Beyond The First Pencil
Beyond The First Pencil is where dealership operations meet financial reality.
Hosted by Kathi Kruse, of Kruse Control and Automotive CFO-To-Go™, this podcast is for dealers, OEMs, GMs, and controllers who want more than surface-level advice. You’ll get straight talk on financial statements, internal controls, cash flow, and the operational gaps that quietly erode profit.
From gross to net, from process to profit, each episode delivers real-world insights on how dealerships actually make money… and where they lose it.
Because selling cars is one thing. Keeping the profit is another.
Beyond The First Pencil
Buried in Your Trade, And You’re To Blame 🎵
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
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Beyond the obvious homage to Bon Jovi in this episode's title - in honor of the new Bon Jovi documentary - Kathi and Mike discuss the fallout/repercussions of the last 3-4 years of dealer markups. Of course the market often required markups due to supply chain issues and low inventory, but what comes next is that customers who want to get into a new car are finding themselves buried in their trade. Are there any solutions for these customers now? What effect will this have on new car sales? Let’s get into it.
Go check out the documentary on Hulu and let us know what you think? (Kathi gives it two thumbs up)
Music segment:
Joy Division: Love Will Tear Us Apart
White Stripes on SNL: Dead Leaves on the Dirty Ground
Desert Sharks: Deeper
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Got a question? Email either of us!
Kathi: kathi@krusecontrolinc.com
Mike: mikethecarguy@outlook.com