“Winning this award on a regular basis is a confirmation that we’re serving our community right and it reinforces that we’re making the customer experience joyful and memorable.”—John White
NorthBay biz readers have once again voted Smothers European the Best Luxury Car Dealership in the North Bay. Capturing the 2017 honors for the sixth straight year, Santa Rosa’s Smothers European further solidifies its reputation for not only selling world-class cars such as Volvo and Mercedes Benz, but also for providing an outstanding sales experience and excellent ongoing service for their clients.
What’s the secret behind their consistently superior level of customer experience and overall reputation in our North Bay community? “Our bread-and-butter market is right here in the North Bay. However, utilizing the full power of the Internet and our exceedingly fast response time to online inquiries, we’re responding to customers’ wants and needs across California, Oregon and Nevada. We even serve customers beyond that,” says John White, vice president of operations at Smothers European. “While we’re excited about our expanding geographical footprint, we’re not loosing track of where we’re located and the part we play in the North Bay as an active participant in the local community. For the most part, the customers we interact with on a daily basis are our friends and fellow North Bay residents, and we fully recognize and appreciate that we are all members of the same community, and, if you will, the same family,” says White.
It’s clear that Smothers European is about much more than making a sale. They’re truly invested in their customers’ overall long-term experience, from the time a customer first explores an interest, to the actual acquisition of a new vehicle, to the maintenance of the car, and into the planning of what comes next. “Winning this award on a regular basis is a confirmation that we’re serving our community right and it reinforces that we’re making the customer experience joyful and memorable. Thus, we’re creating a mutually loyal relationship,” says White.
“Further affirmation of our business practice being in line with our world-class automobiles, is the amazing tenure of our employees,” says White proudly. Smothers European has many employees who’ve been with the company for more than 20 years, and several who’ve been with the company for more than 30 years. One employee is approaching 40 years of service with the company. “We like to say: ‘If it’s good for the customer, good for the employee, and good for the dealership, it is likely a good thing.’” Being lucky enough to have such an experienced high quality workforce enables us to rely on their knowledge and fully empower them to cater to the immediate needs of our customers in real time.”
With Mercedes Benz being the industry leader in most automotive categories, and Volvo being on a tear this year with a soon-to-be-opened new production facility in South Carolina, the future looks bright for Smothers European.
