Executive Profile with Jim Fitzpatrick, Powered by CBT News

Beyond the Dealership: How Family Values Drive Business Growth

• CBT News • Season 1 • Episode 10

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Mario Murgado shares his remarkable journey from Cuban immigrant arriving in America at age four to building a 24-dealership automotive empire across three states. His story reveals how passion for cars, commitment to exceptional customer experiences, and innovative business practices created one of the most successful dealership groups in the country.

• Arrived in America as a political refugee just days before his fourth birthday


• Started selling Hondas at Braman in 1981, working his way up to leadership positions


• Purchased his first dealership in 2001, transforming a struggling operation into one selling 9,000 vehicles annually


• Created the unique Ocean Cadillac Museum to celebrate automotive heritage and enhance customer experience


• Implements forward-thinking workplace policies with 30% female employees and flexible schedules


• Takes a measured approach to electrification, advocating for market-driven rather than government-mandated adoption


• Believes strongly in physical dealerships while embracing digital retail options


• Maintains core values instilled by his father: perfect attendance, sitting at the front of class, and reading voraciously


• Views dealers as essential community pillars rather than just business operators


• Encourages the next generation to maintain strong manufacturer relationships while adapting to industry changes


• Lives by the philosophy "dream when you're awake" - having clear goals and working persistently toward them

Visit our brand new state-of-the-art Cadillac dealership and museum in Miami to experience the Murgado difference for yourself.


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Jim:

This is the Executive Profile exclusively on CBT News. The Executive Profile sponsored by Cox Automotive. Hi everyone, I'm Jim Fitzpatrick. On this edition of the Executive Profile, we visit with Mario Murgado, president and CEO of Murgado Automotive Group, at his brand new state-of-the-art dealership in Miami, Florida. Like many Cuban immigrants seeking political refuge in the 1960s, Mario came to the United States alone just five days before his fourth birthday.

Jim:

Growing up with his family in Chicago, Mario moved to Miami in the early 80s, where he landed a job selling new Hondas at Braman Honda. Over the next 12 years, he became president and managing partner at Braman Imports, as well as Palm Beach Imports. In 2001, he purchased Alleyn Honda and Pontiac GMC dealerships in downtown Miami and turned them into top national performers. And the rest, they say, is history. Ten years ago, I met Mario when he had four Miami-based franchise dealerships. Today, Murgado Automotive Group includes 24 dealerships across three states, but his impact goes beyond numbers. With his unwavering commitment to the automotive industry, Mario has not only built a successful business empire, but also created a positive and engaging environment for his team. In addition to building a stellar dealership culture, Mario believes strongly in giving back to the community and has led numerous charitable initiatives making meaningful impacts on the communities he serves. Check out my interview with Mario Murgado. Mario, thank you so much for allowing us to visit your incredible Cadillac dealership and museum here at Ocean Cadillac. It is just fascinating.

Mario Murgado:

Thank you, jim. Welcome, and it's an honor to have you here and thank you for honoring us with your visit.

Jim:

Sure, sure there's so much to get into with you today, but let me start out by saying I know probably a lot of dealers just said did he say museum? I thought we were selling cars here, not showing them. Tell us the spirit behind starting the museum.

Mario Murgado:

First is my love for cars, my passion for cars, my passion for this business and my passion for Cadillac, and I couldn't think of anything better than to bring back the great history and the heritage of Cadillac, along with Americana and other vehicles that I have in that museum. So when I built it, I wanted to add that space there, and it's a space that we utilize in many different factors, in many different ways. So customers just come here just to see the museum, do they? Customers buy the vehicles and sometimes bring their kids to come take a look at the museum. That's fantastic. Customers buy a vehicle and bring other family members or neighborhoods to look at it. So it's really a great place for us to.

Mario Murgado:

I think you let your hair down, you get to enjoy, you get to relax and you know, if you're 60 years old, you look back and you remember this. If you're 40 years old, you look back and you remember this and you have everything there you have from pre-World War II to after World War II and really the escalation of the success of Cadillac. So you see that history there. You'll see the escalation of the muscle cars that are there and you'll find representation from Ford, you'll find Chevrolet, you'll find Dodge and you'll find Cadillac, obviously in Corvettes.

Jim:

That is fantastic. You told me during the tour before we got recording today that it was a point in time that GM owned 50% of the market share out there.

