Image courtesy of Heidi Kikel/Schnitzel Studios
Dealer Magazine had the privilege of talking with Marcus Withers, a part of one of the leading minority dealership groups in the U.S, working in sales, operations, financing and insurance and management.
Withers is Dealer Principal of Withers Automotive Worldwide, which operates in the Louisville, KY area. The auto group closed on two more dealerships in July as part of a plan to have between 10 and 20 dealerships by the end of the decade.
Withers, joined by Withers Automotive Worldwide CFO John Flynn, reflects on why he entered the dealership business, how his other business ventures have shaped how he runs a dealership—including promoting diversity and inclusion within its leadership and overall organization—and his plans for growth.
DEALER MAGAZINE: Marcus, thanks for taking time out of your schedule to speak with us. Can you share some insights into your background and what inspired you to enter the automotive industry?
Marcus Withers: I focused on marketing in college and knew I wanted to build freedom and success for my family and I saw automobiles, real estate and insurance as ways to make that happen. I focused my first efforts on dealerships because my strength with people and building relationships created strong opportunities to advance my career quickly. It was a good starting point.
DEALER MAGAZINE: You've had a diverse entrepreneurial journey, including real estate. How did these experiences shape your approach to running Withers Automotive?
Withers: When I started my career as an entrepreneur, I knew that discipline and hustle would give me a leg up and move me forward quickly. I was always able to cut a good deal, developed really strong, negotiating skills early in my career, and have built a great understanding about what is important to me when I buy something by knowing what I want, and by focusing on who I am as a customer. It became very easy for me to build methods that insured my customers would be happy with what I sold them and how I serviced their accounts.
DEALER MAGAZINE: What’s important to you when you make a “consumer” purchase?
Withers: Customer service, no matter the size of the purchase. It could be as small as $1, but it's all about how you interact with your customer and how you treat them. I take pride in providing perfect customer service. I want my customers to feel well-treated, no matter what.
John Flynn: At Withers, Marcus’ standards drive everything we do for our customers. We prioritize quality, aligning our services with his high expectations. Every decision and interaction is evaluated based on whether it would meet his exacting standards. And his hands-on approach ensures that we consistently aim for nothing less than perfection to reflect positively on our services.
Early Challenges
DEALER MAGAZINE: What were some of the biggest challenges you faced when you first ventured into the automotive dealership business, and how did you overcome them?
Withers: When I first bought Chrysler of Lawrenceburg, the organization lacked direction and focus. Because my experience in the automobile business had only been early in my career, one of the hardest things for me to do to was bring career automotive personnel to my way of thinking. Once I was able to lead my organization and inspire them to their best possibilities, things turned around very quickly.
DEALER MAGAZINE: Can you give us an example of something very specific from your playbook that was critical for these auto teams to adopt?
Withers: When we were creating a sales playbook, we encountered resistance from older automobile salespeople who were set in their ways. They preferred traditional sales methods, such as waiting for customers to come to them in the showroom. However, modern automobile sales is highly digital.
Flynn: In Marcus's entertainment business—recording music, artist promotion, studio operations, and live event—the digital aspect is crucial. This involves reaching out to the market, generating inbound leads, and building strong relationships with customers using digital strategies.
By implementing Marcus's digital tactics, even experienced salespeople are able to significantly increase their sales performance. For instance, a salesperson selling 15 cars a month using traditional methods could potentially sell 24 cars per month by adopting Marcus's digital enhancements. This could result in a substantial increase in income, as well as the opportunity to achieve bonus milestones.
We have seen the positive impact of these strategies, particularly as we have worked to regain our sales volume after the pandemic.
In addition to sales, the use of digital tools has been beneficial in our service department, allowing us to stay in constant communication with customers, thereby strengthening relationships and generating business opportunities.
Overall, Marcus's utilization of cutting-edge technology and our comprehensive operational software package has been instrumental in our continuous improvement and success in the market.
DEALER MAGAZINE: What steps do you take, via talent, technology and training, to ensure that your dealerships provide a customer experience that is competitive with the best in the industry?
