Fletcher Jones, GM Starting Temecula Dealership

Orange County Business Journal, Dec 17-Dec 23, 2007 by Cruz, Sherri

AUTOMOTIVE: Blumenthal set to have equal stake in new dealership

To many, Fletcher 'Ted" Jones Jri is the face of Fletcher Jones Motorcars Inc., the Newport Beach Mercedes-Benz dealership that features him in its commercials.

But to anyone who's bought a Mercedes at Fletcher Jones, Garth Blumenthal, the dealership's longtime general manager, is the man.

Blumenthal runs the dealership, the largest in Orange County and No. 2 in the nation after El Monte's Longo Toyota, for Las Vegas-based Fletcher Jones Management Group.

Jones, whose father started in the auto business in 1946, is a key part of the dealership. But day-to-day operations fall to Blumenthal.

Now Blumenthal is set to play a lead role in the opening of a Mercedes-Benz dealership in Temecula in 2009. He's set to have an equal stake in the dealership with Jones. It'll be the first dealership that Blumenthal's had a piece of.

Since 1994, Blumenthal has run the Newport Beach dealership, the flagship of Fletcher Jones Management Group's chain of IS dealerships.

Much of Fletcher Jones Motorcars' success can be attributed to Blumenthal, who's set the bar for luxury customer service. The dealership offers free car washes, a putting green and rides to the airport.

In 2006, Fletcher Jones had $589 million in sales, second only to Penske Automotive Group's mega dealership Longo Toyota of El Monte at $703 million in 2006 sales.

If December sales are as good as November, Fletcher Jones is expected to finish 2007 with about $650 million in sales, according to Blumenthal.

"We're trying to close the gap on Longo," he said. "That's our goal."

Temecula, a fast growing city east of San Clemente in Riverside County, has many former OC dwellers as residents who are familiar with the Fletcher Jones name.

The Newport Beach dealership already has buyers who drive up from that area, Blumenthal said.

Temecula also sees a lot of tourists, with its wineries and the nearby Pechanga Resort & Casino.

Blumenthal shares an affinity with the city when it comes to wine-he's a connoisseur, he said.

The Temecula site was chosen by automaker Mercedes-Benz USA LLC, the U.S. arm of Germany's Daimler AG.

About two years ago, Mercedes asked dealers to sign up to be considered for the right to build me dealership.

Jones, the biggest seller of Mercedes in me U.S., was awarded the dealership and enlisted Blumenthal.

They bought 13 acres of land for an undisclosed price. Blumenthal declined to disclose the total investment for building the dealership. Costs are still being finalized, he said.

The dealership is set to take up about 8 acres of the 10.6 acres that are useable, according to Blumenthal. On the remaining land, the partners may open anotber boutique dealership mat sells a niche brand such as Ferrari, Lamborghini or Aston Martin, he said.

Construction is set to start in late summer. The dealership is scheduled to open by summer 2009.

The dealership will be about a third the size of the one in Newport Beach, Blumenthal said.

New Look

It's set to have Mercedes-Benz's new Auto Haus look-more glass and light-colored wood, among other details. The automaker is asking dealers to conform to the design, which is different than the Newport Beach dealership.

Mercedes is giving dealerships some money to retrofit. Fletcher Jones Motorcars is looking at redesigning its dealership as well.

The Temecula deal between Jones and Blumenthal has been in the works for at least a year, Blumenthal said.

He insists he won't be working more hours. Balancing work and family life is important to him, he said.

"I see it as just taking the best practices that we have in Newport Beach and extending tJiose practices in Temecula," he said.

Being an owner will be new to Blumenthal, but the feeling won't be, he said.

"I treat this business as if it's my own," Blumenthal said.

For the past year, Fletcher Jones has been working on "people development," getting the right people trained to lead other dealerships.

The company plans to open five more in the next three years, Blumenthal said. Dealerships so far are slated for Ontario, Henderson, Nev., and Maui.

The Temecula dealership will be the only one Blumenthal has a stake in.

Several employees have been identified to help lead the Temecula dealership, Blumenthal said.

The Newport Beach dealership is the training hub for all of Fletcher Jones. People spend a few months working in Newport Beach to learn the standard of service and men move on to other dealerships.

From South Africa

Blumenthal, who hails from Johannesburg, South Africa, started working for a Mercedes-Benz dealership right after college in 1980.

He moved to Southern California three years later. He said Johannesburg was too small for him and he didn't like the politics. Economically, he aspired to more, he said.

When he arrived in OC, he worked at the Jim Slemmons dealership in Newport Beach, making his way up to sales manager.

The Slemmons dealership used to be on Quail Street, where Fletcher Jones Motorcars now stores autos.

Slemmons was having financial problems, so Blumenthal moved on to Caliber Motors in Anaheim Hills, now Mercedes-Benz of Anaheim, where he was sales manager.