Dealership's new location is like home

Friday, August 25, 2006 Sales are up for a GM dealership that moved to the outskirts of Mercer. By DON SHILLING VINDICATOR BUSINESS EDITOR MERCER, Pa. — Ben Bissett didn't want to skimp on his new-car dealership. "This is my house," said the owner of Ben Bissett Chevrolet on Pa. Route 19. "I don't fly in here and leave. I'm here." He doesn't like the look of cubicles, so each of his sales representatives has a private office. The sales floor is covered with ceramic tile, and the waiting area has a fireplace with artwork and soft chairs. "People love to sit there and wait for their cars. Ladies come in and do their knitting, and others read books," he said. The 14-bay service area has all new equipment and has been enlarged so that trucks and motor homes can be worked on more easily. The building itself has insulated concrete walls to keep down energy costs. It uses radiant heat, with four miles of tubing carrying hot water under the floors. "We could have just thrown up a steel building, but we wanted to do it nice," he said. It's a far cry from the dealership's previous location. The dealership moved in March from North Pitt Street in downtown Mercer. The 100-year-old building had a dated, two-story design. "We had outgrown it 20 years ago. I felt that for the future, we needed to make a change," Bissett said. Noticeable change The biggest change is how vehicles can be displayed, he said. "If you rode by the other building, you'd say, 'They have three trucks.' Well, I had 100 trucks, but they were all behind the building," he said. The new site has plenty of room up front for Bissett to display his 110 new and 60 used vehicles. That's a big reason why sales have been up 20 percent since the move, he said. The dealership's service business is up 25 percent, partly because the additional space has allowed the addition of two technicians, he said. The other factor is that the new dealership just north of Interstate 80 on Route 19, so it is drawing more business from drivers who are passing through, he said. The dealership was founded by his father, Ben, in 1954. His father remained active in the business until he died three years ago. "I worked with my dad for 30 years and enjoyed every minute of it," the son said. Bissett, 55, grew up in the business, working in the parts and service departments. He is expecting his son, Ben, to take over the business next. The son is a junior at Northwood University in Michigan, majoring in business and automotive marketing. Bissett and his wife, Junior, also have a daughter, Catherine, who lives in Cincinnati. Bissett said the dealership was hurt two years ago when General Motors Corp. eliminated the Oldsmobile line. The dealership sold Chevrolets and Oldsmobiles for 50 years. That didn't stop him, however, from investing in the new building. First, the dealership has a strong service business based on its 52-year reputation, he said. Second, he has faith in the cars, trucks and sport utility vehicles that Chevrolet is turning out. "Chevrolet can survive by itself. There's no question about that," he said. shilling@vindy.com