Throughout its decades-long history, Powersports Northwest has been located at various locations in the Twin Cities area, including at the old Yard Birds shopping mall.
After being located at its South Tower Avenue address in downtown Centralia since 1992, the business — a dealership that specializes in selling motorcycles and a wide variety of other motorized outdoor recreational vehicles — has now moved to a new location south of Chehalis at 197 N. Hamilton Road along Interstate 5.
Featuring a much larger 30,000-square-foot showroom, the move has allowed the business to expand its inventory, according to Powersports Northwest President Jonathan Hubbert.
Powersports Northwest now sells motorcycles from Indian Motorcycle and Sea-Doo personal watercraft.
Hubbert met with The Chronicle at Powersports Northwest’s new location on Tuesday, May 6, to talk more about the move.
“A big part was just to get on I-5. There’s more visibility here. We have a little bit better footprint and layout also,” Hubbert said.
The off-road vehicle industry was the main driver for the necessity of more space, specifically larger side-by-side vehicles.
“Side-by-sides have really changed the industry. Downtown Centralia had an awesome, old-school motorcycle shop feel,” Hubbert said. “But with the industry continuing to change, it was necessary for us to get more space so we could expand, have a better customer experience and be able to display and sell more units.”
Side-by-sides are off-road vehicles that can carry up to six passengers, depending on the model, and many are now the same size as cars. Their popularity has been growing recently as they can be driven in a variety of terrains and situations.
Motorcycles are always in demand, though, hence the addition of Indian Motorcycles to Powersports Northwest’s inventory.
The decision to add Sea-Doos to the inventory was a no-brainer for Hubbert.
“Everybody has always wanted them here, so finally did it and brought them in,” Hubbert said. “There’s a lot of lakes here (in Lewis County), and nobody was selling them.”
Along with Indian Motorcycles and Sea-Doo, Powersports Northwest also sells off-road vehicles, electric vehicles, generators and more, including Honda, Can-Am, Polaris, Yamaha and STACYC.
The business has been open at its new location since February. In the past few months, Hubbert has already seen an uptick in business.
“There’s a lot more door swings, a lot of traffic from out of town that never knew we were in downtown Centralia,” Hubbert said.
“A lot of different people are coming through the door, and it’s awesome to see.”
In addition to the 30,000-square-foot showroom building, Powersports Northwest also has an additional 10,000-plus square feet in two other buildings used as a shop for assembling vehicles after delivery and servicing customers’ vehicles.
“We have seven full-time mechanics on staff now,” Hubbert added.
The business also sells tools, replacement parts, oil and more for mechanics looking to repair their vehicles themselves.
Although the business has settled into its new location, Hubbert hasn’t forgotten its long history, as he has many customers who come in fondly recalling shopping there in the past.
“There’s a lot of cool history here locally that has all come together and gathered under this roof,” he said.
Hubbert officially took over as president of Powersports Northwest in 2021 following the retirement of long-time co-owners Dave Lipinski and Jeff Ashe.
Despite having officially retired in 2021, The Chronicle ran into Lipinski at Powersports Northwest on Tuesday, as he is still working there.
“I had to get my motorcycle fix every day. I still ride, and I still like selling stuff,” Lipinski said. “That’s what I do.”
He currently handles government contract sales to agencies such as the Washington state Department of Fish and Wildlife and the state Department of Natural Resources.
Lipinski said he and Ashe began working at the business in 1973. It was called Steve’s Suzuki after being founded by Steve and Diane Rasmusson.
By 1977, the Rasmussons decided to switch careers and sold the business to Lipinski and Ashe, who changed the name to Suzuki Northwest. The duo also acquired a Yamaha franchise located in Yard Birds in 1979, and they opened a new Centralia showroom as well.
The two locations would later be consolidated, and the business’s name was changed to Suzuki-Yamaha Northwest. Following this name change, they also acquired local Honda and Polaris franchises — among others — prompting more name changes.
Finally, the business moved to 300 S. Tower Ave. in downtown Centralia back in 1992, and Lipinski and Ashe changed its name one final time to Powersports Northwest.
Now, some three decades later, Hubbert has settled the business into its new location. Powersports Northwest is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and closed on Sunday.
To learn more, visit https://www.powersportsnorthwest.com/ or follow the business on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/powersports.nw/ or Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/powersportsnorthwest/.
