Spitzer Shield came about as the group began to turn more of its focus to used vehicles amid the new-vehicle inventory crunch. The group launched its own certified pre-owned program, which includes the 7-year warranty, as well as benefits including a 3-day, 300-mile vehicle exchange guarantee, free service inspections and a 172-point inspection before a vehicle is put up for sale.
Spitzer reports that its used-vehicle sales rose 45 percent from 2020 to 2021, compared with a 29 percent jump in new-vehicle sales.
The group attributed some of that success to the launch of the CPO program and its new management and marketing emphasis on used-vehicle sales. Spitzer declined to reveal any sales figures.
“We’ve had to do some soul-searching and really get familiar with the pre-owned side, and to the credit of my team, they’ve done a great job,” he said. “They’ve been aggressive and have taken some risks that they normally wouldn’t, and they’ve learned a lot.”
Not having a CPO program can be a deal breaker for a lot of customers, Spitzer said, so offering a program of its own has helped the group’s salespeople reach out to more customers.
“I know when I sold cars, I loved selling the certified pre-owneds, and my only real complaint was that when I sold at my Kia store, I couldn’t sell any CPO Fords or Chevys,” he said. “Now that’s not the case.”
