devellis
Been here awhile...
- Joined
- Nov 20, 2017
- Messages
- 511
- Reaction score
- 204
- Points
- 43
- Location
- North Carolina
- Genesis Model Type
- No Genesis Yet!
Is it even possible to buy American? The sticker does give you the percentage of US made parts and I bet it has trended down over the years. Is it better to buy a US brand made mostly in a foreign country or a foreign brand made in the USA? I bought a lot of GM cars for years until they screwed my. Now I buy products based on what is best for me. Recently, that is Korean made.
In many cases, the perception is more important than the reality. Some buyers will want a car from a traditional American car company and may never realize that what they have is essentially a re-badged import. And, conversely, a car from a traditionally foreign car maker that is made wholly in the USA may still be perceived as a "foreign car."
As for where Genesis sells its cars, I do want a high-quality buying and after-purchase experience. I think it should be possible to provide that at a Hyundai dealership if things are done right. A separate display area and perhaps even a separate sales force would help. If the latter is impractical, then there may be a set of criteria for a "regular" Hyundai salesperson to qualify for selling Genesis cars. I've certainly had the experience of walking into other types of retailers (e.g., guitar shops), talking briefly to a sales person, who then referred me to someone else who was better qualified to assist me with a particular product. Some dealerships already have what is essentially a greeter who asks a few questions and then calls a sales person to assist that customer. That model is entirely workable. If there isn't an available sales person right then, the greeter can offer the po9tential customer a comfortable place to wait, some brochures to look over, a beverage, etc., until a sales rep is free.
On the other hand, if you walk into a dealership looking for a Genesis only to be greeted by some slovenly bozo who's sweating like a pig and reeks of cigarette smoke who puts his arm around you and starts telling you, "Hey, I'll work with you. Let's get you in a new car today," (as I recently experienced at a Toyota dealership), people are going to be turned off and will regret having set foot in the place. The combined Genesis/Hyundai model is viable, at least as an interim step. But it needs to be handled properly or it will tarnish the reputation Genesis is trying to build.