With recent accolades for selling the most Hondas in the country in 2010 and being named the number one certified Honda dealer in the world, Paragon Honda in Woodside has something to celebrate.
“People need cars, and when they need cars they’re moving to value,” said general manager and vice president Brian Benstock, who has been with the organization since 1982.
According to Benstock, last year, Paragon Honda sold 7,221 Hondas- about 20 Hondas each day for seven days a week.
“Whenever there’s an economic downturn, there’s a push to value,” he said. “It’s the same for the stock market. People buy Coca Cola and Apple- companies you can count on for being around for a while.”
Located at 57-02 Northern Boulevard, Paragon Honda first opened in 1929 as an Oldsmobile dealership then became one of the area’s first Honda dealerships in 1970.
“Our job at Paragon since there are several dealers selling Hondas is to differentiate what we do compared to other dealers and make the experience as memorable as possible and we’re seeing results of doing that in our sales,” he said.
To set Paragon Honda apart from competition, Benstock said they are very involved with customers and use a “digital media strategy,” pushing for advertisements anywhere from the Internet to newspapers to make consumers aware of what Paragon Honda offers. The service department is open seven days a week and customers can even buy a Honda Accord for $5 a day.
“Many people are spending more on Starbucks each day, so it’s a very good value proposition,” Benstock said.
He added that Paragon Honda has a good relationship with lenders to provide customers with a variety of credit options to properly finance one’s dream car.
When asked why consumers are still buying cars in a recession, Benstock said now is actually the time to buy a car.
“We have interest rates as low as 0.9 percent, so if you combine that with the best product, it really is a super time to take advantage of the offer,” he said. “The time to buy is not when everyone else is buying, but it’s when everyone else isn’t- that’s where the deals are.”
Paragon Honda also specializes in certified used cars, having sold “twice as many certified pre-owned Honda cars as the next closest dealer in the nation.” Benstock said customers looking for value can still find it in a used car.
For more information, visit paragonhonda.com or call 888-703-4259.
– Alexa Mae Asperin
