James Peck was born in Oak Park Illinois and spent the first 30 years of his life in Elmhurst, Illinois. He then moved to beautiful Lake Geneva, Wisconsin and has been there for the last 35 years. 

Jim has been in the auto dealership business since he was 16 years old. Thirty-five years ago, Jim bought a very small struggling Ford dealership in Clinton, Wisconsin, turned it around, and has been building that business since.

In this episode, we chat about:

• How he got his start in the auto business as a teenager
• The impact seeing his family dealership being repossessed at a young age had on him
• How he was able to help his family get back into the auto dealership business just eight years later
• His method for ensuring his dealership will survive downturns in the market
• His strategy for growing his business and sales revenue
• How he’s managed to set things up so that he has more free time than the average dealership owner or manager
• His thoughts on the future of the auto dealership industry
• His advice for the next generation who want to get into the car dealership business

To learn more about the resources mentioned in this episode, visit the show notes.

Heard something on one of the shows and want to discuss it further or just looking for some ideas on how to grow your dealership?

I'd be happy to have a quick chat with you about it.  Book a virtual "coffee" and we can talk about your car business and where you want to go next.  Click to access my private calendar for a 15 minute chat.

Or alternatively look me up on Linkedin or Facebook or feel free to reach out to me directly at Zane@ZaneMyers.com

In this first official episode of Conversations with Car Dealers, I’m honored to bring you this conversation with Justin Cole.

Justin is the founder of Accelerate Auto Group and the online platform FAST.CARS. Born with “the car bug”, he started his first business at the age of twelve. He then started his first dealership while he was still in college. His story is a fascinating one and his journey is anything but a straight line to the top.

In this episode, we chat about:

• How Justin started his first business at the age of twelve
• The experience of buying his first car at the age of fourteen
• How his passion for cars started at a young age, how he landed a multi-million-dollar loan in his twenties to start his first dealership selling classic cars
• The biggest disasters he had to overcome during the early days of the dealership
• The one car that saved his business from doom, how the 2008 recession completely shifted what his business operations
• The circumstances that led to his decision to close the business in 2011
• How his time working at other car dealerships ultimately led him back to owning his own dealership again
• Why he finds marketing so frustrating
• The number piece of marketing advice he has for other car dealers
• His advice for someone looking to get into the car business
• How a stolen fuel door turned into a moral victory for his team

Resource Links:

• Accelerate Auto Group
• FAST.CARS
• Justin's Dealership Phone Number: (469) 300-9669

To learn more about the resources mentioned in this episode, visit the show notes.

Heard something on one of the shows and want to discuss it further or just looking for some ideas on how to grow your dealership?

I'd be happy to have a quick chat with you about it.  Book a virtual "coffee" and we can talk about your car business and where you want to go next.  Click to access my private calendar for a 15 minute chat.

Or alternatively look me up on Linkedin or Facebook or feel free to reach out to me directly at Zane@ZaneMyers.com

Tune into Conversations With Car Dealers every week to meet the top shakers and movers in the car business and find out what they did to achieve their incredible success and what they’re doing right now to stay on top.  

This is a more personal look at the people behind the car business to get the inside scoop of “How’d they do that?”  Hopefully, you will pick up some ideas and tips that you can use to grow your dealership and/or inspiration for your career path in the dealership world.

What you won't find on here:

• Companies hawking stuff. No pitches about the latest and greatest marketing tools or trying to sell you "bunch o' cr*p". The idea here is to provide inspiration and actionable content you can use to grow your business and/or your career in the car business.

LIsten to this brief introductory episode for a few more details of what we'll cover each week and a quick introduction bio about me.

To learn more about the resources mentioned in this episode, visit the show notes.

Heard something on one of the shows and want to discuss it further or just looking for some ideas on how to grow your dealership?

I'd be happy to have a quick chat with you about it.  Book a virtual "coffee" and we can talk about your car business and where you want to go next.  Click to access my private calendar for a 15 minute chat.

Or alternatively look me up on Linkedin or Facebook or feel free to reach out to me directly at Zane@ZaneMyers.com