Lexus Expansion Nearly Done as Brand Rivals Mercedes

Orange County Business Journal, Feb 12-Feb 18, 2007 by Cruz, Sherri

Honda Civic Most Searched Auto for 2006 at Autobytel; Furniture Dealer Expands Showroom

MARKETPLACE

Lexus of Westminster is about to get bigger.

A new two-story showroom on Beach Boulevard, slated to open in a couple of weeks, will have all the upscale trappingsplasma TVs, a cafe, concert hall chandeliers, glass-front elevator.

But it won't be over the top, according to the dealership. Lexus of Westminster isn't catering to the Newport Beach crowd. Rather, the more practical luxury auto buyer.

About half of the dealership's business is from repeat customers. Last year, Lexus of Westminster sold more than 3,700 new and used autos.

Most buyers are from Orange County.

Owner Bob Longpré, who has been in the car business for 50 years, stresses customer service.

"The customer expects more and can get more," he said.

The sales process is soft, according to Longpré. Background screening and drug testing is done on all employees.

Hiring people is tough. The Lexus brand tends to attract a higher number of college graduates, he said.

The OC auto market is heating up this year.

Newport Lexus in Newport Beach will log its t'irsl full year of operation. Mercedes-Benz of Anaheim is opening a second showroom and lot along the Riverside (91) Freeway. All the while, Newport Beach's Fletcher Jones Motorcars, the county's largest dealership, is likely to up the ante.

"He's a tough competitor," Longpré said of Fletcher's owner Ted Junes, who he's known for decades. "Nobody's going to lay down and give up."

Longpré said he thinks this could be the year Lexus will surpass Mercedes-Benz and become the lop luxury auto brand in OC.

This is Longpré's second run. He retired once, after selling old his Pontiac dealership-Bob Longpré Pontiac in Westminster. Bin that didn't last.

"I'm happy coming to work. I'm not looking forward to retirement," he said.

He has a minority stake in the Honda World that replaced his Pontiac dealership. It's next door to Lexus of Westminster's service and parts building, also on Beach.

He opened the Lexus dealership in 1989 as one of the original group of Lexus dealers.

The price to build a dealership has gone up significantly from when Longpré first started in the business, he said.

When he opened his Pontiac dealership in 1967, it cost him $407,000, Longpré said. In 1989, when he opened the Lexus dealership, it cost $2.3 million.

The new Lexus showroom cost $20 million. The Toyota Motor Corp. unit has been encouraging dealers to build flashier dealerships.

There are other differences as well these days, he said.

The service hoists that lift the autos are filled with vegetable oil so if they leak it won't contaminate the ground. New buildings also have to comply with several Americans With Disabilities Act regulations.

The architect for Lexus of Westminster's makeover had limited instructions: "Build the prettiest building you can," said John Oh, general manger.

Oh's been with the dealership for 15 years.

Auto Searches

The most requested auto on Irvine-based Autobytel Inc.'s Web sites: Honda Civic.

Autobytel named its top researched autos at the 2007 National Automobile Dealers Association convention earlier this month in Las Vegas.

Honda held the top spot but Toyota dominated the lop 10.

Here they are in order after the Civic: Toyota Camry. Honda Accord, Honda Odyssey, Toyota RAV4. Mini Cooper, Toyota Sienna, Toyota Corolla. Toyota Prius, Toyota Highlander.

Autobytel owns several auto research Web sites, including carsmart.com and car.com.

Furniture Expansion

Brian Airth and partner Jcsse Bagley recently opened an expanded office furniture showroom. Interior Office Solutions, in Santa Ana.

They paid $2.3 million for the 11,000-square-foot building and added $1.3 million in renovations. They reopened with a new line of office and workstation furniture from Michigan's Haworth Inc.

Interior Office Solutions, which has $18 million in sales, has been open since 2000. Its last showroom was 4,OUO square feet.

Airth said he expects to do about $25 million in sales this year with the larger store. The company employs 35 people and has an office and another business partner in Los Angeles.

One of its current projects is helping Turner Construction Co. merge its Los Angeles and Orange County offices in Anaheim.