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BMW 3-Series (E90 E92) Forum > BMW E90/E92/E93 3-series General Forums > New & Preowned BMW Ordering / Pricing / Tracking Information Forum (including European Delivery) > BMW Dealer Reviews + Ratings Forum > Let's Buy a BMW Dealership....



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      04-26-2006, 10:03 AM   #1
MoreCowbell
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Let's Buy a BMW Dealership....

Do you think any other dealership could provide the knowledge, service and care that a group of Bimmer enthusiasts could? A dealership Run by enthusiasts, for enthusiasts and first time owners. Come on, can't miss...

-Are there any for sale?
-What would it cost?
-What are our barriers of entry?
-How can we differentiate ourselves from the pack???
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      04-26-2006, 10:11 AM   #2
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we'll go under with all the invoice pricing our enthusiast friends will insist from us
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      04-26-2006, 10:24 AM   #3
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e90 and Bimmfest members get a strict $750 over invoice if they are previous BMW drivers.
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      04-26-2006, 10:45 AM   #4
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This actually isnt a bad idea, but i where would it be located? And would BMW approve of this?

I'm guessing that it would have to be a regular BMW dealership, since its not like you are not gonna sell BMWs to ONLY enthusists and first time owners. Most BMW owners dont even know what kind of engine is under their hood...
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      04-26-2006, 10:47 AM   #5
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i say...it should be somewhere in the tristate. haha...i think it's a good idea...and actually thought about it since most sales are morons
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      04-26-2006, 10:51 AM   #6
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Of course KL2, you'd have to market to everybody, otherwise you'd never make it, BUT, you can market as a supplement directly to enthusiasts. Think about it, a Enthusiast would never come to a dealership aimed at the first time buyer, but a first time buyer would probably come to a dealership aimed at the enthusiast, thinking they'd like knowledge base.

I'm in the northeast, and would love do it here. You'd have to buy an existing dealership with a poor following and rebuild it's rep. Also, I think you might need/want to combine it with a non-competing line of cars that has a heavy enthusiast following. Hummer? Honda?
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      04-26-2006, 10:56 AM   #7
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gluck75: A BMW/Mini franchise of course!!

I suppose we could do a lot of internet sales with PCD...that'll broaden the client base. I can't think of anything else we could do different rather than improved knowledge/sales practices and special showroom configuration (although as a franchise, I believe there are certain guidlines). Maybe we can minimize stock/inventory and maximize the ordering/tracking experience ...
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      04-26-2006, 10:59 AM   #8
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We can set ourselves apart through our ability to accomodate special options/custom (BMW Individual, Priority-1, Protection etc), authorized dealers/service for big tuning houses like Dinan and RD and expedited clearing/processing/shipping (lots of xmas cars filled with $100 bills to our freinds at the POEs etc
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      04-26-2006, 11:05 AM   #9
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I love it!!!

What strategies can we have for increasing internet sales???
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      04-26-2006, 11:09 AM   #10
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I totally agree. I would love to sell BMW products if it wasn't for all the sales junk I don't want to deal with. I worked in a dealership as a host when I was in college (don't crack it...I made some good $$ and got to play with cars all day...all I needed to do was greet customers). All the junk that went on in there made me leave that place pretty quick....I couldn't handle it. I did, however, love when the sales people were busy and I would have to entertain customers. I picked up quickly on the cars, and I LOVED explaining them to people. I wish that was all it took to make the sale.....expertise on the product and good customer service. But there are the people that want cars half off because they are convinced the mark-up on these things is huge.

One thing I learned though was this: figure after everything is all said and done, the dealership makes $2,000 off your purchase. You keep the car 5 years, meaning that each month of ownership, you provided the dealer with about $32.00 of profit. However, people don't bicker over mark-up at the grocery store....which makes tons more money in 5 years off of you than the dealership.
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      04-26-2006, 11:22 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gluck75
I love it!!!

What strategies can we have for increasing internet sales???
Well...A lot of folks do not realize that they can order from a dealer faraway and pick up the car at the Performance Ctr that may be closer to them or more fun.

I think if we can sell the PCD effectively, that'll be great, its a unique selling point ... for internet sales.

Also affiliating ourselves with online communities such as e90post or b'fest or similar would help a lot!
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      04-26-2006, 11:33 AM   #12
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Well, I do not believe BMW has an tickets open in the the US currently. It would take a long time for them to approve a new dealership that they feel is necessary. MINI tickets are even more rare and there are so many dealerships right now on a waiting list for a MINI ticket. The dealership I work at used to sell MINI's, but since the expansion and remodel they took the ticket away and put them on a waiting list. They used to sell MINI's way back when. Unfortunately, that is very competitive.
You also have to look at one perspective. gluck, you say who wouldnt want to buy a car from BMW enthusiasts, there are a lot of people that dont workout because the local gym that they would work out at, is full of enthusiasts and they are intimidated. They will stick to forums and edmunds to get the information they need and all in all in the end, they wont care about your enthusiasm, they care about the price.
What would really bring people in, is if you had a track in the back lot where you could test drive the vehicles performance and handling. That is something that you should think about if you would like to open a dealership.
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      04-26-2006, 11:35 AM   #13
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Once you guys get this dealership, let me know. (hint hint, JOB!)

I can talk my way outta everything = good sales
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      04-26-2006, 11:52 AM   #14
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toolfan: Ouch reality check!! Thanks for the info, did not know that... Those Mini's are easy sales, aren't they...
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      04-26-2006, 12:08 PM   #15
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The track is GREAT idea, with 2 Caveats...

Real Estate in the Northeast and Insurance...
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      04-26-2006, 12:44 PM   #16
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I want to know if we can use our forum names?

"Mary,...Im gluck75...I'll be glad to help you...!"
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      04-26-2006, 12:54 PM   #17
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"Hi, Welcome to Enthusiast's BMW, I'm Bella's Bmw, would you care for some information on a BMW?

...That might not work...
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      04-26-2006, 01:17 PM   #18
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i'd be so up for it if it was even remotely possible, great idea!
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      04-26-2006, 01:32 PM   #19
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We'd need a good mix of good BMW enthusiasts and salespeople and some Industry Vets to keep the place on the straight and narrow financially.

How much do you think it would take to buy a smaller, low-volume dealership, thats underperforming and can be fixed?

Ballpark...???
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      04-26-2006, 02:48 PM   #20
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gluck75
We'd need a good mix of good BMW enthusiasts and salespeople and some Industry Vets to keep the place on the straight and narrow financially.

How much do you think it would take to buy a smaller, low-volume dealership, thats underperforming and can be fixed?

Ballpark...???
I would say at least 2-3 mil?
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      04-26-2006, 03:22 PM   #21
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We'd also have to take existing inventory into account.
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      04-26-2006, 03:29 PM   #22
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I have thought about this. If you're marketing towards enthusiasts, you wouldn't need a big dealer anyway, because everyone would order it to their specs. I guess you could have a full loaded demo of every car.
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