Story first appeared on The Detroit News -
Innovations in retail and outlet upgrades are hot topics for discussion at annual convention
As auto sales have come roaring back from the recession, dealers across the country are seeing profits stabilize and in some cases improve, as many continue to upgrade their buildings and customer waiting areas and amenities.
Many of the nation's 17,540 new car dealers are gathering here this weekend for the annual National Automobile Dealers Association Convention and Expo.
Dealer renovation programs and future innovation will be hot topics among the more than 20,000 dealers, manufacturers and other auto industry officials expected to attend.
"Dealers that are in business today are strong and stable," Terry Burns, executive vice president of the Michigan Automobile Dealers Association, said in an email.
"Many have upgraded their facilities, retooled their service departments, focused on their customer experience and look forward to a great 2013."
In 2012, automakers and their dealers sold about 14.5 million vehicles in the U.S. NADA Chief Economist Paul Taylor expects consumers to buy or lease more than 15.4 million new vehicles this year across the country.
Last year, new-car dealers in Michigan sold 486,372 cars and trucks; that's up 5.6 percent from 460,628 sold in 2011, and up 18.2 percent from 411,342 vehicles sold in 2010. The figures still pale in comparison to what Michigan's dealer body sold in 2007, before the industry collapse and the large reduction of dealerships among the Big Three.
Michigan has about 650 new-car dealers. Burns said he expects a "little contraction" among them this year, due to consolidation of brands.
Nationally, some automakers plan to add new-car dealerships in 2013, including Kia Motors America, which expects to add 10, and Volkswagen Group of America Inc., which plans to add more than 15. In the past year, Chrysler Group LLC's Fiat brand has added about 60 dealerships across the country to grow to 201 locations. Fiat executives have said they would like to add more dealerships in select cities.
Other car companies aren't increasing dealership numbers, but they are helping dealers improve facilities to retain loyal customers and gain new ones.
In a recent interview, Hyundai Motor America President and CEO John Krafcik told NADAFrontPage.com, a website run by the dealer group, that the company does not plan to add to its 820 dealerships. Instead, Krafcik said Hyundai has focused on boosting customer satisfaction; more than 340 dealers have completed renovations.
Automakers from Chrysler to American Honda Motor Co. Inc. and Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc. have facility upgrade programs. Many of those programs have been in progress for several years.
Volkswagen, which has more than 600 VW dealers and more than 250 Audi dealers, said it plans to complete 45 modernist "White Frame" facilities this year. Some are new construction, others are renovated dealerships. More are in the pipeline for next year. More than 100 Volkswagen dealers are spending $450 million on renovations from 2011 to 2013, while Audi dealers are spending $206 million on renovations from 2009 to 2013.
Doug Fox, owner and president of Ann Arbor Automotive, which includes five Asian brands, renovated his Acura store about seven years ago and his Nissan store five years ago.
"We are in the process of doing an image store for Kia, and we're certainly going to be considering doing one for Hyundai in the next couple of years," he said this week in a phone interview, adding sales at both his Kia and Hyundai franchises each were up about 10 percent in 2012. Fox said he hopes to complete the Kia redesign by the end of the year; Kia will contribute a portion of the cost.
"Certainly, a consumer likes to come into a nice, clean, fresh, contemporary building," Fox said. "And I think in our case, the buildings we're talking about are definitely in need of refurbishment."
More than 70 percent of Ford Motor Co.'s Lincoln Motor Co. dealers in the top 130 U.S. markets have agreed to renovation programs that include creating a "new sales and service experience for future Lincoln owners," Ford spokeswoman Elizabeth Weigandt said in an email.
About 25 percent of dealers in those top markets will have renovated facilities this year, Weigandt said.
General Motors Co. expects almost all Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac dealers will have a new look by 2016. The Detroit automaker, which reduced its dealerships over the past year by about 50, said about 92 percent of its 4,355 dealers have agreed to participate in its renovation program.
Russ Shelton's dealership in Rochester Hills is one that has the new look after he spent more than $2 million gutting the facility. He added more square footage to his showroom, new furniture and energy-efficient lighting.
GM is defraying some of the cost, he said.
Shelton, in a phone interview, said he expects sales at Shelton Buick GMC will rise from about 650 to 700 annually to about 1,000 vehicles a year.
"I think 2013 is going to be a good year. All manufacturers are predicting big numbers."