Withers: There are so many things we need to do to be competitive in the industry today. Our marketing initiatives need to connect to the right customer, provide messages which are data driven, and specific to those customer’s needs. We need to connect to them through our technology platforms and begin building a long-term relationship where we inform them of what things we can offer them and what services we believe lead value to their automotive experience. We offer access to industry best practice initiatives and understand how to follow those business endeavors to successful outputs.
DEALER MAGAZINE: What are some of the resources or vendors that have been instrumental in your success at your organization?
Withers: We have partnered with Dealer Synergy for approximately two years, and their support has been invaluable. They have assisted us with recruiting, staffing, and HR, and have been instrumental in setting up and training us on our VinSolutions CRM. Additionally, Dealer Synergy has helped us develop our Internet Sales and BDC strategy. Their training and support have been crucial in the rapid growth of our digital business. I highly recommend them!
DEALER MAGAZINE: Can you detail some of the operational changes installed?
Withers: We utilize DealerTrack across all of our dealerships, and it's incredibly helpful in managing data and keeping customer information secure, yet accessible. We constantly review our incoming and outgoing interactions with our buyers every month and work with three or four lead partners to help generate leads.
We've tried various platforms and sources for inbound leads, including traditional methods such as mailers and events, like our Saturday barbecues at our Lawrenceburg dealership. These events help build a sense of community and contribute to our charitable efforts within the community.
We have also leveraged the Cox platform, which has proved to be incredibly beneficial in managing our operations.
Flynn: We have developed some proprietary tools within our organization, leveraging the skills of our in-house programmers. While our Chrysler and Ford stores run on platforms native to the OEMs, we have made enhancements to ensure a personalized experience for visitors to our website.
Since Marcus took over, our Chrysler dealership in Lawrenceburg has seen a significant increase in performance, achieving exceptional results month after month. This success can be attributed to our focus on ensuring every customer leaves satisfied with their purchase or service experience.
Overall, our goal is to provide the kind of experience that Marcus himself would be happy with, ensuring that all our customers are equally satisfied.
Leadership Philosophy
DEALER MAGAZINE: How would you describe your leadership style, and how has it evolved over the years?
Withers: I am very hands-on. I look at every customer through the lens of how I would be as a customer. I am very demanding, and will not accept subpar service at any point in my customer experience. By focusing on delivering service and sales experience that would satisfy me, I am able to create customer experiences that have allowed us to build our business very quickly.
DEALER MAGAZINE: Are there automotive industry partners/mentors that have helped you hone that for the dealer group? Withers: I come from a background in servant leadership. I had the privilege of observing my father, who was a high school principal, and learning from his management style and how he interacted with people. He was always there for his staff, and his approach taught me the importance of being a servant leader. This is a big part of our beliefs and how we at our dealerships.
My father-in-law, Winston Pittman Sr., has been in the auto industry for over 40 years and currently manages five rooftops. I have had the opportunity to work closely with him and served as a finance director for his Mercedes Benz BMW franchise from 2001 to 2003. I've learned a lot from him and have incorporated many of his principles into my own business.
DEALER MAGAZINE: You’ve mentioned that you prefer a hands-on approach to managing your dealerships. Can you elaborate on why this is important to you and how it impacts your business?
Withers: The automobile is the second largest purchase most people make in their lifetimes. Having a hands-on approach is critical. When people buy a car, they need to understand what equipment is best for them what items they need to make sure the car cost is managed properly over the long haul, and what kind of service initiatives will ensure that experience and expense yield an optimum result that makes them happy.
DEALER MAGAZINE: How many customers do you personally speak to in an average week? What do those conversations often entail?
Withers: I used to be very involved at the dealership when I first started at the Lawrenceburg location. I regularly spoke with customers, especially those who had issues or complaints, as these would often come to me. I enjoyed speaking with these customers because it was important to make sure that any issues or problems were resolved to ensure their satisfaction—my main focus was always making sure the customers were happy.
