and increased our inventory. For years our friends, families and customers alike have been asking us when we're getting a larger space for in-stock selections. Eric and I are both creatures of habit and are happy with the size of our shop, however we agreed that we needed to bring in more products. Well, it finally happened so now we're able to pull in pallet after pallet of lift kits, bumpers, armor, skid plates, wheels, tires and more. About 60% of our walk-in sales are from products that are readily available. A customer will come in to place and order, see something on the shelf and add it to their purchase- an impulse buy, when you think about it. If we have more of a selection on the shelves, more often than not, they'll grab them up! Now that we have the room and shelf space available, we are able to pull more products in and constantly change our inventory to fit our clients needs.

We made the decision at the beginning of the year to start opening up on Saturdays to cater to the crowd that is unable to make it to us during the normal weekday hours. Aside from the weekend's we attend events or the few times we decide to take a day to ourselves, this is an every Saturday event. We've had "Jeeps and Java", "Jeeps and Jello", "Jeeps and Gelato" and more. These events give clients a chance to come down, see what's new, relax and meet new Jeeple. New-to-the-community Jeep owners can also pick one another's brains on what route to go when it comes to upgrading and to get ideas for future modifications. We look forward to bettering these events in the future and are open to suggestions and recommendations!

Lastly on our "What will they think of next?" list for this year, we now offer local delivery services of parts purchased from us. This has made such a big impact on our advertisement abilities. We simply pick an area (for those familiar with Massachusetts, there's "the north shore", "the south shore" and "west of Boston"), load up the trailer and head out for delivery. Our clients love this option, especially if they're working or unable to make it to our shop for pickup. Plus it's just more exposure of our name and brand to the public so we think it's a win-win for everyone!

There you have it! There are a few more milestones we are looking forward to reaching by the end of the year so stay tuned for more updates and thank you for all of your support! If you have any comments or recommendations for improving our website, customer service or more, don't hesitate to drop us a line 774-826-9948 or email me personally at gfournier@offroadelements.com!