NEW ORLEANS — Ken Garff Automotive has done away with F&I managers in six of its stores as part of a pilot program called Garff Ease, to shorten the carbuying process, John Garff, the dealer chain’s president, said during the American Financial Services Association’s 2017 Vehicle Finance Conference Wednesday.
“It really is a Judo flip in a lot of ways, but we’re basically having our salespeople sell the F&I products, and we’re having the salespeople sell the rate,” he said. “You can’t get to one hour going back and forth, and doing the [traditional] thing.” Consumers were looking to lease a car in as little as 30 minutes in some cases, Garff added.
“That’s why we want to get them in and out in an hour, but in order to do that, it’s very disruptive to change the way the dealership is configured and how the F&I process works,” he admitted. The dealership group hopes to implement the change in all 55 of its stores, but faces hudles with some of its technology, Garff said. “It’s very cumbersome to change our culture, but it will come,” he said. “That’s just an example of listening to the customer and giving them what they want.”
Ken Garff Automotive operates in California, Iowa, Michigan, Texas, and Utah.
