Automotive News Canada - July 2021 - 6

6
* JULY 2021
The keys to future dealerships
Mediating the 'natural
tension' between automakers
and dealers as image programs
adapt to a market in flux
By PERRY LEFKO
T ORONTO CORRESPONDENT
HOW WILL ELECTRIC VEHICLES AND DIGITAL
retail reshape dealerships? Silvia Carfora, CEO of
the Weis Group, a Toronto-based architectural firm,
has many of the answers.
To accommodate the influx of EVs, new dealership
designs incorporate such features as quarantine
rooms and pressurized high-voltage repair
rooms, said Carfora.
Digital retail means dealerships will offer more
customer amenities, which reinforces the need for
physical stores.
" [Customers] are interacting with the brand
online, on social media, through
the dealer's website, through the
manufacturer's website. ... But
where physically are they interacting?
That's still at the dealer level. "
The Weis Group is a building
consulting, architectural and
brand company that focuses on
automotive retail and service design, production
and construction.
As online shopping accelerates, Carfora is managing
competing priorities of automakers and dealers
at odds over traditional brick-and-mortar staples
such as large showrooms.
" There is always a natural tension, "
she said. " In fact, that is the
reason why we have our role. As
a neutral third party, we can often
speak about each party's interests
and align them so they can move forward
in a way that makes business
sense yet maintains the integrity of
the brand. "
Carfora and her staff of 30 work
with automakers on their image programs,
from design intent, to architecture,
to assessments. Clients
include several brands across the
United States and Canada, representing
more than 2,800 dealerships.
" We have recently completed
Porsche, Audi, Jaguar Land Rover
and Subaru dealerships, " Carfora
said. " We generally work on new
build projects with investments ranging
from $10 million to $30 million. "
Carfora, 43, joined the Weis Group
in 2010 as director of operations,
Carfora on automakers and dealers: " We can often
speak about each party's interests and align them
so they can move forward. " PHOTO: PERRY LEFKO
ON ANNUAL ASSESSMENTS OF DEALERSHIPS TO
ENSURE THEY ARE MEETING THE BRAND-IDENTITY
STANDARDS OF AUTOMAKERS
Our programs range from facility, process, digital,
electric-vehicle readiness. We have a proprietary
software platform that allows us to efficiently
collect dealership information, capacity and
data and provide insights in real time. The aim is
to work with the manufacturer and
their dealer partners to continuously
improve how the brand is represented
across the network.
You can't get the
immersive customer
experience online.
You need to be in
dealerships, feeling
the product and
testing it.
SILVIA CARFORA
CEO, Weis Group
then rose to vice-president. She assumed the CEO
role last year after her husband, Monte Weis, joined
another company in the auto industry. However, he
continues to serve as chairman of the Weis Group.
Carfora spoke with Automotive News Canada on
a range of issues regarding dealership design:
ON HOW THE INDUSTRY'S SHIFT TOWARD EVs
IS ALTERING DEALERSHIPS
EV adoption is certainly changing the scope of
the facility. We now incorporate quarantine rooms;
pressurized high-voltage repair rooms; as well as
safety in the workshop area when dealing with electricity;
and of course, incorporating chargers in
various locations both outside and inside the dealership.
[Electrification] has a significant impact, as
it creates a larger investment for dealers and also
affects the flow of traffic in the dealership.
ON HOW THE DESIGN SIDE OF HER BUSINESS WORKS
In some cases, especially with our European clients,
they have international master plans on how
the dealerships should be designed. In other cases,
mostly with our Japanese clients, we create the
dealership design for Canada and design each facility
schematically. In all cases, we work with the
manufacturer to give the dealer enough information
and guidance that they can construct or renovate
their dealership with their local builder and consultants.
Lastly, we also provide full architectural services
through a division of Weis Group called Weis
LGA Inc.
ON THE NOTION THAT DIGITAL RETAILING
WILL BE THE END OF DEALERSHIPS
The manufacturers need a network
of dealerships across the country
to represent them, to help deliver
the brand, not only in sales but in
service. ... You can't get the immersive
customer experience online. You
need to be in dealerships, feeling the
product and testing it.
ON WHY SOME COMPANIES ARE
USING POP-UP OR BOUTIQUE
STORES TO SELL VEHICLES
Traditionally, you would have a
fully functioning dealership - where
sales, service and parts were all
under one roof. Now we see a mix of
full-function stores, showroom-only,
satellite service facilities, experience centres and
pop-up retail. The model is looking a little bit different
because it's really expensive to build in urban
settings. You want to make sure you have representation
in different areas.
