Taft Chevrolet/Buick plans to drop their New Car Franchises

[XDCX]

Sadly, news reports indicate another small-town Chevrolet/Buick store plans to drop their new car franchises and the city will lose their last new car dealer. Taft Chevrolet-Buick in Taft, CA announced they'll be terminating their GM franchises next month. For the full report - click here

Maybe I'm too sentimental but I keep thinking there should be a buyer for a store like this. According to Wikipedia, Taft has a population of about 9,600 and there should be some disposable income in the area since oil production is still active in the area.

The news report indicates the store will close their Service and Parts operations and focus 100% of their efforts on becoming a used car dealership. While I wish them the best, our members know from the experiences learned from the OLDCO stores that it can be a challenge to make a used car store viable when you still have the overhead associated with a new car store.

[XDCX]

Here's a picture of the dealership from Google Street View:

To me it's a pretty good looking dealership that has a nice building and a decent size display lot with a great frontage. I actually drove by this dealership about a year ago and the store has another display lot that you cannot see in the above picture across the street.

According to their website, Taft Chevrolet-Buick has 37 new cars in inventory and 36 used cars. That seems like a decent inventory for a dealership in a market with a population of about 10K.

[squish]

I haven't been to Taft in a while, but it seems it is just too close to Bakersfield to compete with all the big dealerships there.

[DealerEx]

Once again, it could be an issue with the facility. I agree it looks fine to me, but it is obviously an "old style" building, probably built in the late 50's or early 60's, and would likely be difficult to bring into compliance with the EBE program. If they are competing with metro type stores in Bakersfield they may be at a disadvantage due to the extra monies being paid to those stores that are EBE compliant.

On a side note, the location just hit me...there was a movie a number of years back called "The Best of Times", with Kurt Russell and Robin Williams, where their high school football team (Taft), replays a football game they lost to Bakersfield 20 years earlier to redeem their honor. It was actually filmed there in Taft also.

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by squish

I haven't been to Taft in a while, but it seems it is just too close to Bakersfield to compete with all the big dealerships there.

You make a valid point and perhaps that's the new reality that I'm having trouble coming to terms with.

I just keep thinking of Dave Smith Motors in Kellogg, ID and figure it's possible for a dealer in a smaller market to compete and prosper. That said, I acknowledge there are not too many other success stories like Dave Smith Motors.

Concerning the larger stores in Bakersfield, I smiled when I saw the URL for Taft Chevrolet-Buick's website - www.BakersfieldChevy.com It reminded me to the "pre-Google" days when having a successful website largely depended on having a URL that was easy for the public to remember.

[XDCX]

Based on a newspaper report a little over two years ago it appears that Taft Chevrolet-Buick is/was a GM Motors Holding Dealership. Here's a link to the newspaper report - click here

For those who may be unfamiliar, GM Motors Holdings is the division within GM that runs their Minority Dealer Program. I remember hearing years ago that this store was a GM Minority point and thought it was an odd market for GM to select for a first generation minority dealer to het his/her start.

If Taft Chevrolet-Buick is still a GM Motors Holding Dealership it would likely explain why the point was not marketed to potential buyers via a dealership broker.

[DealerEx]

good investigative reporting X... it being a Motors Holding store explains it clearly.

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by DealerEx

On a side note, the location just hit me...there was a movie a number of years back called "The Best of Times", with Kurt Russell and Robin Williams, where their high school football team (Taft), replays a football game they lost to Bakersfield 20 years earlier to redeem their honor. It was actually filmed there in Taft also.

When I wanted to determine the population for Taft I went to Wikipedia and reviewed their information. Taft has had a pretty colorful history and there have actually been quite a few movies that were filmed there.

Oil exploration was once so prominent in Taft that Standard Oil actually had their corporate headquarters located there.

My favorite piece of Taft trivia is the city was once named Moron - it predated the use of the word to describe someone with diminished mental abilities.

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by DealerEx

good investigative reporting X... it being a Motors Holding store explains it clearly.

Thanks....

In some ways the fact that Taft Chevrolet-Buick may have been a GM Motors Holding store answers some questions while it begs others.

If GM Motors Holdings and the individual trying to buy-out the store decided the market in Taft had changed and the point was no longer viable that would explain why the dealership wasn't marketed to potential buyers.

That said, it's hard for me to understand why an individual who reportedly invested almost a decade of his life trying to buy-out the store would simply terminate the new car franchises and remain in the community so he could operate the location as a used car store. After a 10 year relationship with General Motors wouldn't this individual deserve a shot at a GM Motors Holding dealership in another market that had better prospects of being successful?