Mario Murgado:

Yeah, very much. You know, when you take a look and you look at historical and you said we came out of 1945, the war and truly it was the first time that we had women in the marketplace so they saved money. We had men come in their GIs that they didn't have money because they couldn't spend money, so they had money. And really it was an evolution, or evolution of economic might and power, that America had to rebuild and help rebuild the world. So then the 50s were roaring 50s and in those roaring 50s General Motors captured over 50% market share. So think about one out of every two cars was a General Motors car. It would've been either a Pontiac or an Oldsmobile, a Cadillac or a Chevrolet or a Buick.

Jim:

But it was incredible, were you one of those dealers, that those individuals that got into the car business because of your love for the cars Were you like a car nut.

Mario Murgado:

Absolutely. When I was a kid I would be in the car and I would say to my father that car has four cannons if cannons would be the exhaust and I would say those four cannons. That's a Mustang Mach One right you know, and the first Mustang, that's a Pony Mustang, that's right in there, that's a Chevrolet 57.

Jim:

Bel Air. Well, some kids are following baseball teams. You're following Cadillac's new model?

Mario Murgado:

So I did so. I loved all the cars I could tell, and then later on the small distinctions in those days it was round headlamps and later on square headlamps, one headlamp, two headlamps where they turn the turn signal, all those things.

Jim:

You are one of those individuals that I have followed over the last 10 years, since we've been friends and met and your expansion and your success has been so exciting. But I want to take the viewer back a little bit and talk a little bit about Mario Magado coming to this country. You were, I think, just under four years old.

Mario Murgado:

Yeah, I turned four or five days after I got here in this country. I've been blessed to live in the greatest country in the world. I've been blessed to live in the greatest country in the world. I've been blessed that I had parents who had a belief and a faith in this country that were willing to give me up and put me here to have that opportunity. I had great faith and I've had people who took care of me. I had two wonderful foster parents who took care of me at the very beginning, early on. Then my mom arrived later on after that and then my father within a year and a half and then we got to move to Chicago and made our life there and I always tell people I said you don't know America until you know the Midwest, the most wholesome part of our country so special.

Mario Murgado:

Still Midwest nice, no matter what you hear of it.

Jim:

So you're growing up in the Midwest and you decide after college I suppose I'm going to go into a dealership and apply for a sales job. Walk me through that. Sure, sure. Where was that? And what dealership In?

Mario Murgado:

1981, I looked for who do. I thought was the very best that's out there, and I was kind of very much mesmerized by Braman. Norman Braman was building an incredible organization, absolutely.

Mario Murgado:

And I had the opportunity to start working with him in 1981. And as I worked in 1981, I started in sales I selected Honda. They said where do you want? The person who interviewed me still today is a friend, linda Brickman, who was her head of HR and where do you want to work? I said well, I love Cadillacs, but I like this company, honda. It's a new company, it's really post-war 1981.

Jim:

So I said, let me go work there. And you remember those cars, oh my god, little shoe boxes, yeah, civics, yeah, so much fun to drive selling every one of them oh, of course, pre-sold.

Jim:

Right off the list, right right off of the list of here are the stuff, here the inventory, you know, one's good. It's kind of like ford you can have any color you want, as long as it's the next one on the list, right, and they were zapped up. Did you have any idea at the time I guess you did that honda would be the brand that it, that it grew into?

Mario Murgado:

you know, I felt that honda was an exceptional company early on. Yeah, uh, when you take a look at the history of mr honda, yeah, when you take a look at the three joys and how he believed in that, uh, I thought it was a special company. It was a. It was a company really coming out of japan. That was post-war, it was was not involved before the war in building cars, it was not part of that machinery.

Mario Murgado:

And I thought how they were so sensitive to what the consumers are, so sensitive to what the consumer wanted, and I always thought that their engineering, their marvel of simplicity, was very special. Matter of fact, their tagline that Jack Lemmon would do is we make it simple. That's right. I remember that that was their tagline throughout and the reality, all throughout my career there. They did incredible cars. There wasn't one miss. I always saw, and everything that I have has come through Honda. I'm always grateful for Honda. So that's where I did my beginning and today we get to have four stores and represent them in Chicago and in Florida and we're very grateful.

Jim:

So there's some dealers out there that may be Honda dealers or may not be Honda dealers, but they follow the industry, obviously, and they say Honda seems to have lost its way a little bit among some of the other brands out there. What do you say to them? Don't?

