The Lynnwood Motoplex has been selling several lines of motorcycles for years, but one brand that has eluded them has been BMW.
For 15 years, the store at 17900 Highway 99 sought to sell BMW motorcycles. They’d almost given up when BMW approached them to become a dealer.
“We were absolutely beside ourselves to get ahold of BMW as a franchise,” said Jim Powers Jr., whose family owns the business. “It’s a premium brand and the product is well placed. Other brands are chasing BMW.”
It will be the only BMW motorcycle dealer between Seattle and Fife, Powers said.
As a new dealer, the Lynnwood Motoplex will be able to offer a complete line of BMW motorcycles, parts, accessories, apparel and service.
“The Powers family has built a great foundation for the BMW brand to thrive and we are delighted to welcome them into our dealer network,” said Lou Provato, dealer development manager for BMW Motorrad USA, the motorcycle arm for the German company, in a statement.
Powers’ father, Jim Powers Sr., was a professional hockey player in the 1960s who played with the Seattle Totems and Vancouver Canucks while selling motorcycles during the summertime.
He established his first motorcycle dealership in 1970 under the name Lynnwood Yamaha at the current site of the business.
Over the years, the Lynnwood Motoplex added boats, ATVs, side-by-side utility vehicles, personal watercraft, snowmobiles and other motorcycle lines to the 32,000-square-foot retail center.
Jim Powers Sr. is still a regular at the Lynnwood Motoplex, but he’s turned over day-to-day operations of the business to his children, Jim Jr., Garret and Janice Powers Weber.
The family worked with BMW to rework the showroom for the new line of motorcycles. Powers said the company was “very, very specific, ‘You’ll buy this tile from this vendor and do it this way.’”
To help make the dealership a success, the family has hired sales and operations staff with extensive riding, industry experience and a history with the BMW brand. That includes a master-certified BMW technician who has taught at the Motorcycle Mechanics Institute of Arizona.
The Powers family and their staff also drive demo motorcycles from all of their brands either to home or for a ride on the weekend.
“I don’t think there’s another way to be a go-to guy with the answers unless you’re dealing with the product,” Jim Powers Jr. said.
Showroom hours are Tuesdays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Saturdays, 9 a.m to 5 p.m.; and Sundays 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, including an upcoming open house in late May and other special events, visit www.bmwmotorcyclesoflynnwood.net or call 425-774-0505.
Correction, May 4, 2015: The Lynnwood Motoplex is operating a BMW dealership from its 32,000-square-foot retail center at 17900 Highway 99. Showroom hours are Tuesdays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. An earlier version of this story gave wrong dimensions for the center and omitted its Sunday hours.
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