Bob Penkhus
Colorado Springs, CO
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Heuberger Motors started in 1970 as a Volkswagen dealership, but as it approaches its 40th anniversary, it's shedding its VW franchise and giving it to a friendly competitor across the street so it can focus on its successful Subaru line.
Earlier this month, Bob Penkhus sealed the deal to buy Gunnar Heuberger's Volkswagen franchise with an old-fashioned handshake, a transaction both owners say will help ensure that their dealerships fire on all cylinders in the future.
Penkhus, who founded his family business in 1957, made way for VW by purchasing a former Mitsubishi building adjacent to his Volvo-Mazda dealership in Motor City and renovating it to give his new brand a separate showroom.
Penkhus said he acquired the German brand to complement his existing franchises and shore up business in a volatile market. The dealership is on track to sell 20 to 30 new VWs this month, which Penkhus said would rival sales of his two other brands.
"The synergy that Volkswagen brings to our company is great. It breeds traffic and creates excitement internally, building a momentum that, hopefully, will continue through the rest of the year," he said.
While Heuberger and his 117 employees bid a sad farewell to the company's first franchise, they're gearing up for a $1 million expansion of a showroom that's now all Subaru, all the time.
"Volkswagen took up half the building, so we now have an 18-car showroom floor and 25 service stalls just for Subaru," he said.
Heuberger added the Japanese line in 1974, and local buyers have favored the all-wheel-drive vehicles so much that Heuberger's store became the nation's top-selling Subaru dealer in 2007, held on to the status last year and, this year, is advancing toward a sales record of 2,500 new cars. That would far surpass last year's sales volume of 1,789 new Subarus.
"We've had great customer support throughout the years. That, coupled with fantastic employees and a product people want, has made us what we are today," Heuberger said.
The dealership has also changed its name to Heuberger Motors Subaru Superstore and recently acquired a second Subaru franchise for the Springs market - meaning that a second Heuberger Subaru dealership will be built.
The city's second Volkswagen franchise, which Phil Winslow sold to the Al Serra auto group in 2003, is also undergoing change. Construction has begun to remodel a former Hummer showroom into a separate Volkswagen store at Chapel Hills Auto Mall in northern Colorado Springs.