Carnival & Fair News

Wisdom Rides of America announced some important steps in helping beat challenges faced by the Pandemic.  Since that time, Wisdom has had difficulties with parts orders and supplies and has been scrambling to fill customer orders.  After a period of negotiations and vetting, they announced today a strategic partnership with Showmen Supplies to exclusively supply replacement parts for all  Wisdom Rides of America products. This collaboration marks a significant step forward in providing superior service and support to Wisdom's customers and the partners expect the parts and supply disruptions to be corrected in relatively short order.

Jared Davis, President of Wisdom Rides of America expressed his excitement about this association stating, "We have been actively seeking a partnership that aligns with our commitment to deliver the best service in the industry. Showmen Supplies' proven track record of excellence and reliability makes them the ideal ally to help us achieve this goal."

This affiliation aims to streamline the supply chain, reduce the order backlog for replacement parts, and ensure that customers can maintain their rides to the highest safety standards. Showmen Supplies brings decades of parts distribution experience and expertise to the table, including providing spare parts services for several other manufactures.  This expertise will be instrumental in implementing this important transition. 

Showmen Supplies' President, Scott Siefker, shared his enthusiasm, saying, "We are fully prepared and have dedicated significant resources including warehouse space and staffing for this expansion. We believe our partnership with Wisdom will greatly enhance the service we can provide to the industry."

Jason Skurow, Showmen Supplies' Director of Sales & Marketing, will spearhead the transition on Showmen's side.  While he is equally excited about the alliance, he also recognizes there are some short-term challenges.  "This is a major undertaking; ramping up the purchased and manufactured inventory of Wisdom parts is not something that can be accomplished overnight.  We know that we can count on the industry's understanding and cooperation as we strive to meet the high standards our customers expect," Jason said.

The partnership gears are already in motion, and Showmen will begin accepting Wisdom parts calls on Monday, June 17th.  Customers with existing Wisdom backlog orders can expect outreach from Showmen Supplies' CSR team in the coming weeks to update and verify their information. If they have on open order pending with Wisdom and have not been contacted by July 1st,  the customers should feel free to reach out to the Showmen's Supply team.

Davis acknowledges the challenges ahead but firmly believes this partnership is the best path forward to meet customer needs. "Our priority has always been our customers, and we are committed to doing everything we can to meet their expectations."

Tommy Coffing of usedrides.com and Sterling Financial is ecstatic with the partnership.  When he had several customers inquire about the backlog in Wisdom parts, he reached out to Davis to ask how he could help.  Hearing the difficulties they were facing post-pandemic, Coffing was able to help facilitate an introduction to Showmen's Supplies which developed into the deal signed this week.

The LaPorte, Indiana based Showmen's Supplies already manufactures and sells amusement rides and supplies parts to the industry for other brands, so they were an ideal prospective partner.

Coffing made a trip to the Merino, CO Wisdom factory last week to meet with Davis and look over the factory and output.  Wisdom, like most manufacturers, has been affected by post-lockdown labor and supply chain issues.  The company's work force is 50% of what it was before the Pandemic as laborers were laid off, retired or didn't return to work.

At the factory however, Coffing was pleasantly surprised to see several rides on the floor close to shipping stages.  A Himalaya went out recently to the Talley family for the fair in Del Mar.  Three other rides are just weeks away from delivery.  There is a Tornado going to Ricky Moore, a Moby Dick ride going to a park and a coaster going to Steve Mattfeld.


Coffing was most excited about the new model Sizzler with electric drive.  The ride was set up at the factory with seats made and ready to go.  The snag for finishing the ride is the disruption in delivery time for gear boxes.  Once the gear boxes are delivered, the ride should quickly be completed and Coffing said Davis is dedicating a team to manufacturing Sizzlers which should get out the door quickly once the gear box backlog is solved.

The new electric drive Sizzlers were a popular new product and customers are anxiously awaiting their orders.



“Wisdom, like so many other manufacturers and suppliers in this country and around the world, has been affected by labor and supply chain issues”, said Coffing.  “We have a serious labor problem in this country and we are all struggling to do the best we can with the workers we have.”

Coffing said he recently came back from Europe where several Italian manufacturers had pushed delivery dates back as much as a year. “Its not just Wisdom and the US manufacturers that are affected, but suppliers all over the world.  We need to work with them to understand what they are facing and work through it.  The parts deal with Showmen's will certainly help a great deal and I'm very encouraged by what I saw during my trip to the factory in Colorado, I'm proud of Jared and his team”