Automotive News - January 28, 2008 - (Page 22) 22 • JANUARY 28, 2008 Be it work or adversity, Hendrick deals with it Man behind retail empire: ‘One of luckiest guys alive’ Donna Harris dharris@crain.com Hendrick racing unit shares rapid growth Donna Harris dharris@crain.com CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Over the past decade, Rick Hendrick has pleaded guilty to felony fraud and has endured a life-threatening bout with leukemia and the aftermath of a plane crash that killed several members of his family, including his only son and heir apparent. But ask the megadealer and auto racing tycoon how he’s feeling these days, and he responds: “Life is good. I am so blessed. I am one of the luckiest guys alive.” That spirit of optimism and resilience has helped Hendrick, 58, maintain an automotive empire that includes the nation’s second-largest privately owned dealership group. In 2007, Hendrick Automotive Group’s 60 dealerships in 10 states posted an estimated $4.3 billion in revenue. “I watched him go through adversity,” says Jim Perkins, president of the Hendrick Cos., an umbrella entity that oversees Hendrick’s racing and auto enterprises. “He never asked, ‘Why me?’ ” Perkins, a former Toyota and Chevrolet executive, headed Hendrick’s retail operation for several years starting in 1996 while his boss HENDRICK MOTORSPORTS Rick Hendrick is CEO of Hendrick Motorsports. CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Like his dealership group, Rick Hendrick’s auto racing division has enjoyed explosive growth and success. Since it launched in 1984, Hendrick Motorsports Inc. has won nearly 200 NASCAR races. The company employs an all-star roster of drivers that includes Jeff Gordon, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Casey Mears, Kyle Busch and Jimmie Johnson. Hendrick also competes in NASCAR’s Craftsman Truck Series. Hendrick Motorsports “has come a long way,” Rick Hendrick says. It began as a one-car shop with five employees and 5,000 square feet of work space. The company now has 550 employees in 30 departments. The racing operation occupies more than 70 acres in Charlotte near Lowe’s Motor Speedway and Hendrick Automotive Group’s corporate headquarters. At the site, Hendrick Motorsports designs and builds race cars and racing engines. The complex includes the 15,000square-foot Hendrick Motorsports Museum and Speed Shop. The museum displays vintage stock cars, sports car exhibits and Hendrick racing trophies. A 2004 plane crash killed Hendrick Motorsports President John Hendrick, Rick Hendrick’s brother. It also killed racing team owner Ricky Hendrick, Rick Hendrick’s only son. Hendrick Motorsports remains a family business. Rick Hendrick is chairman and CEO. Hendrick’s sonin-law, Marshall Carlson, is general manager. Mary Hendrick, Rick Hendrick’s mother, is a team owner. c bought a failing Chevrolet dealership in Bennettsville, S.C. “Chevrolet told me if I could turn this deal around, we will give you an opportunity to buy a bigger store,” Hendrick said. In 1977, he bought City Chevrolet in Charlotte. The dealership became what Hendrick calls “the launching pad for the organization.” As Hendrick’s retail empire grew to become the nation’s largest dealership group, trouble followed. In the mid-1990s, he was enmeshed in a kickback scheme at American Honda Motor Co. Inc. in which some dealers were charged with bribing Honda officials to get franchises and scarce new vehicles. Twin troubles In early 1995, the U.S. Justice Department outlined the scheme publicly after a two-year investigation. Prosecutors alleged that Hendrick made payoffs worth thousands of dollars to Honda executives. Hendrick and other large Honda dealers across the country also were sued by competitors who claimed the scheme had harmed their businesses. In 1996, a federal grand jury indicted Hendrick on conspiracy, fraud and money-laundering charges. In court testimony, a Hendrick financial executive described the payments as “Mr. Hendrick doing something persee HENDRICK, Page 24 battled leukemia. Hendrick says he has been in remission since 1999. Those difficulties have made him stronger, he said. “You don’t have a choice,” Hendrick told Automotive News. Hendrick’s enthusiasm for automobiles started early. His father, “Pa- pa Joe” Hendrick, taught him to work on cars on his family’s North Carolina farm. Racing got into Hendrick’s blood as a teenager, when a 1931 Chevrolet he rebuilt set speed records at a local drag strip. Whether on the farm or the track, Hendrick recalled, “You had to fix what you got yourself, and you had to make stuff.” Hendrick soon displayed a knack for fixing troubled auto dealerships. In his early 20s, he opened a used-car lot in Raleigh, N.C. At 23, he became general sales manager of a nearby new-vehicle dealership. And at 25, he Connecting your dealership to great deals! Rotunda Tools And Equipment. The Quality Choice. The Only Choice. Golden Opportunities Await Ford Trustmark Dealers at NADA 2008! San Francisco, California, February 9 – 12, 2008 PRE-NADA EARLY BIRD SPECIAL All pre-NADA orders over $10,000 will qualify for six months deferred billing. Between January 2nd and February 8th, order from Rotunda via the PTS website or at Get your Golden Key from Rotunda to unlock The best equipment in the industry The best pricing of the year One dealer could win $25,000 cash! EXPRESSBUY — NADA EDITION Not able to visit the City by the Bay in February? Visit the ExpressBuy area on the PTS website homepage to see a great selection of Visit Rotunda at the Ford Motor Company Booth #6011S 1.800.ROTUNDA (1.800.768.8632) • NADA Fax 1.800.547-3075 • www.fordrotunda.com http://www.fordrotunda.com http://www.fordrotunda.com http://www.fordrotunda.com
For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.