ON HOW HER EMPLOYEES HAVE ADJUSTED TO WORKING
DURING THE PANDEMIC
We left our office on March 16 [2020], and most of
my team have worked remotely since then. ... The
variability every business leader has had to contend
with has been quite a roller-coaster ride. ... At the
beginning of the year, one client said, " I feel like I've
been shot out of a cannon and it hasn't stopped. " My
team and I could relate to that.
ON BEING A FEMALE EXECUTIVE
I don't see myself as a " woman in automotive. "
What is unique about that? Nothing. The conversation
should really be about the perspectives I bring.
It's diversity of thought. I don't think that having
the same way of thinking that we have always had
is a way for us to truly progress. The thinking has
to evolve, not necessarily the gender. It's not about
gender. It's about diversity of perspectives at the
table. And, yes, diversity of perspectives comes from
diversity in all facets.
ON THE FACT THAT HER SURNAME CONTAINS
THE WORD " CAR "
Ha! I never thought of it that way, but maybe it's
meant to be. - ANC
TRENDING
STORIES
automotivenews.ca
ONGOING WEB COVERAGE
AUTO ASSEMBLY CHUGS TO LIFE
As automakers acquire more semiconductors, production
has resumed at Ontario plants. General Motors restarted its
CAMI plant in Ingersoll, while Stellantis resumed
minivan production in Windsor on July 5, only to shut it
down again the week of July 12.
REOPENING PLANS
As vaccination rates increase and COVID-19 case numbers
drop, many provinces are releasing reopening plans for
businesses. That means capacity limits in showrooms will
soon be lifted. But, it also means dealers will be competing
for disposable income as travel picks up.
SWITCHING GEARS SOONER ON ELECTRIC VANS
GENERAL MOTORS SAID IN LATE JUNE IT WILL END
Chevrolet Equinox output at CAMI
PHOTO: GENERAL MOTORS
assembly plant in Ingersoll, Ont.,
about two months earlier than
planned to switch to production
of the BrightDrop electric EV600
commercial van. Equinox production
will end at CAMI in April 2022.
Full-time EV600 production will
begin in November 2022 following a four-month plant retooling.
NB'ERS ELIGIBLE FOR $10K IN EV REBATES
NEW BRUNSWICK IS NOW OFFERING INCENTIVES WORTH
up to $5,000 on the purchase or lease of certain new and used
green vehicles. Consumers who buy an eligible new electric
vehicle in New Brunswick can also apply to the federal government's
Zero-Emission Vehicles (iZEV) Program, worth up
to $5,000, resulting in up to $10,000 in combined rebates.
Provincial EV rebates are already available in Nova Scotia and
Prince Edward Island.
LEVELING UP FOR BOLT BUYERS
CHEVROLET CANADA WILL PAY FOR A LEVEL 2 (240-VOLT)
charging home outlet for eligible customers who purchase or
lease a new 2022 Chevrolet Bolt
EUV or Bolt EV. And for those buyers
who already have a Level 2 charger,
or don't require it, Chevrolet is offering
a $750 FLO public charging credit
so drivers can charge on the go.
Owners can plug the vehicles' compatible
Dual Level Charge Cord directly into the 240-volt home
outlet, negating the need for a standalone charging station.
PHOTO: GENERAL MOTORS
APMA RAMPS UP 'NEW TALENT PIPELINE'
ONTARIO WILL SPEND $7 MILLION TO DELIVER TRAINING
and paid job placements for up to 800 people from underrepresented
groups in auto manufacturing. The project, led by the
Automotive Parts Manufacturers' Association, is designed to
" help develop a new talent pipeline to reinvigorate a sector with
an aging workforce and help historically marginalized groups to
train for, access, and retain good jobs, " the government says.
Participating employers will receive up to $8,000 per trainee, of
which a maximum of $3,000 can be used as a wage subsidy and
$5,000 to cover training costs.
R&D HUB GETS $28M IN FUNDING
MCMASTER UNIVERSITY IN HAMILTON, ONT., IS BUILDING
a $28.4-million automotive and aerospace research centre, and
the federal government and private sector are covering nearly
the entire cost. Ottawa is giving the
school $10 million through FedDev
Ontario while industry partners,
including Ford, Honda, Stellantis
and others, will kick in $16.8 million.
University researchers and industry
experts will use state-of-the-art
PHOTO: MCMASTER
UNIVERSITY
facilities to support automakers and suppliers to develop, test and
incorporate the latest technologies required for the production of
next-generation electric and autonomous vehicles. - ANC
FOR FULL TEXT FOR THESE STORIES AND MORE
automotivenews.ca
http://www.automotivenews.ca http://www.automotivenews.ca
Automotive News Canada - July 2021

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