Since the 2008 financial crisis, the automobile remained to be the most popular form of passenger transportation. The US streets alone have millions of passenger vehicles traveling. The fact makes car dealership a rewarding business irrespective of the automobile's brand.
In 2017, the streets across the US had 100 million passenger vehicles traveling every day. Almost fifteen percent or 14.8 million of those vehicles have registration in California, the most vehicle populous state in the US. Though the number is impressive, there was a decline in car sales in the US. The US consumer tastes shifted to the light truck to lower the sales to 5.3 million units in 2018 compared to the 7.9 million units in 2014.
Automakers take responsible for the marketing of their cars during the early days. Aside from directly selling to the customers, automakers use various channels, like department stores and representatives, to make sales. In 1898, William E. Metzger started a car dealership, and it backed by the franchise laws in the US that limit the rights of automakers for direct sales. Under the franchise law, it requires licensed and bonded, independently owned dealerships to sell new cars.
Car dealerships have the franchise to sell and service vehicles by specific companies. It is a requirement for Car dealers to have the facilities designed to house the showroom, mechanical service, body repair, and storage. Today, there is a standard image required for a car dealership, including product experts, to communicate with customers. Car dealership facilities are equipped with modern technology to advance the services and cope with the innovations of the cars. Moreover, a multibrand and multi maker car dealership is also typical to sell cars from different and independent carmakers.
Tesla Motors is not accepting the idea of car dealership despite the US prohibiting direct selling. Instead, Tesla has genre galleries where customers can view cars and post the order via online.
The modern customers are becoming more aware of the quality that comes with the brand. The tight competition in the market is pushing the automakers to an endless endeavor to make a difference. In 2018, the United States produced 2.8 million passenger cars with General Motors, Chrysler, and Ford as the key automakers. When it comes to US light vehicle sales, General Motors is the dominant player, followed by Toyota, Ford, Chrysler, Nissan, and Honda. Also, Tesla is on the rise as modern consumers become more inclined to hybrid and electric cars.