Limbaugh Toyota of Birmingham
2200 Avenue T
Birmingham,
Alabama 35218
Toll Free
800-239-5050
Direct
205-788-9390
FAX
205-780-5215
Delivery Area:
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North Florida
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by Russ Heaps
“Rome wasn't built in a day,” is the overworked saw heard over and over again as a long-term mission fades in and out of focus or appears impossible to complete. But just because a saying shows some wear and tear doesn't mean it doesn't ring true. Just ask Roger Garner, the parts manager at Birmingham, Alabama's Limbaugh Toyota.
After 31 years of moving parts for GM dealerships, Garner joined a three-person parts department at Limbaugh Toyota in 1992. Through the following 21 years, Garner relentlessly increased sales, expanded sales reach and built an experienced 12-person parts team, making Limbaugh Toyota the number one Toyota parts department in Alabama and among the top five Toyota parts departments in the Southeast. It didn't happen overnight. It was a long, hard-fought slog. “Ranking among the top Toyota parts departments in the Southeast isn't easy,” Garner admitted. “We're up against some really big stores, especially in the Miami area.”
Garner oversees an average inventory of roughly $500,000. With that, his team generates close to $8 million in annual sales with a wholesale fill rate hovering around 90 percent.
Garner recognizes a number of factors and influences that contribute to his department's success, but none more so than the people surrounding him.
“The team we've put together here is second to none!” Garner enthused. “Any other dealership in the country would give its eyeteeth to have this group. What sets us apart from the others isn't only the product we sell, Toyota exclusively, but our people. We know that those red-and-white boxes could come from any other Toyota dealer anywhere. The product would be the same, but the service wouldn't. Honestly, what makes us successful is our people.”
Tallying the accumulated years of service of just the management team, including assistant manager Tim Beasley, as well as the three-person wholesale staff of Terry Knight, Brad Stripling and Charlie Roberts, totals more than 120 years.
Retaining quality, experienced people relies on more than the amount of their paycheck each week; it requires a positive working environment and a certain comfort level. According to Garner and Beasley, that's exactly what Limbaugh Toyota provides. “People want to work here,” Garner said, “because they know we have strong dealer support in our parts operation. Also, they know that, as a local, family-owned company, there is stability and a very different atmosphere from that of a national corporation.”
“Members of the Limbaugh family still work here,” Beasley added. “They make a big deal about people who have worked here a long time and recognize them for their achievements. We're all like family here.”
Opportunities for education and training increase the longer people stick with you. This is true for management and staff alike. Both Garner and Beasley have completed Southeast Toyota University, a comprehensive course of studies of all things Toyota. It's operated by Florida-based Southeast Toyota, Toyota's distributor for the southern states.
Keeping the rest of the parts team up to date is a critical element in the parts department's success. “We make sure our people stay educated,” Garner stressed. “This means that they maintain strict certification levels by taking online and other classes with Toyota. All of this education requires time. Our team does a lot of additional educational work after the phones are shut off for the day.”
Getting the correct part to the customer, of course, is a key reason for the nonstop training. However, making things right when that rare mistake occurs is just as important.
“We've seen about every situation you can imagine,” Garner explained. “In the end, though, our mission is always to get it right the first time. But, we also know that when a mistake does happen, the only thing to do is own up to it, and then make it right for the customer. Our number one goal is building trust relationships with our customers.”
In a move that Garner is convinced did as much as anything to bolster sales and boost customer service, Limbaugh Toyota became one of the six founding members of the Overnight Parts Alliance (OPA) nearly 14 years ago. Today it's a confederation of nearly 20 dealerships representing almost 30 brands that share delivery and customer service resources. Serving Alabama and portions of the five surrounding states, OPA allows participating dealers to more effectively serve their customers.
“We decided that we were running all over each other making deliveries,” Garner explained. “We figured out that we could share the workload of delivery and sales, thereby offering better service to our customers. I had known the other five managers for years. We all shared common values of honesty and growing our businesses through service. I am convinced another plus is that all the dealerships involved are independently owned franchises, with owners who are fully supportive of our efforts.”
At its start, OPA had one delivery route. Today, it has multiple delivery routes that give Garner the confidence to assure, “Orders submitted before 5 p.m. will, in almost every case, be delivered before noon the next day within OPA's delivery area. It can't happen 100 percent of the time, but almost always does.”
With his retirement looming on the horizon, Garner has slain most of the dragons required to succeed, but he isn't finished yet. “I want to keep moving forward, growing the business,” he said. “That effort never stops. As the business changes, we need to adapt and stay ahead of that change. And, I want to make sure Tim (Beasley) is fully prepared to take over the reins when I step down, however long that takes.”
In the meantime, Garner and his team will stay the course fulfilling what he states is the Limbaugh ethic: “The right people, the right prices and the right products!”
Limbaugh Toyota is located at 2200 is Avenue T in Birmingham, Ala 35218 . To reach by phone, call 1-800-239-5050.
