Digital Dealer - February 2020 - 20

E XC LU S I V E I N T E RV I E W

what has propelled us to success. When my
brother and I joined the business, we committed to innovating in all facets of the dealership,
including retail, service and overall customer
satisfaction. Before technology became the driver
of innovation, Ricart Automotive implemented
many physical innovations into our dealership.
For example, we've had a mobile service
offering for quite some time, way before mobile
service was familiar to many customers. Similarly,
our dealerships have had welcome centers for
customers since the 1980s and our employees,
including senior leadership, have shared office
space - before many other businesses adopted
these ideas.

DEALER MAGAZINE: Together with your
brother, Fred, you took over the business
from your father. Are you planning on turning it over to the next generation when the

vehicles is that the billions of dollars spent on
R&D has provided a plethora of safety products,
which are integrated into cars and trucks of today
without the need for full autonomy. For dealers,
we have the opportunity to sell our customers
vehicles with increased safety features.
And even if we get to a point of a vehicle for
retail sale that doesn't require a driver, that
vehicle will be incurring mileage and, as such, will
require regular maintenance and repairs. Given
the increasing complexity of vehicles, including autonomous vehicles, dealers are uniquely
positioned to offer this service with their service
technicians trained directly by the OEMs.

DEALER MAGAZINE: Our industry is
seeing more and more women serving as
dealer principals. Does NADA have a plan
or program for attracting more women to
dealership roles?

" Innovation is key to everything

we do and what has propelled us
to success. "
time comes? If so, how are you preparing
them for the handoff?
I am excited that our children are interested
in leading the next generation of our company.
These days, I spend my time more focused on
teaching and mentoring them than I do running
the day-to-day of the business. One value I've
worked to nurture in each of our kids is approachability. We're all very approachable - not only by
our employees, but also by our customers. This is
something that my father showed my brother and
I and we want to pass down.

DEALER MAGAZINE: As technology improves, what will be the impact on dealerships of electric and self-driving vehicles?
Dealers are in business to sell consumers whatever vehicle they want. We don't care if what a
consumer wants is a traditional ICE powertrain or
a battery electric vehicle, or if it has a particular
design; we want to provide customers what they
want.
The beauty of the push for autonomous

[ d i g i t a l d e a l e r. c o m ]

The number of women working in automotive retail has been about 20 percent of overall
dealership employment for several years, and
NADA is committed to attracting more women
to the industry. Last year, NADA launched an
initiative, Women Driving Auto Retail, to attract
more women to careers in dealerships. You'll hear
much more about Women Driving Auto Retail at
the 2020 NADA Show in Las Vegas and upcoming
events throughout the year.
At the dealership level, I see dealers committed
to attracting more women by creating an environment that fosters diversity. There are so many
different career paths that women can take in the
auto retail space and as dealers, we are working to
share the opportunities.

DEALER MAGAZINE: In an age where
brand loyalty seems to be fading fast, how
can dealers find, create and retain loyal
customers?
Transparency and a commitment to taking care
of your customers are paramount to attracting

February 2020

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Digital Dealer - February 2020

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