Client Spotlight: Craig Bachrodt, Lou Bachrodt Auto Group

We recently caught up with long-time NCM client Craig Bachrodt of Lou Bachrodt Auto Group, who shared a few thoughts on success and how 20 Group participation has helped his dealership grow.

Can you provide a brief history of your dealership?

My grandfather, Lou Bachrodt Jr., started the company in 1953 in Rockford, Illinois. The dealership group grew from there, making various acquisitions through the years. Today, the Lou Bachrodt Auto Group includes several locations in South Florida, as well as two dealerships in Illinois. In Ocala, Florida, we have a Chevrolet/Kia location, and in Gainesville, we sell Chevrolet, Suzuki, Mazda and Cadillac. In Rockford, Ill., we sell Chevrolet, BMW and Volkswagen in one location. Across town, we have another store with Buick/GMC. I spend most of my time at our Ocala location, Palm Chevrolet, where we employ 74 people. Traditionally, our top-selling model was the Silverado, but now it’s more of a mix between Silverado, Traverse and Malibu.

Obviously you’ve grown a lot through the years. What’s your secret to success?

At my father’s direction, our group has carefully managed and conserved our cash. When our industry moved into this tough time with the recession, this cautious approach allowed us to operate without adding capital fears to the challenges of the current marketplace. In addition, our companies are blessed with dedicated and competent long-term employees. We value our associates and thus do not have a lot of turnover. Lastly, we have excellent store leadership throughout our entire group and depend on long-term General Managers who are independent thinkers and intelligent business people.

What NCM services have you used? How have they helped your company?

We’ve sent our service and used car leaders to the training classes, and we’ve used the general manager education. We really value the exposure our people get to industry leaders in your training. They benefit from knowledge delivered by your trainers, and get to trade ideas with competent peers from throughout the country. Additionally, a bonus of sending our company leaders to your training is that it demonstrates to them that we are committed to their careers and willing to make a serious investment in their professional growth.

Are you involved in 20 Groups?

Yes, and we have been for almost 40 years. My father was one of the original Chevrolet 20 Group members back in, I believe, ’72. I’ve been a member since 1997. The support and mentorship of the other members has been critical to my personal and professional development as a car dealer. NCM brings together the best dealers in the country. It’s priceless to interact with these people, who have the industry trends at their fingertips. We’re able to share best practices, as well as ideas that didn’t work, which is almost as valuable as sharing those that did work. The return on investment is incredible—just one idea brought back from the 20 Group pays for the trip and then some. Finally, the 20 Group listserv e-mail process enables us to shoot a question to a large group of trusted, bright people from all over the country and then get responses back almost instantly, which is absolutely invaluable.

“I’ve learned more in the last two days than I’ve learned in the last ten years.
Thank you for this lifetime education.”

– Dolan Hossain, BMW of Riverside

Staff Spotlight: Paul Faletti Jr., President & CEO

If you ask NCM Associates’ President and CEO Paul Faletti how he ended up in the automotive industry, he’ll tell you he’s been crazy about cars from the start.

“As a teenager, I had a passion for cars. Everything about them fascinated me,” he said. “My first job was serving as a tour guide in an automotive plant during high school, and as far as I was concerned, I had found my calling. I never left the industry.”

Faletti’s love for cars—and the successful career that followed—has taken him all over the world. He’s lived and worked in Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada and Mexico, applying his skills in strategic automotive planning for a number of leading companies. Faletti’s experience includes key domestic and international executive management positions with Maserati and BMW and, most recently, as vice president of marketing at Jaguar Cars North America.

This broad range of experience was a significant driver in the decision to bring Faletti to NCM, according to Paul Stowe, chairman of the NCM board of directors.

“Paul understands how to compete successfully in a global marketplace,” he said. “His background and proven leadership in the automotive industry was a perfect fit for NCM and the market-leading education, consulting and benchmarking services demanded by our clients.”

Faletti earned a bachelor’s degree in international business from the University of Georgia and a master’s of business administration from Emory University. A native of Atlanta, Georgia, he now resides in Kansas City, home to NCM Associates.

Driving Profitability Together

Did you know that NCM dealer-clients routinely outperform their industry peers in terms of sales and profits?

Compared to the most recent Average Dealership Profile* report published by NADA, NCM clients sold 4% more new and used retail units, enjoyed 1.3% more profit as a percent of sales, and averaged a whopping 8% more profit as a percent of gross for the same period!

Want more reasons why teaming with NCM is better for your business? Call us at 800-756-2620 or e-mail us
at sales@ncm20.com.

*Source: Dealership Financial Profile, November 2009, NADA.org

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