Sam Raabe, GSM at Brandon Honda achieves Automotive News "40 Under 40" Designation

We want to congratulate our own Sam Raabe who has been designated in 2014 by Automotive News as one of just 40 Automotive Professionals to watch under the age of 40.

This is a fantastic achievement for Sam and as you can see from the Automotive News article below, well deserved.  Click here for the full article. On behalf of our GM John Marazzi and the entire Morgan Auto Group we toast to you Sam!

Great picture Sam and a fantastic job! Success at 33!

Taken from the July 14, 2014 issue of Automotive News: 

Sam Raabe was sick of working nights as a bartender, with no direction to his career. So he started selling cars at Kendall Kia in Miami. It was a way for a guy without a college degree to get a good-paying job and advance quickly.

Within a few years, Raabe (pronounced "Robbie") had risen to finance manager at Honda of Ocala. Now, he's general sales manager at Brandon Honda, a President's Award-winning Tampa dealership.

Raabe's sales tactics require managers to get involved early, "roaming the floor, not sitting at their desks," greeting customers early in the process. After a test drive, that same manager will handle any price negotiations after the first exchange of numbers. That speeds the deal process greatly, Raabe said.

"When the boss comes out, you know you are near the end of the deal, plus it gives credibility to the deal," Raabe said. "It's always the same guy as before the test drive, not some scary new guy."

Raabe also likes hiring sales staff who have never sold cars before. At his store, 70 percent of the staff is new to car retailing.

"They don't have bad habits. They only know our process and don't take shortcuts," Raabe said. That process includes daily inspections of recent trade-ins and inventory older than 60 days, as well as a daily one-hour training session by a manager to teach employees all facets of the business.

The tactics are working. In the six months of 2012 before Raabe took the general sales manager job, Brandon Honda sold an average of 174 new and 110 used cars a month. In 2013, that soared to 242 new and 151 used sales a month. Profits rose 42 percent.

Brandon Honda also is the top-rated Honda dealer in Florida on DealerRater, scoring a 4.9 out of 5 from more than 1,200 customer reviews, in a cut-throat metro market. There are nine Honda dealers within a 45 minute drive of Brandon Honda and four within 30 minutes.

Raabe is not satisfied. His target is 350 new and 250 used sales a month in 2015, with profits up 25 percent this year and 15 percent next year.

Raabe thanks Brandon managing partner John Marazzi for his mentoring and "never give up" attitude. Marazzi's best lesson, says Raabe: "No matter how tough it's going, you can never be afraid of taking risks. You need to take as many risks as possible."

-- Mark Rechtin (taken from Automotive News) 

TAGS: Sam Raabe, Brandon Honda, Honda in Tampa, FL, Brandon Honda, John Marazzi, Honda of Brandon, Tampa Honda, 40 Under 40, Automotive News 

Behind the Scenes with Zeus of Brandon Honda

So it's late and you are having trouble sleeping. The last commercial you saw before tucking in just happened to be a Brandon Honda commercial and now for some strange reason you are thinking about Zeus. While we wish you were thinking about a brand new Accord, you're not. You're thinking about our adorable Brandon Honda Mascot.

"Who is Zeus? And why do I want to shake his paw?" you wonder to yourself. "Surely he's just a marketing ploy right? Has to be just an employee's dog that is brought in to just look cute during the commercials, right?" Think again. Zeus is man's best friend. Well in this case he's the owner of Brandon Honda, John Marazzi's, best friend. Zeus is a rescue dog that John adopted and also the subject of one of my favorite stories in the car business.

Click Here to Watch Zeus Videos, Check The Zeus Facebook Page and Read More! 

As John's business partner in Brandon Honda I get to deal with John on numerous levels. I will never forget the day when I received an e-mail with one of the most unusual (albeit difficult to deny) requests that I have ever received in business. John wrote how he had adopted a rescue dog and how he would like to start bringing him to work and if that would be ok. I had absolutely no problem with this but I did wonder out loud as to why John Marazzi, one of the busiest men I know, would want his dog coming with him to work.

Perhaps I was thinking more less of my own personal experience as a dog owner. I have a beagle named Dempsey and it was easy to imagine my dog yelping all day long running up to customers from service to sales filling the showroom with his howl. But the truth is it only took a few visits to realize why Zeus makes so much sense for John and for Brandon Honda.

Nice to Meet You! 

The car business is stressful; it's easily a 12 hour a day job not to mention time after work returning e-mails and working on future promotion and planning. Zeus has one of the nicest demeanors I have ever found in a dog. Now John deserves some credit for this --- but Zeus surely provides smiles during long and stressful days.

Zeus also reminds our customers and guests that we are after all human. For many of us dog lovers dogs are a conversation piece like children or sports. They are something that binds us together and special friends that we hold dear to our hearts. Buying a car is an activity that can be intimidating and can seem at first impersonal. I'd have to think Zeus is available to take away some of that stress too.

So there you have it folks. The behind the scenes story on Zeus. Surely I've spent many a 12 hour day inside of a car dealership. For many of us we joke that is our second home. But to me --- the business has always been a happy home and I can see it is for Zeus too. How do I know? Well every time I step into John Marazzi's office and have a seat my favorite Brandon Honda greeter comes over...hands me a paw...and then heads back to his bed to relax. Sounds like a good life to me.