WardsAuto.com
James Flammang, WardsAuto
Mar. 8, 2012 11:30am
“We can all learn from young people,” says Brian Benstock, head of Paragon Acura-Honda.
LAS VEGAS – Brian Benstock, head of Paragon Acura-Honda in Woodside, NY, has some unique ideas on how to run the dealership’s used-car program, including who prices the cars for retail sales.
Instead of the expected veterans handling that end of the business, his team consists of two 23-year-old men.
They price all cars for Paragon: one does Acuras, the other Hondas. A third young fellow, also in his early 20s, prices at Paragon’s sister store.
“I left the dinosaurs behind,” Benstock says with a smile. “You don’t know that you’re extinct until you’re already extinct.”
On a serious note, he warns that, no matter how old, the person buying a car at wholesale or trade-in should not turn around and price the car for retail. Why? Because it is hard to admit a mistake.
As for his young pricers, “They look at it as a math problem,” Benstock says. “You don’t need a $200,000 or $300,000 used-car manager” to price cars.
They consider transaction prices from previous sales, then determine the ideal pricing spot for desirable gross and profit. Stay 1% to 2% under that optimum figure, and you’ll deliver the “highest-quality product at the lowest-possible price,” Benstock says. Continue Reading
