Despite the fact that the Hayes family members has observed radical transform in the automobile marketplace more than the earlier 50 years, just one thing remains the identical when it comes to the way they conduct their business.
“Customer service is the key,” stated Dusty Hayes, part of the third generation of the family of the Hayes Automotive Team, which started in March 1971 when his grandfather Donald and terrific uncle A.D. opened their initial dealership in Lawrenceville.
“Before the first dealership, the spouse and children experienced a company station, a 10- or 15-bay station in close proximity to Emory University. They developed the small business on treating prospects ideal – ‘treat buyers like family’ was the lifestyle they needed to generate.”
From that to start with Chrysler-Dodge-Plymouth dealership in Gwinnett County, the family small business has developed to incorporate Hayes Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in Gainesville, Hayes Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram in Baldwin and Hayes Chevrolet Buick GMC Cadillac in Baldwin. The enterprise has also developed to include four generations of the Hayes loved ones.
“We’ve been blessed,” mentioned Ted Hayes, Dusty’s father and element of the 2nd generation of the small business, together with Tim, Terry and Mike (now retired). “The Lord has been excellent to us and we have a great dynamic amongst the loved ones. Most loved ones firms don’t make it previous the 3rd generation. This section of the ‘we’ feels quite fortunate that we’ve been capable to get along as prolonged as we have and have ongoing to reinforce the small business.”
Ted and Dusty function the Lawrenceville shop, with the elder Hayes serving as supplier principal and the youthful Hayes running gross sales and functions.
Alongside with Dusty, Chad and Matt represent the third era in the small business. Tim and Chad are at the Gainesville retail store and Terry and Matt oversee the Baldwin functions. Dusty mentioned Matt’s son performs aspect-time in Baldwin, symbolizing the fourth technology.
Dusty, who joined the family enterprise on a comprehensive-time foundation in 2003, said the major change in today’s business, as compared to when his grandfather Donald and fantastic uncle A.D (who died in 2009) have been just acquiring begun, is – not astonishingly – engineering.
“The potential to provide transparency and much better consumer services by the use of the world-wide-web and technology would in all probability be the biggest variance,” Dusty Hayes said. “Even five many years in the past, you’d wake up on a Saturday and go to five or 6 dealerships to determine out what you preferred to invest in. Now you can hop on line and do all your research and determine out the place you want to go and exactly where the very best deal is and you get in your motor vehicle and go straight there.
“Most individuals, since the net is ideal there at their fingertips, do their course of action of elimination prior to they ever depart the home. You can be viewing a Braves video game sitting on the sofa and store for a automobile at the very same time. It’s a pretty excellent deal. It will make the consumer support section that substantially extra important.”
When requested his views on the achievement the dealerships have liked, Ted pressured the value of really hard function and inclusiveness, which he explained were being values prized by his grandfather C. A. Hayes, who originally opened the support station in Decatur.
“It was how we ended up lifted and our family members values,” Ted Hayes claimed. “A whole lot of times my grandfather does not get acknowledged, but he instilled the worth of spouse and children to my uncle and my father, and a get the job done ethic was instilled in us. We come to operate every day to build the team.
“My dad will tell you – the way you make a robust staff is by acquiring good team associates. Me and you can only do so significantly in 8 or 10 hrs a working day. We imagine in the idea of dealing with workers as family members … We check out to have that household atmosphere.”
The household is in good form to proceed its automotive legacy for years to appear, and the Hayes Automotive Group door is absolutely open for the coming generations.
“I don’t imagine that’s anybody’s expectation in the 3rd technology that we’re likely to need or demand it,” Dusty Hayes mentioned. “If (long run generations) want to come into the business enterprise, we’ll deliver them the option, but we’re going to do the exact factor our dads did and that is when Matt, Chad and I have been growing up, our dads experienced us function in every division and understand every career along the way so that we recognized the nuts and bolts of the dealership. If the subsequent era will come together and needs to be aspect of the business, we’ll instill the exact same values in them.”
“If the youthful technology needs to do it, we’ll be suitable in this article with them, like our mothers and fathers were being,” Ted Hayes added.