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Jim’s Harley Davidson A Tampa Bay Tradition
By Carol Cortright
Published January 2009

Walking into Jim’s Harley-Davidson in St. Petersburg for the first time, one gets a soaring sense of space as sunlight filters through the high windows around the vaulted ceiling. Then, the gaze settles upon a vast emporium of merchandise dedicated to this two-wheeled American icon. Jim’s offers a little something for everyone, rider and wishful enthusiast alike. Friendly associates navigate the sales floor, assuring that personal assistance is readily available. No wonder Jim’s is ranked #1 nationally in customer service among Harley-Davidson dealers.

The driving force behind this motorcycle megastore is Jamie Rosenkrans, who steered the business from the old 7,000 square ft. space to its current 39,900 square ft. gem on 54th Ave., conveniently located between U.S. 19 and 275. In doing so, she broke barriers as Florida’s first woman Harley-Davidson dealer and built one of the largest operations of its kind in the state.

With golden Harley charms dangling from her ears, catching the rumble of the machines revving through the walls of her office from the service department on the other side, Jamie reflects on the path that brought her here. Born and raised in Clearwater, Jamie comes from pioneer stock with Taylors, McMullens and Booths peppering her family tree. Her mother ran a dry cleaning and laundry service and Jamie used to help out after school, so developing a business sense came early for her.

As for the motorcycle fixation, a tiny Jamie took her first ride at six months, tucked snugly inside her uncle’s leather jacket while he was babysitting her. Also, she had lots of friends who rode motorcycles, so for her it was a normal mode of transportation.

Jamie graduated from FSU with a teaching degree, but events leading up to the 1968 teachers’ strike made it hard to find work in Florida. She headed north to Atlanta and spent two years teaching there before things settled down and she came home, continuing a career that spanned thirty years, retiring in 1997.

Along the way, that motorcycle-loving uncle, a Shriner, introduced her to a fellow member of the Shriners’ motorcycle unit, Jim Rosenkrans. Jamie and Jim were married on Valentine’s Day 1975, between his shifts with the St. Petersburg Fire Department.

In the late 1970s, Jim sold some apartments and was looking for another business investment. Coincidentally, around the same time, Jamie and Jim paid a visit to Francis Worth “Cannonball” Hockett’s shop, Harley-Davidson of St. Petersburg, to look at a new bike. Cannonball was a motorcycle racer who had opened the first Harley-Davidson dealership in Asheboro, N.C. in 1946.

Details were ironed out and on September 1, 1979, the Rosenkranses took over Cannonball’s cycle shop, but kept him on the payroll until he was ready to retire, learning all they could from his wealth of experience. Jim worked in the shop on his days off and Jamie filled in when the school day ended and on Saturdays.

And so it went over the next decade, with Jim and Jamie maintaining a solid repair business, while bike sales slowed and Harley-Davidson’s corporate image and very foundation underwent a major overhaul. Harley-Davidson faced major competition during the 1970s from Japanese motorcycle manufacturers. In addition, the board of directors sold out to American Machine and Foundry (AMF) in an attempt to raise capital to boost production. Unfortunately, this led to a slip in the quality of the product and the brand suffered.

Jamie credits Vaughn Beals, one of Harley-Davidson’s top executives, with masterminding a leveraged buyout in 1981 that effectively resurrected the company and paved the way for a major market resurgence. Meanwhile, Jamie tried to convince Jim to get merchandise out from behind the counter where customers could see it and “put their hands on it,” she said. “Once we did that, sales went crazy.”

Early on, Jim’s was the only shop to sell leather pants and jackets and Jamie could only order from one company that had a limited deal with Harley for leather sets. Back then Harley-Davidson didn’t have the line of merchandise it has now, and it was difficult to get even t-shirts in stock. Once they started including the customer in the shopping experience, things really started moving. Second-hand display gondolas came from a hardware store that was remodeling. Existing windows were removed in favor of slat walls for getting parts and supplies out where people could see—and buy—them.

In April 1988, tragedy struck the Rosenkrans family when Jim died from injuries sustained in a tractor accident. Suddenly, Jamie was left with a Harley-Davidson dealership during a time when motorcycle businesses were run by men and women had not yet come into their own as a strong presence in the corporate world.

Would she sell?

She didn’t really want to, she says. “Besides, the economy wasn’t doing very well then and I thought, ‘Who’s going to buy a Harley-Davidson dealership anyway?’”

She couldn’t afford to retire from teaching at the time and she knew it would be a lot of hard work. She received tremendous support from other dealers who helped her learn the ropes of ordering and maintaining the proper mix of inventory during the difficult period following Jim’s death.

All in all, she says, once she proved herself to Harley-Davidson and convinced them she was interested in moving forward, the corporation became a helpful ally as she transitioned into her role as the new leader of the dealership.

