#112 Transforming Subaru into a 'cult brand', Guiding explosive growth over two decades, Selling 700K+ cars in a single year | Tom Doll, Former CEO of Subaru of America

Welcome to the Car Dealership Guy Podcast. In this episode, I'm speaking with Tom Doll, Ex-CEO of Subaru of America where we discuss: How Tom Doll transformed Subaru into a cult brand, Guiding explosive growth over two decades, Why a larger US population does not equal more vehicle sales and much more. This episode of the Car Dealership Guy Podcast is brought to you by: DLRdmv - Everyone knows out of state titling is a major headache. It doesn’t have to be this way. Our friends at DLRdmv have created a program called DLR50 - A revolutionary approach to 50 state titling. With DLR50, your dealership now has 24/7 portal access to calculations, pre-filled forms, checklists, inquiries, plus white glove processing and specialist support. You can even acquire duplicate titles in all 50 states directly through the DLR50 platform! Visit https://www.dlr50.com/ to learn more. OPENLANE - The world’s best online dealer marketplace for used cars, bringing you exclusive inventory, simple transactions, and better outcomes. New to OPENLANE? Sign up now and receive a $350 buy fee credit. Learn more at https://www.openlane.com/ Haig Partners - Haig provides expert advice based on extensive retail dealership buy-sell experience to lead a confidential and customized sale process helping dealership owners maximize the value of their life's work. Learn more @ https://haigpartners.com/ Car Dealership Guy News - The #1 source for concise and unbiased car industry news. Stay informed with the most relevant and interesting stories by visiting https://news.dealershipguy.com/ Interested in advertising with Car Dealership Guy? Drop us a line here Interested in being considered as a guest on the podcast? Add your name here Topics: (00:00:00) - Intro (00:03:22) - Tom’s career and background (00:05:24) - What was Subaru’s perception when you started 40 years ago? (00:08:09) - How were you able to achieve such success within specific markets? (00:10:52) - Inside Subaru’s marketing strategy (00:15:21) - Do you consider Subuaru a marketing or manufacturing company? (00:17:35) - How do you view your retailers? (00:22:24) - Wanting retailers to win (00:26:51) - Why don’t other manufacturers view retailers as partners? (00:31:46) - How are consumer preferences changing? (00:35:05) - What opportunities or threats do you see in the future for retailers over the next decade? (00:42:19) - Tom’s life post-Subaru (00:44:52) - Closing advice Check out Car Dealership Guy’s stuff: CDG News - https://news.dealershipguy.com/ CDG Jobs - https://jobs.dealershipguy.com/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/cardealershipguy/ TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@guydealership X - https://x.com/GuyDealership LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/cardealershipguy/ Everything else - dealershipguy.com This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as a basis for investment decisions.