Garber Buick GMC in Fort Pierce, Florida, the newest member of Garber Automotive Group's four-state family of dealerships, is open for business with all the accoutrements customers look for when they're shopping for a new car, as well as an eye toward community service.
"The showroom is large and inviting," Garber Automotive Group Assistant Controller Ty Mier told Mega Dealer News. "The service drive has two incoming lanes for morning traffic, so that every customer that drives in is protected from the elements. We also constructed a 'Quick Lane' drive so that customers needing basic routine maintenance can get in and out quickly, as we know their time is important."
Garber Buick GMC on South U.S. Highway 1 in Fort Pierce, Florida, also provides two delivery bays directly off the showroom provided dedicated space for the delivery of customers' new vehicles, Mier said.
"These protect the customers and vehicles from the elements, whether that be 100-degree heat, wind, or rain," he said.
Garber Buick GMC also offers a "Community Room" free for "anyone that may need a meeting or gathering space," Mier said. "This space will accommodate 40 people, it not only provides a service to our customers and the community, but helps attract potential customers to our showroom by allowing more people to visit the facility."
Garber Buick GMC recently joined the Garber Automotive family of dealerships, now a total of 12 dealerships in Saginaw, Midland and Linwood Michigan' Glendale Heights and Fox Lake, Illinois; Rochester, New York; and Green Cove Springs, Delray Beach and now Fort Pierce in Florida.
Now part of Garber Automotive Group, itself family owned and operated since 1907, Garber Buick GMC in Fort Pierce offers "the largest selection of new Buicks and GMCs in St. Lucie, Martin, and Okeechobee counties," according to information on the Fort Pierce dealership's website.
After acquiring the location in 2013, Garber automotive wanted to let perspective customers know that Garber was there, Mier said.
"The goal was to attract new customers and show that Garber was new to the area, but prepared to invest in this space to serve customer's ever changing needs," he said.
"We also wanted to make it an easy place for customers do business, including those that had been loyal to the previous owners for many years."
Though there have been some changes, Mier said.
"The old facility was outdated," he said. "It was built in the 1970s and didn't meet the customer or manufacturer expectations."
All of that has been cleared away to make space for the new Garber look and design, Mier said.
"The new design is sleek and modern, which matches with the Buick and GMC brands," he said.
"We also saw this as an opportunity to create a dedicated used vehicle sales building. We built a 3000-square-foot stand-alone building to hold our pre-owned staff."
A great deal of thought and planning went into the design for the new building and showroom, Mier said.
"It was really a combination of things," he said. "We completely bulldozed the old sales facility, but left the service shop as it was. We had to create a design that met with GM standards, but also attach to the existing service bays."
Garber Buick GMC in Fort Pierce reached its goal in its new facility, Mier said.
"Our goal was to make it as consumer and community friendly as possible as well as create a flow for the service vehicles which included the technicians and their access to the parts department," he said.
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