Here Comes the “Taj MaHarley”

By 1997, Jim’s Harley-Davidson had outgrown its original location. Jamie looked all over town for a new spot and passed the site on the northwest corner of 54th Ave. N. and 28th St. N. a number of times. Finally, she purchased the property, petitioned the county for rezoning, won after two tries, and opened up the new supersized store in March of 1999.

Service kiosks dot the expansive sales floor and associates are ready and willing to help customers find what they need and what they don’t even know they need. An old-fashioned Harley-Davidson jukebox sits between the helmet displays and apparel racks, and vintage advertisements hang high on the walls above the merchandise. Set up like a department store, there are designated areas for men, women and even children, the latter sporting pint-sized jackets, backpacks, teddy bears and other kid-friendly items emblazoned with the signature black and orange logo. Jim’s has plenty of gift items, too, from mugs and coffee packets to coasters, patches and more —and stylish H-D wrapping paper to boot.

One section is decked out in chrome and other assorted motorcycle components and necessities, adjacent to the parts counter. Toward the back, there’s a comfortable customer lounge for hanging out while bikes are serviced in the garage.

With just over fifty employees filling department functions from sales and rentals to motor clothes, marketing and riders’ courses, plus a retail shop at John’s Pass on Madeira Beach, Jim’s Harley-Davidson has grown into a major presence with a diverse following of motorcycle riders and Harley buffs.

But Jim’s is more than just a motorcycle shop; it’s linked into the Harley-Davidson corporate family which means there are standards to uphold, as well as professional tools available and development strategies to utilize.

For assessing business direction, Jamie belongs to the H-D Performance Group, a peer review group representing seventeen dealerships nationwide that meets every three months and includes a mediator and three company reps. “We look at each other’s sales data and make suggestions based on our own experience,” she explains.

On the sales floor, Jamie expects her associates to connect with the customers. “We not only sell motorcycles, we sell a way of life,” she says. “It’s the camaraderie between our customers and staff. We want them to feel that they’re part of the family.” To that end, they’ve implemented a number of ways to keep their customers engaged in that Harley-Davidson lifestyle, including the Motorcycle Value Program (MVP), an exclusive customer loyalty rewards program. There’s a place on the website for Women Rider’s Stories, photo galleries and more.

Jamie encourages staff to send thank you notes to customers and give them personal alerts when items of special interest come up on sale. “We try to develop that culture through training and using secret shoppers. We’ll go over what the secret shopper said, especially if they fall down on asking for the sale, for example, reminding them that they need to ask ‘Can I put this on the counter for you?’ or something else to help close the deal.”

Sales are the lifeblood of the business at Jim’s and Jamie wants her staff to think outside the box in getting that to happen. She recently challenged her parts department: pick some small item that sells for a dollar or two, and offer every customer the opportunity to purchase it. It worked. Likewise, she reminds them to upsell—if someone buys a leather jacket, suggest the leather cleaner as well.

Jamie admits that the economic downturn has hurt business a little, forcing her to make some tough decisions. She dreaded the thought of laying off employees, so she asked her team if they had any ideas. Someone suggested a cut in hours, so they’re trying it while managing to keep sales steady.

She makes a habit out of wandering the sales floor and staff areas, thanking her employees for the good jobs they do. She cooks for them and holds drawings for perks like Rays baseball game tickets to keep it fun. If she sees potential in her employees, she might send them to school so they can improve their skills and take on new challenges when they’re ready.

Workload processes are always subject to change in an effort to constantly improve, and Jamie realizes that change is still a stickler for some of those in her workplace. She enthusiastically recommends Who Moved My Cheese? by Spencer Johnson as “the perfect book that tells you how to handle change.”

As for handling the stresses that come with running a multimillion dollar motorcycle dealership, she lets out a hearty laugh when asked how she “turns off” the business side of her brain in order to relax. Jamie makes time for herself by exercising with a personal trainer several times a week and works out the tension with a weekly massage. She also enjoys taking bike trips on her RoadGlide and gardening at the new home she built five years ago.

Giving back to the community is a big part of her personal and corporate philosophy. Not only does she sponsor the annual Jim Rosenkrans Memorial Toy Run in December, she’s donated motorcycles to the Abilities Foundation and other charities for auctions. Other organizations close to her heart include Florida Veterinary Specialists and the SPCA.

Jamie Rosenkrans looks back on her accomplishments and says, “My success is that I’ve taken this business and grown it into something that I and my staff are proud of. It’s also allowed me to give back and now I can help the community grow.”

As for succession planning, she smiles: “Jim’s nephew works here now and he’s agreeable to the idea…one day.” But Jamie Rosenkrans isn’t going to be thundering off into the sunset on her Harley any time soon.

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