Mario Murgado:

make that mistake. Honda hasn't lost its way. Here's the way I look at it. I think we go through our life and through our experiences we see things that sometimes we like, some things we don't like as much, and at those times we kind of give up on certain things. But Honda's the largest engine manufacturer in the world.

Jim:

Yeah, wow, I did not know that. So when you think about that, as the largest engine manufacturer.

Mario Murgado:

Honda is an engineering marvel and an engineering company and I think they've always had a humble way of coming into the marketplace. And if you remember, early on when it came to SUVs, their first entry into SUVs was a partnership with Isuzu on the Passport. When you think about the minivan, the Odyssey, it's one of the best selling vans in the world and early on, dodge and Chrysler had them for many, many years and everyone said, well, this is something that's not going to be as successful. Well, honda waited really long, but look how well they did with the Odyssey and then, most recently, the CRV. I remember that being introduced in 1992, saw it in the Tokyo show and today it's one of the highest selling SUVs in the marketplace. Now another car HRV underneath of it doing it equally as well. So I think it's a company that's always been thoughtful, a leader, but never really at the forefront, always listening to what the consumer is and consumer driven.

Jim:

Okay, okay, so let's go back a little bit. Here you are. You walk into the dealership in 1981, and you go up through the ranks right Salesperson, maybe sales manager, f&i manager. You know all of those different positions to make. You know what makes a good general manager and eventually a dealer. At what point in time because you had a stellar career with Braman do you say I think I want my own gig, and what does that look like?

Mario Murgado:

You know, I think all throughout number one, I'm grateful. Yeah, I owe great gratitude to Mr Braman and the Braman organization because I had a chance to grow up there. Sure, I had a chance to go work the multiple seats that I worked there. I had a chance to go work the multiple seats that I worked there. I got the chance to run a store, be a general manager store later on and become the chief operating officer of a company and later on from that to have a chance to be a managing partner and president, ceo of the company. Throughout all those phases. They're all learning opportunities and he's an American icon.

Jim:

Yeah, that's for sure.

Mario Murgado:

And someone who's built an incredible organization, so I was always privileged through that. But you have those dreams, you have those aspirations as you grow and when you have those aspirations you try to follow that dream. And when I decided to make that happen really at the turn of 2020, 2000, in 2001 I bought my first store. I bought a store that was directly east of our Brayman Honda store, A store that was selling 2% of what Brayman had sold at that time. It was selling 16 Hondas a month.

Mario Murgado:

Oh boy, it was selling six Pontys and GMCs oh boy, you would think it was a dead store. And today I'm blessed to have a group and dealership there that sells 9,000 vehicles a year. Oh my gosh, 9,000 vehicles a year. Oh my gosh, 10,000 vehicles a year. Wow, that we do on Brickell.

Jim:

That is fantastic. That's fantastic. So you've got the dealership, you're up and running, and now, all of a sudden, you have the opportunity to acquire even more stores. Right To start to grow these. What do you have? 22 now in the lineup, 24. 24. Sorry, 24. Folks, 24 stores in really a relatively short period of time. I mean, you're talking about the acquisition of an average of one store a year. That's pretty aggressive.

Mario Murgado:

It may appear like that. I will tell you that it's always been from the very beginning. So I'll give you a quick example. So in 2001, I started writing to Audi. I started writing to Infiniti.

Jim:

Did you really 2001?

Mario Murgado:

2001. Wow, right, when we opened up and we were and you already are thinking more stores. We were thinking there. We were thinking about where is it that I thought. I always try to take a look and say let me do our own urban science study. Let me take a look where I think they deserve to have a store.

Mario Murgado:

Let me take a look at where I think they deserve to be. And it takes time, this business. Things don't happen today, right. Things take time to do. Right don't happen today. Things take time to do and, in that process of time, work tenaciously at it, be focused on it. I think a lot of people have a dream or have an aspiration, or have a desire or something, but they give up too soon and I think persistence removes resistance and I think if you're focused on what you want and you're tenacious about it, you can go after it and don't let no one take away your dreams and, more importantly, dream when you're awake.

Jim:

Dream when you're awake. I love that term dream when you're awake. It's so true, though, right, absolutely. You got to know what you want.