That said, it's highly likely there are more elements to the story that haven't been reported which may make the business decision by General Motors and the designated dealer candidate make more sense.

Additionally, it's possible that even though the current President of the dealership has been working at the dealership for almost a decade he may not have been Motor Holding's designated dealer candidate for that entire period of time. The story I recall hearing in the past is GM Motors Holding had selected an African American female to operate the point.

[tools4you]

I am a Employee at this Dealership, Well one that is left,
This job has been my life for the last Nine Years, In the service Department, I am in Detail, The Dealership is a Old Building, But well kept up to codes, That is not the problem, It really was that the people in Our small oil Town just don't buy cars like they do in a larger area. Although when I started my job there, I was getting around 10 cars or more to get ready for delivery, (Per Day) Then car buying stopped, not just in our small community but all over, Dealerships were hurting everywhere,
Unfortunate for us we never got back on top. The Owner did a lot for our Town, He fed the hungry on Thanksgiving each year, He taught at the schools, He was a member of City Council A well respected and Honest man. Helped many including myself, to get a vehicle when no other dealerships would even consider it, Bad Credit? he would carry the Papers, and so many times I watched people take him , But still he continued to help as much as he could.
My heart is broken, Because a big part of my family moved on to other places, I am still hoping we can keep the dealership it is now going.
I Worked at the other small used car lot here in Taft too, S, J Mobley and she made it, So can We..

[tools4you]

I will take some photos and post so you all can see what the place actually looks like

[Jeff Duvall]

I wish you and the dealership nothing but the very best going forward, but if for some reason it does not work out send me a PM... You sound like a loyal, concerned and caring employee....the kind I like working for me.
jeff@duvallautomotive.com

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by tools4you

I am a Employee at this Dealership, Well one that is left,
This job has been my life for the last Nine Years, In the service Department, I am in Detail, The Dealership is a Old Building, But well kept up to codes, That is not the problem, It really was that the people in Our small oil Town just don't buy cars like they do in a larger area. Although when I started my job there, I was getting around 10 cars or more to get ready for delivery, (Per Day) Then car buying stopped, not just in our small community but all over, Dealerships were hurting everywhere,
Unfortunate for us we never got back on top. The Owner did a lot for our Town, He fed the hungry on Thanksgiving each year, He taught at the schools, He was a member of City Council A well respected and Honest man. Helped many including myself, to get a vehicle when no other dealerships would even consider it, Bad Credit? he would carry the Papers, and so many times I watched people take him , But still he continued to help as much as he could.
My heart is broken, Because a big part of my family moved on to other places, I am still hoping we can keep the dealership it is now going.
I Worked at the other small used car lot here in Taft too, S, J Mobley and she made it, So can We..

Thanks for the update and welcome to the forum.

It's interesting to hear first hand that the car market in Taft truly did change and the market is no longer able to support a new car dealership. I guess that's why your dealer wasn't able to find a buyer and decided to drop the new car franchises and run the business as a used car dealer.

I think it's easy to read all of the headlines in Automotive News about record sales and profits for car dealers and just assume that a "rising tide floats all boats" but that's not always the case. Even in these prosperous times there are some new car stores that are struggling to remain viable.

Concerning your Dealer Principal, he sounds like a great man who has strong ties to his community. I guess that explains why he didn't want to leave and go to another market. I wish him and all of his remaining employees the best - he certainly has Good Karma on his side.

[XDCX]

Originally Posted by Jeff Duvall

I wish you and the dealership nothing but the very best going forward, but if for some reason it does not work out send me a PM... You sound like a loyal, concerned and caring employee....the kind I like working for me.
jeff@duvallautomotive.com

That's very classy - props to you.

[jbellx02]

It's still possible to make it in a small rural market. Population of my small city is 1320 (25000 APR) which supports two New Car Dealerships, Ford and Chevrolet. These dealerships are 40 miles from stores that have New or Remodeled facilities.

My Chevrolet dealership has been in the family for 43 years, previous family had the dealership for 54 years.

Our business model can operate with 3 to 12 employees (depending on the economy) and return 2% on sales. The facility was constructed in 1928 and consistently scores 4.0 CSI for attractiveness, cleanliness. I have the newest store in town considering the Ford Store was built in 1920.

It would be most difficult to make it without the Chevrolet Bowtie. All GM programs are voluntary (EBE, SFE, Mark of Excellence). Personally I try to buy into all that I can afford and borrow ideas from the rest. Love to have a new facility, but the numbers just don't add up.