Recently, I have been focusing on growth and expansion within the company. This means I have been spending more time on the acquisition side, searching for opportunities to expand the Withers Automotive brand.
Diversity and Inclusion
DEALER MAGAZINE: How does Withers Automotive Worldwide promote diversity and inclusion within its leadership and overall organization?
Withers: Obviously, my experience as a minority dealer has exposed me to many initiatives to allow me to provide the same kind of opportunity for all my staff. We try to see a world with no division; all employees and staff members are here for one reason—to serve customers well. We want to create and foster excellence while helping our employees achieve their maximum potential. We certainly allow everyone at Withers to become what they aspire to and offer training and support to make a job into a career.
DEALER MAGAZINE: You are also actively involved in affordable housing projects. How do these initiatives align with your work in the automotive industry?
Withers: Allocating funding to affordable housing allows me to help young people find safe, well-designed and supportive complexes where they can achieve their best potential.
DEALER MAGAZINE: When did you start this initiative and what was the catalyst behind it?
Withers: I grew up as an inner-city kid in Louisville. My parents split up when I was young, so I understood being at a disadvantage. Before getting into the car business, I started by working on affordable housing projects, buying and fixing up homes to provide a better living environment for those in need. I'm passionate about giving kids a comfortable and supportive environment because I believe it's essential for their well-being. Additionally, I lead food initiatives through all my businesses, throughout those communities, so that no child goes hungry.
Growth and Acquisitions
DEALER MAGAZINE: Withers Automotive Worldwide aims to redefine the industry landscape. Can you elaborate on your vision for the company and how you plan to achieve it?
Withers: We try to provide the service that we demand. My vision is that every salesperson is knowledgeable about our product line and our competition, and that every person who connects with the customer makes that customer the focal point of a unique customer experience and that at the end that we create happy customers in sales and service, who come back again and again.
DEALER MAGAZINE: With recent dealership acquisitions, what strategies do you have in place to ensure their success and integration into your portfolio?
Withers: Our intention is to grow our organization to 20 dealership points over the next three-four years with a strong regional presence. The more dealerships we acquire the more we can integrate things like inventory and customer experience across our platforms. If someone in Louisville wants a car that is in Salem, Indiana, our system allows remote notification of our Gilstrap dealership which activates our drivers to move the vehicle where a customer wants it.
DEALER MAGAZINE: What are your long-term goals for Withers Automotive Worldwide, and where do you see the company in the next ten years?
Withers: We certainly would like to have a strong regional footprint in the eastern United States. We are currently looking at opportunities in four states, including Kentucky, and hope in the next couple of years we can expand to a regional footprint and results that let people know we mean business.
Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs
DEALER MAGAZINE: What’s a daily routine as an entrepreneur that you feel would benefit someone in the early stages of that journey?
Withers: I remind myself that I’m always going always face challenges BUT the challenges are the things that inspire me and keep me moving. That helps me continue to build these businesses and find new paths of growth.
Flynn: Marcus leads without ego and is not afraid to put a team out on the battlefield. He handles the business carefully step by step, living in simple principles every day.
Marcus is a good family man with faith, intelligence, and drive. He is always focused on finishing what he starts, never taking anything 90 percent of the way. He is keenly focused on output and is always looking for new opportunities to sell and service more vehicles and deliver excellence. Marcus values every person and their skills, and he constantly seeks to level up. He is a visionary, a philanthropist, and an entrepreneur.
Our team's success is attributed to Marcus' relentless pursuit of excellence. Working with him is like being coached by Nick Saban—he doesn't stop until he reaches the end, and that keeps us all keenly focused.
DEALER MAGAZINE: What advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs who want to enter the automotive industry or start their own business?
Withers: When I first started out, I always believed that there was a seat for every customer. I have promoted music, created real estate with happy renters and buyers at the other end and built wonderful dealer organizations where every Saturday you can walk onto one of my dealerships and see barbecue cookouts and community connections, and something that is lasting and can be a generational initiative where my children can potentially follow me into this business.
What I know from my own experience is that anyone with discipline and dreams can achieve whatever they aspire to.