willowdale nissan - The Canadian Business Journal

WILLOWDALE NISSAN
www.willowdale.nissan.ca
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TRANSPORTATION • Willowdale Nissan
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Willowdale Nissan
Reinve
DECEMBER 2010 • The Canadian Business Journal
CB
& Infiniti
enting the wheel
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TRANSPORTATION
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TRANSPORTATION • Willowdale Nissan
Willowdale Nissan and Infiniti of Willowdale, Toronto-based twin
dealerships operated by General Manager Mark Falkenberg, have
recently undergone a major renovation with an ultimate goal to
better serve its long existing and growing client base, constructing
a facility primarily to accommodate that clientele.
DECEMBER 2010 • The Canadian Business Journal
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TRANSPORTATION • Willowdale Nissan
Willowdale Nissan & Infiniti has been at its cur-
between 1,300 and 1,400 new cars per year as
rent location since 1972 when it was started by
well as 200 to 300 used cars each year. “The
Falkenberg’s father Hans, who remains involved
construction process was smooth and the deal-
with the company, and has been involved with
ership is looking forward to long-term relation-
Nissan since 1985. The Infiniti brand was add-
ships with the new clientele that will be coming
ed in 1990 and is now celebrating its 20th anni-
to visit,” said Falkenberg.
versary with Willowdale Nissan & Infiniti. Today,
Willowdale Nissan & Infiniti has two separate
Rebranding
franchises that stand beside each other, selling
Falkenberg was enthusiastic when discussing the
DECEMBER 2010 • The Canadian Business Journal
future of the automotive brands. “The brand and
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Being split into two entities this year, the
the product are getting stronger. I wouldn’t have
buildings are completely separate in all differ-
invested had I not felt that Nissan and Infiniti were
ent capacities, including hydro, water and gas,
able to capture a bigger percentage of the overall
as Falkenberg stressed that while renovation
market,” said Falkenberg. “[The two brands] have
may seem simple, it is really misunderstood—
done a good job of it in 2010. [Nissan and Infiniti]
the renovation is enormous. “To actually break
are one of the few manufacturers that have actu-
a building in half is a monumental exercise. You
ally done well…ahead of Honda and Toyota in year-
literally have to take every electrical line that
to-year comparison in the Ontario market.”
went from one end to the other and have to pull
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TRANSPORTATION • Willowdale Nissan
them back and bring in a separate power source
cles are leased and continue to be leased. What
and rewire every fixture,” said Falkenberg. “At
is specifically unique about Willowdale Nissan &
the same time that we were doing that, we took
Infiniti is that it continues to see growth, notably
the initiative to bring it up to green standards.
in an industry that saw the biggest crash dur-
We are not completely green, but we have im-
ing the global recession. “We are growing, we
proved the operation significantly.”
have split into two franchises and we have had
to hire additional staff to support our expanded
Recession impact
infrastructure,” said Falkenberg. “The manufac-
The Infiniti brand saw little change during the re-
turer has brought in some incentives that made
cession. According to Falkenberg, luxury buyers
[purchasing] attractive, so it was not easy to
were still buying, while the majority of the vehi-
gauge the difference in sales had our staff not
DECEMBER 2010 • The Canadian Business Journal
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TRANSPORTATION • Willowdale Nissan
been proactive. Had they been slow to react,
we probably would have seen a significant drop
in volume, but we actually have sold through
2008, 2009 and 2010 more cars each year
successively.”
Pulling away from the competition
Several factors separate Willowdale Nissan &
“A big part of [Willowdale Nissan
& Infiniti’s success] is that most
of our staff has been with us for
a long period so the relationship
component is what we stress when
customers come in; they are not
seeing new faces. We currently have
close to 60 employees.”
Infiniti from its competitors; prime among them is
the company’s history and experience. “We have
a very large client base. We are community ori-
With that, the goal of Willowdale Nissan
ented,” said Falkenberg. “It cannot be said by too
& Infiniti is to continue to provide service and
many dealers that they have been in existence
sales at a expectation that will ‘wow’ the cus-
for 40 years in one location.
tomer, ultimately satisfying the customer to
DECEMBER 2010 • The Canadian Business Journal
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such a degree that they will happily return when
Falkenberg. “We’ve had many customers now go-
they are ready to purchase their next car.
ing on four leases, on a typical four-year lease, so
It is no wonder why the company has
16 years of patronage.” CB
received several customer satisfaction
accolades courtesy of Nissan Canada.
According to Willowdale Nissan & Infiniti’s
website, “Communication is the key to our
success. If you’re interested in a new or preowned vehicle, servicing your current or future
Nissan, or need body work of any description we
will always be available to assist you.”
“You need to do something that the customers feel is a reward for them in having stayed with
us as long as we have had them,” emphasized
www.willowdale.nissan.ca
AS SEEN IN THE DECEMBER 2010 ISSUE
OF THE CANADIAN BUSINESS JOURNAL