Pub. 1 2018-2019 |Issue 3

18 component in any program it tried. By keeping control of the program within a dealership and using vehicles that were well-cared-for and had lower miles, then swapping them out of the program after six months, it would be possible to give customers a product they wanted without devaluing Subaru’s value. Mark Miller Subaru Midtown, located at 3535 S State Street, started a rental program at the end of 2018 with a commitment to keep it going for at least one year. The dealership put 40 cars into the program to start, which seemed more than enough at the time. Subaru is watching to see whether the program is good enough to expand it to other dealerships. Jeff hired Brian Naylor to manage the program because of Brian’s expertise in the field and because he already knew him. Brian has been working in the rental industry since 2005. When Brian first heard from Jeff, he had some reservations because of his experience in the rental car industry, but Jeff told Brian that this was going to be a different kind of operation, one that would be based on the company’s core values. The idea was to rent cars to customers in a simple, customer-oriented way and to treat the rental employees well, too. The Mark Miller core values ask employ- ees to be or do the following: • Be accountable and self-disciplined •Look for the good in every situation •Continuously look forward by innovat- ing and improving •Foster teamwork and respect for everyone • Be honest, ethical, and transparent • Care for people, pets, and the planet • Treat everyone like family Brian loved the vision and couldn’t help but join the team and help build the program. Three months into the program, the rental program has al- ready proven itself as an asset. Having the rental cars has been a win-win situation, because employees can now more effectively help customers of all major departments: the body shop, within the parts department, and the service center. It has even helped with sales, because customers can now try out a car by renting it for a week: • If they decide to buy the car they rented, their rental money is applied toward the purchase. • If they buy a different car instead, they can apply half of what they paid to rent toward the purchase. The rental program has been as pop- ular as Jeff and Brian expected, but it has grown faster than they thought it would. They’ve had to increase their goals in order to keep those goals meaningful. Mark Miller Subaru already had a loaner fleet of about 50 cars, purchased under a different program, and usually swaps those cars out after a month or two. The new rental department has its own separate fleet, purchased under a different program than the one that supplies themwith its loaner fleet, but it already needs to expand to about 60 or 70 cars. In the future, the goal is to have rental vehicles at the South Towne location as well. Having a rental department agency within a dealership is one of those smart ideas that are a great move for any dealership: • It’s convenient and cost-competitive. • It strengthens the relationship with new or existing customers. • It broadens the dealership business model, which is particularly timely since autonomous cars are just around the corner. • It maintains brand strength because the dealership manages the cars instead of some other company. Jeff Miller may have been the first Utah retailer to put this idea to work, but don’t expect him to be the last. 3 Having the rental cars has been a win-win situation, because employees can now more effectively help customers of all major departments: the body shop, within the parts department, and the service center. It has even helped with sales, because customers can now try out a car by renting it for a week. Continued from page 17