Prime Time
For Prime Motor Group
South Shore Art Center; Shari Doran, General Manager, Prime Infiniti. group
Photos: Jack Foley, Hanover MACelebrating
2012 is proving to be an ambitious, exciting time for Prime Motor Group.
Based in Westwood, Massachusetts, Prime owns and operates 15 dealerships throughout suburban Boston, Cape Cod, and southern Maine, and represents brands ranging from Infiniti to Audi and Porsche, Acura, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota, Honda, Hyundai and Ford, among others.
More than a year ago, Prime set its sights on expanding its business foot-print throughout the lucrative South Shore market. The dynamic three-part plan by Prime Motor Group President David Rosenberg and Vice President Matt McGovern was put into motion just after their first year in business.
Part one included buying the former Tom O’Brien Hyundai in Quincy and creating Prime Hyundai South.
The second part of the plan was realized with the recent grand opening of their all-new, state-of-the-art Prime Infiniti dealership at 2060 Washington Street in Hanover.
The third phase will include a new Mercedes-Benz dealership, to be introduced on the South Shore within the year.
INFINITI AND BEYOND
Costing more than $7 million, the new, beautifully designed 22,000 square foot Infiniti dealership is home to 35 employees. Prime’s previous Infiniti location that opened in 2006 with only 5,000 square feet of space was never intended to be permanent.
Rosenberg explained, “When we began with Infiniti five years ago, they very generously allowed us to start off in a temporary home at the far end of Route 53. We never intended to be there so long. The challenge was finding land, which on the South Shore is not only at a financial premium, but is extremely hard to come by. When you’re building a dealership, you have to find available acres.
”He continued, “But through it all, we never considered leaving Hanover or Route 53. So when space became available last year, and the opportunity presented itself for us to relocate closer to Route 3, we knew it was the right time to act.
”Matt McGovern added, “Hanover is a great community, plus it’s ideally located between Boston and The Cape, which puts us in the center of a thriving and diverse demographic base. It offers great convenience for our customers, whether they’re com-ing from neighboring communities or anywhere on the South Shore.”
In discussing the company’s ambitious expansion during what some may consider a challenging economy, Rosenberg said, “Like so many other businesses, the automotive retail industry took a huge hit when the economy dropped. There were proba-bly 17 million vehicles sold across the country back in 2006. Two years later, car sales had dropped to less than 10 million. However, last year, that number had returned to 12 million, and we expect to see it rise again to more than 13.5 million vehicles this year.”
He added, “While the automotivebusiness is typically one of the first industries impacted in a downturn,it’s also usually one of the first to show signs of recovery. We see the car business continuing on an up-ward trend, and we’re really excited about serving the commu-nities south of Boston.”
During the private red carpet opening event in April, more than 200 guests toured the luxurious new Infiniti facility, enjoyed gourmet food, and got a first look at the highly touted 2013 Infiniti JX.
As part of Prime’s ongoing support of local community groups, Prime Infiniti General Manager Shari Doran arranged for the evening to include entertainment from George Little, Suzuki Chair of the Guitar Department at South Shore Conservatory in Hingham. As well, the showroom was turned into a gallery showcase for three artists from the South Shore Art Center in Cohasset. The diverse exhibition included pieces from KarenMcEachern Cass of Hanover, Dorothy Simpson Krause of Marshfield and Qingxiong Ma from Waltham.
Among its exceptional, new features, the Prime Infiniti complex offers a specially designed inside service drive. Customers are now able to avoid inclement weather by driving directly into the building to leave their vehicle with a valet for service and maintenance. For maximum efficiency, the service area has eight service bays, a pair of quick lube / alignment bays and four re-conditioning bays. A fleet of complimentary loaner vehicles is also available for service customers.
Shari Doran, who brings more than 25 years of experience to her role as General Manager of the dealership adds, “At Prime Infiniti, we are all committed to taking exceptional value and service to the next level to exceed our customers’ expectations at every turn. We invite everyone to stop by, say hello, and take a look at all the terrific features of our new home.”
There are also new customer service amenities, including a family waiting room, a children’s area and a quiet room for those eager to catch up on business. The new facility is fully Wi-Fi accessible.
PRIME GREEN INITIATIVE
The entire Infiniti complex was designed to be environmentally friendly and efficient. High R-factor insulation was used duringconstruction, recycled oil is beingused to heat the service shop, low energy consumption interior light-ing was installed, and recycledwater is used in all the wash bays. Prime made an investment of al-most a half million dollars creatingthe water reclamation system alone.
Commenting on the building’s over-all efficiency, Matt McGovern said, “Being mindful of the environment should be a mandate for all busi-nesses today. Prime intends to be a leader in that dedication.”
He added, “Prime Infiniti’s new home was designed completely from the customer’s point of view. When a guest walks into our dealership, it’s like walking into someone’s living room. It’s very comfortable. It’s very warm. It’s very inviting.”
David Rosenberg, with an MBA from Columbia University, is the son of legendary car dealer Ira Rosenberg, known for his leading auto dealerships on the North Shore. David began in the auto industry at the age of 10, wiping snow off cars in his Dad’s car lot.
Eventually, he worked his way up the ladder at Ira Motors, gaining experience in virtually every aspect of the business. He earned the title of General Manager in 1990, and by 1998, he had been named President of the Ira Motor Group, which has subsequently been sold to a public company. It was at Ira Mo-tors that he first worked with Matt McGovern, the company’s CFO. The two partners purchased the Clair group of dealerships in 2007, and renamed them to create Prime Motor Group.
Today, Rosenberg and McGovern continue to be very enthu-siastic about the car business and creating dealerships where customer service is paramount. As Rosenberg is fond of saying, “We want to help people buy the cars they want. Prime is on your side.”