Mario Murgado:

You want to remember so you can be focused on it. But we started working early on like that and our first foray was in 2007, when Buick came to us and said listen, we'll give you Buick. We had Buick. That was important for us. We were awarded, in 2011, the Audi franchise and the Infinity franchise and there was our first clean, white piece of paper. We were able to build a store from the ground up in Stewart and we did that. From there, I chased Ocean Cadillac. I chased Ocean Cadillac from 2002.

Jim:

I would visit the company owner almost every month just to say hello, you knew, you just wanted that store.

Mario Murgado:

Yes, I thought it was a store.

Jim:

You're a Cadillac man. It's in your market, that's you.

Mario Murgado:

Yeah, and it took 12 years, but it happened.

Jim:

Like you said, it takes time.

Mario Murgado:

Right, these things take time, it takes time. And then when we bought it, we knew we had to go move it. In that process we wanted to stay close to Bay Harbor. We were going to build a dream store on the water. Matter of fact, it's a very unique proposition we were doing there. I couldn't get the approval there in the community, Moved it here to I-95, where today you have 240,000 people driving by.

Jim:

Every day seeing you.

Mario Murgado:

So it's a talking billboard, it's a walking live billboard for the community and for Cadillac.

Jim:

It is an amazing store. We're showing pictures of it right now. It is just something to see. If you're in this area, whether you're a Cadillac dealer or not a Cadillac dealer, if you're just in the industry, this is something to behold because I will tell you that you make us in the industry look very good by wanting to put out a facility like this. You know many dealers, as you know, look at a facility. Oh, I got to build what for the factory? What do they want me to do? Okay, let's not get crazy here, but you really went over the top in this dealership and museum and it pays off right.

Mario Murgado:

I believe. So I also think it's a mindset you have to create. We want to be the best partners for the manufacturers, and I literally say that to them. I want to be your best partner. I want to be a partner that you are proud to have. I want to be a partner that you feel good about I to have. I want to be a partner that you feel good about. I want to be a partner that's going to produce and generate and support you and assist you, and that's what we try to do with all our brands. We just made a major acquisition that we worked on hard and it's something also very proud in Chicago, and we're starting there to go and refurbish and do some things that they want.

Jim:

Pretty cool. Now was the draw for you for Chicago, because that's where you had roots there, and you said you know, acquire a store, why not in Chicago?

Mario Murgado:

do you know what? The draw for me in Chicago is a very simplistic that's where I grew up and being there it is my roots, but I've always felt akin to it, to it, and I always felt that it's a sometimes the place it doesn't get the right rap and I think it's a very special place yeah, you don't know America until you know the Midwest. I say that to people all the time. I had the opportunity there to buy in 2017, a Honda and Volkswagen store from the Fletcher Jones organization.

Mario Murgado:

Later on I had an opportunity to get a Honda in Libertyville, another great town in Chicago, a suburb, and the Actors Store, most recently our Motorworks organization, which also has an emotional tie to me. In 1975 my father took me to see a Cadillac for the first time at a car dealership, so I went there with him. I met Paul, the owner. At that time I was doing the translation no way, father, this is crazy to me, he goes, he goes.

Mario Murgado:

When you finish school, you can come work for me, stayed close to him always and had the opportunity to later on meet his son-in-law, mick, who did a phenomenal job building that company building the organization Wow that's pretty cool.

Mario Murgado:

Evolving that organization to what it is today, very, very, very very. They both should be very proud of what they've accomplished and done. And then I had the chance over the last year and a half working with them to finally come to close and buy that acquisition which added for us 10 stores now in Chicago, so in the Chicago market we have 10 deep and it's an important part of our organization.

Jim:

Wow, I know your dad has passed, but he would really have loved that story right? Oh, my gosh, that's something. So these big, beautiful showrooms that you've got and every one is just one is nicer than the next. As soon as I say, wow, you've really done it on this one, I see your next one and go, wait a minute, you really did it with this one. They're all beautiful. For the people that are asking the question is a big, beautiful showroom as relevant to the consumer today as it was maybe 10 years ago? Because we hear so much about digital retailing and people just want to go online and pick up their car or get it delivered to them or what have you. Is there still a strong tie to that?

