What I've Been Up To
 

As I shared back in April, I had a bit of a life change when I was laid off from my aerospace management job of 8 years. For quite some time it appeared that a move was inevitable, but there was simply nothing that worked out. With kids' school and fall sports starting it became time to fish or cut bait, and we made the decision to stay put in Wichita and make it work. Our local aerospace industry has never really recovered from 2008, and with very few jobs available I decided to make my own luck. So in late July I obtained a used auto dealer's license and started my own business buying, refurbishing, and selling used cars.

Much like a crackhead that also deals, I plan to stick with things that interest me, like my current inventory of a '99 Jeep Wrangler, '97 Boxster, and '11 Jeep Wrangler. I don't think I would stay interested dealing in Corollas and Accords. I leased a 1200 sq ft shop that has heat and A/C (thank God), and plan on keeping a small inventory of vehicles stored inside. Great side benefit for a car guy, it also gives me a fantastic place to detail and wrench on my own cars. Obligatory camera phone pics are below.

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(Mustang and Mazda5 not for sale)

I plan to mainly focus on marketing each individual car, I don't need foot traffic like an individual dealership. Just like the cars I've sold over the years as an individual I plan to fully refurbish everything that I sell, thoroughly document all work done, and advertise them in excruciating detail. Because I have auction access I also plan to offer flat-rate auto location services.

I'm not totally discarding my aerospace engineering degree (and pending MBA), just sitting them aside for a bit. If something local works out in aerospace then I will retain this as a side business. Though for now I have to say, I love working for myself.

Inspirational Matt, good luck! I've been charged with finding a G50 coupe for a friend, one of my competitors, so if you find something, let me know.

Cool. I visited a low volume dealer recently when I was considering an "affordable 996". A much different business model than needing foot traffic to push metal out the door. Good luck to you!

Matt, there's a guy here in Portland who does essentially what you are doing. He had all his inventory indoors, and he dealt mostly BMW's with the occasional Porsche, Merc or LandRover plus whatever trade in he might take...

Business has been good for him, he relocated to a larger space; I check his inventory from time to time, and stuff seems to move. (Stuff always seems pretty high to me, too, but I guess you need some wiggle room)

(BTW, he is just a super nice guy, no hint of a used car salesman in his persona.)

Good Luck in this endeavor. I'd buy a car from you, if the need arose!

He maintains a simple website...

http://www.stanbennettsales.com/index.htm

chit..that is a nice jeep!!

good luck..i've always thought one should use their siuperpower for good..and we all know what your superpower is...finding great cars..

have fun!!

Best of luck to ya Matt! Thanks for posting this...

ps: The fellow I bought my F150 from has a small lot but a huge % of his sales are via the Internet....someone else does all that for him though. Something to think about as this goes forward...

Congratulations. Working for yourself is great, until you need help. Then you start working for them. Stay small and you will stay happy.

That's a ballsy move and I applaud your effort. Best of luck with your new endeavor.

You know how fond I am of you, Matt. You are just one of those guys.

I can't tell you how much confidence I have in your abilities to make this work.

Good on you, young man.

Good luck, Matt, and congratulations on the new business.

I've always wanted to get together with someone like you to detail for. I was a detailer for years back in college and keep the hobby alive with my personal cars but I like bringing beat up cars back to former glory and since my personal cars never get too bad, it's not as fun. It always amazes me how few sellers understand that simply turning on a vacuum can do wonders for your sale chances!

All the best to you. I hope it works out well and you have fun in the process.

Welcome to the auto biz Matt! You'll do fine, sounds like you have a lot of experience already. Just remember the golden rule, buy low, sell high.

Wow, that's impressive and ballsy. Way to go. I hope it works out very well for you.

Ha! Another rocket scientist looking for a real job! Welcome to the club!
Best of luck. I'll bet the Corollas and Accords could keep the cash flow steady, even if they aren't any fun.

Thanks all!

I'm proud to say that I'm not a former salesman of any kind. That's definitely not part of my business model. BTW, I want to meet the guy that gives $17950 for 944S. YGBSM!

I'll make you a good deal on it.:D

1999 Jeep Wrangler Sahara - Exceptional Condition TJ

At the moment I'm 100% marketing via the internet. Right now it's purely Craigslist, Ebay, and possibly Autotrader. I've considered a website but don't know how I would get the traffic that the aforementioned sites would get. As for having someone else do it, I suspect I'd pay a fortune to get the level of fidelity that I expect. If you check out my Jeep ad link above, I'm big on detail.

The feeling is absolutely mutual. When you finally wear out that 4Runner, I'm here to help.

I honestly spend more time detailing than anything else. Were I to start increasing my inventory I likely wouldn't have the time and would have to consider subbing some of it out. I agree though, it's amazing how few people actually clean their car before selling.

My grandfather was a self made businessman, he made most of his money by starting multiple mobile home parks and sales lots. He had two favorite sayings:

"You make your money when you buy, not when you sell"
"If they don't say no at least once, you paid too much"

He was a huge influence on me, I'm doing my best to channel him in this business venture.

The best part of making this decision and going for it now is that years from now you will never look back regretting that you didn't give it a go. Best of luck with your new business....

Congrats Matt! Like Paul said, we know you can do it! And let me know if you need eyes on something out here or a place to crash when you come get something.

Don't get me wrong, I won't turn down a good deal. It's just not really my focus. I've done well selling exceptionally well sorted and clean Porsches over the years, because Porsche guys will pay for a really great car.

Exactly my thought. You only live once.

Sid, I owe you and Thuy a special thanks for your time and help when I was considering a move to Mesa. Both of you, as well as many other Pelicans that offered input, made the thought of moving from KS to AZ far less intimidating.

No problem Matt. We are happy to help out a friend in need. Come back out sometime when that cold KS winter gets too long!