Digital Dealer - September 2019 - 25

PHOTOGRAPHY BY STEVE PUPPE

Country Hill Motors, a locally-owned, family-operated, and independent
used car dealership serving the greater Kansas City area, was founded
in 1984 by Josh Buterin, who was joined in business several years later
by John Zaslavsky. Throughout the 1980s, together they grew their
dealership and its inventory by purchasing quality new car trade-ins
from new car lots. They did this slowly and deliberately so the two
could remain debt-free and quickly discovered if you buy right, selling
is never a problem. Today, the company has more than 50 employees
across three locations - including an offsite reconditioning center and a
body shop.
Danny Zaslavsky is the general manager and partner at Country Hill
Motors. Under Danny's expanding leadership, the company has grown
significantly over the last decade adding new service lines, additional
businesses, and new locations across the metro. Danny also prioritizes
investments in leading-edge digital solutions and technology that helps
the dealership generate leads and close on sales faster, including social
media, CRM, and SEO. He and his husband are the proud fathers of
twin boys.
In the following interview, Danny reveals his three pillars of dealership
success, talks about his popular Season of Giving charity, and, as a
millennial himself, discusses how to best engage this new generation of
car shoppers.
DEALER MAGAZINE: Thanks for
agreeing to talk with us today, Danny.
Could you start by filling us in on your
car business and personal history?
DANNY: Of course! I'm proud to
share that I am a child of immigrant
parents. My mom and dad came
over from Ukraine in 1979. We were
adopted over with the help of the
Jewish Community Center. Starting
completely over, my mom went to work
for a clothing factory in downtown
Kansas City, and my dad opened up a
shoe repair business by renting a small
space down at the bottom of a hill off
Johnson Drive. At the top of that hill
was a car dealership, with less than a

dozen cars on it taking up a small part
of a long building.
My dad, being a car enthusiast his
whole life, would often walk the lot
and eventually even bought a car there.
During that time, he became friends
with the founder/salesperson/porter:
Josh. They quickly formed a friendship
and soon after a partnership.
Now at this time, I was a toddler
- we lived in a duplex with my
parents with us on one side and my
grandparents on the other. I was raised
speaking Russian until I was about
six years old and later learned English
once I got through kindergarten.
Growing up, I spent a lot of time at

the car dealership helping out how I
could. When I was about 14, I officially
started as a porter and worked my
way to a salesperson by sixteen. I even
learned to drive in the back of the lot in
an old Chevy Nova with no passenger
door and no reverse, what do they say?
Those were the days... haha.
Like many, I learned that I excelled
at the things I enjoyed doing. During
the summer before my senior year
of high school, I found myself
fascinated with marketing. I had many
conversations with my dad and Josh
about our image in the community
- the messages we wanted to share

D I G I TA L D E A L E R . C O M

Continued on pg. 26

SEPTEMBER 2019

25
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Digital Dealer - September 2019

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