May 24, 2004
Car talk | Mass. auto dealer finds a new market in southern Maine
By Sean Donahue
Before Ira Rosenberg bought Prime Toyota-Hyundai in Saco in March, he didn't have his eye on the Maine market in particular ˆ he just wanted to get back into the dealership business somewhere. Three years ago, after spending almost 40 years as a dealer in Massachusetts and building his Danvers-based Ira Automotive Group into a $260 million, 10-brand, 500-employee operation, Rosenberg sold the operation and retired to Florida to spend more time with his ailing wife.
She got better, but Rosenberg got bored. He missed being in the car business, but had signed a non-compete agreement with Ira Automotive Group's new owners, Group 1 Automotive Inc. After Rosenberg explained his situation, though, Group 1 agreed to let him move into a new sales territory, as long as it was in a non-contiguous, non-competitive market to metro Boston. Rosenberg wanted to be back in New England, so that left Vermont and Maine, where Rosenberg found Prime's owners were interested in selling. In a few hours, Rosenberg had struck a deal.
Though simple geography and contractual constraints brought him here, Rosenberg, age 67, now says he loves what he's found. "I liken Route One in the Biddeford-Saco-Scarborough area to what Route 114 in Danvers was 30 years ago," says Rosenberg, referring to the commercial strip that's become one of the Boston area's most popular automobile rows. "I see southern Maine as such an opportunity for economic growth, and I really want to be part of it."
On May 13, Rosenberg held a grand re-opening event ˆ complete with balloons, bands, gasoline giveaways and Slugger, the Sea Dogs' mascot ˆ to announce Prime's new ownership, as well as kick off what he hopes will be his steady expansion within the Maine auto sales industry.
Rosenberg started with the basics. He spruced up the Prime facilities with small touches like outdoor landscaping, potted plants, flags and balloons. And he's readying what he promises to be a wall-to-wall southern Maine marketing campaign that will feature print, radio and television advertising.
Rosenberg, who calls himself a "fun-loving marketing guy," says he's already discovered one appealing difference between the Maine and Massachusetts markets: Buying advertising in Maine is much cheaper, he says. Another difference he's noted is the apparent quality of Maine customers' credit. "In the metro Boston market, you practically have to take 10 applications to get six deals done," says Rosenberg. "Here, in the last six or seven weeks, I think we've only had one bad credit application."
Longer-term, Rosenberg plans to build a new headquarters for Prime in Saco, and would like to develop the Route One strip into what he calls a "real" auto mile ˆ where the dealerships contribute to joint marketing efforts touting the strip as a car-buying destination. (He says he's made a few calls to neighboring dealers to talk about the plan, but hasn't yet heard back from anyone.) Even further down the road, he'd like to buy or build more locations across Maine.
If this pitch sounds a little like the smooth talk of an old-fashioned car salesman, Rosenberg notes that his business philosophy is to be personally involved with and accountable to his customers and community. He says he works the sales floor, meeting with every potential customer, if possible, as they browse the cars. He also promises to make Prime a significant benefactor to local nonprofit organizations ˆ a way to give back to the community as well as another way to get Prime's name out.
Careful management and civic-minded business practices aren't just his personal approach, says Rosenberg, they are a necessity in the modern automobile industry. "The automobile business now is too cash intensive, too people intensive and too electronic intensive," he says. "You can't have the old-style hustler in this business anymore."
She got better, but Rosenberg got bored. He missed being in the car business, but had signed a non-compete agreement with Ira Automotive Group's new owners, Group 1 Automotive Inc. After Rosenberg explained his situation, though, Group 1 agreed to let him move into a new sales territory, as long as it was in a non-contiguous, non-competitive market to metro Boston. Rosenberg wanted to be back in New England, so that left Vermont and Maine, where Rosenberg found Prime's owners were interested in selling. In a few hours, Rosenberg had struck a deal.
Though simple geography and contractual constraints brought him here, Rosenberg, age 67, now says he loves what he's found. "I liken Route One in the Biddeford-Saco-Scarborough area to what Route 114 in Danvers was 30 years ago," says Rosenberg, referring to the commercial strip that's become one of the Boston area's most popular automobile rows. "I see southern Maine as such an opportunity for economic growth, and I really want to be part of it."
On May 13, Rosenberg held a grand re-opening event ˆ complete with balloons, bands, gasoline giveaways and Slugger, the Sea Dogs' mascot ˆ to announce Prime's new ownership, as well as kick off what he hopes will be his steady expansion within the Maine auto sales industry.
Rosenberg started with the basics. He spruced up the Prime facilities with small touches like outdoor landscaping, potted plants, flags and balloons. And he's readying what he promises to be a wall-to-wall southern Maine marketing campaign that will feature print, radio and television advertising.
Rosenberg, who calls himself a "fun-loving marketing guy," says he's already discovered one appealing difference between the Maine and Massachusetts markets: Buying advertising in Maine is much cheaper, he says. Another difference he's noted is the apparent quality of Maine customers' credit. "In the metro Boston market, you practically have to take 10 applications to get six deals done," says Rosenberg. "Here, in the last six or seven weeks, I think we've only had one bad credit application."
Longer-term, Rosenberg plans to build a new headquarters for Prime in Saco, and would like to develop the Route One strip into what he calls a "real" auto mile ˆ where the dealerships contribute to joint marketing efforts touting the strip as a car-buying destination. (He says he's made a few calls to neighboring dealers to talk about the plan, but hasn't yet heard back from anyone.) Even further down the road, he'd like to buy or build more locations across Maine.
If this pitch sounds a little like the smooth talk of an old-fashioned car salesman, Rosenberg notes that his business philosophy is to be personally involved with and accountable to his customers and community. He says he works the sales floor, meeting with every potential customer, if possible, as they browse the cars. He also promises to make Prime a significant benefactor to local nonprofit organizations ˆ a way to give back to the community as well as another way to get Prime's name out.
Careful management and civic-minded business practices aren't just his personal approach, says Rosenberg, they are a necessity in the modern automobile industry. "The automobile business now is too cash intensive, too people intensive and too electronic intensive," he says. "You can't have the old-style hustler in this business anymore."
Most Recent
Most Recent
Comments