Mario Murgado:

So let me explain it I think, in a better way there. So I really want to have where someone can come first of all, enjoy doing business with us, enjoy feeling safe with us, enjoy a place that's clean and enjoy a place that has a culture, that's a family. So that's important elements for me. The next part that's there is I want them to feel comfortable here and I think this offers the comfort of being able to explore. We are going to do digital business. We are doing digital business today. Is it what people expect that you're going to do 50% of your business? No, I don't think so. I don't think that buying a car is the same as getting on Amazon and making an order.

Mario Murgado:

It's well, you have a percentage. That we'll do, of course, and we'll cater to that and we'll pick up and we do deliveries also for those and we'll have all that. But I'm dealing still today with five generations. People forget that we still have some people from the great generation. We have people from the early baby boomers.

Mario Murgado:

We have people from the late baby boomers, we have the X, we have the Y, we have the millennial and we have the Z. Now Each one of them will have their own way of doing business. Each one of them will require different things. That's why it's so important that, more equally, I mirror what my customers are with my associates, so my associates then mirror our market, and same thing with languages we have in within our company. Today we have about 30%, all women, and I'm really and looking at fantastic.

Mario Murgado:

I'm looking to grow that more Wow in our management. I'm looking to grow that yeah with us, because we do business about 50% of women, so we should be able to do that, if not more we offer flexibilities that are different for them.

Mario Murgado:

We do things that when someone says the Millennials come in to get started, I said everyone starts on a Monday. We don't start on Monday with them, they start on Tuesday. Why Monday's the weekend? We got a lot of things going on and I want to make sure we can pay attention to when he comes in or she comes in on Tuesday.

Mario Murgado:

On Tuesday they don't start at 9 in the morning or 8 in the morning, they start at 10 o'clock, so they can't run after. At's the first day that they come in, that we have a goodie bag, that we have a welcome bag there, that their names are on the TV.

Jim:

For the new associate For the new associate.

Mario Murgado:

That's pretty cool, and so every manager knows who started the company, what department that he works through, they know their name and they can welcome them and it's part of our retention, it's part of our program, it's part of our onboarding program. That's in there. But I feel really highly excited about them also as well. When other people are down on them, I feel very excited because I think they have tremendous intelligence. They do things different than we do. They can multitask certainly 10 times better than I can, that's for sure.

Jim:

Just give them your iPhone, right.

Mario Murgado:

That's right, and they can do so many things that we're not doing as well, and excited about that?

Jim:

Yeah, for sure. So talk to us about the fact that you've got 30% females right now. Does the industry need to make a fundamental change when attracting females to the industry? They do so well in the car business, as you know. You've got 30% of them and you want to grow that number, but some of the females that we talk to that have either left the industry or are in the industry will say it's still a tough gig for females in the sense that if they want to start a family, they might not have paid proper paid time off or maybe the hours are too long, that kind of take away from them being able to spend time with their. You know the little league games and and some of the high school or the school events or things like that. Do we need to make a?

Mario Murgado:

shift, absolutely. I think that is something that's fundamentally we can't. You know, if you keep on doing what you're doing, you're gonna keep on getting what you're getting right. So if you don't make a change, then you're not gonna alter it. We have to make a change, we.

Mario Murgado:

I have no problem in the flex, yeah, hours, I have no problem. And having certain time that you got a half yourself, I have no wrong. They're gonna do the job right. They're get the job done and maybe it may not be at the highest level they possibly can if they were here more. But it's all a matter of what's important. And if it's important in their life at that time that they have a child, I want that to be first. I always try to think first of our employees. I always try to think about their success first. My success always comes when they're successful. And if you're successful in your home life, if you're successful in having a child, if you're successful in doing that, you'll be successful in this. Yeah, that's true. And if I have to do where, let's say, the average then drops to, let's say, five cars on it, I'll be successful there, and I'm also open to doing compensation that's differently.

Mario Murgado:

So I'm open to doing salaries that are different there I'm open to doing things in a different way. It's not the usual things that we've done before in the business.

Mario Murgado:

Our business should be evolving. Our industry is evolving. On top of that, what happened with COVID in 2021, you saw e-commerce change. What it took 11 years for e-commerce to do, it did in eight weeks. So how do we change with that? That's right. That's a good point. We've learned that we can do business. Where you and I did our last interview, we did it over Zoom. That's right, and we did it at a video conference. That's stuff that I never dreamed of before, only when I watched the Jetsons. That's right.

Mario Murgado:

But today so you can take that step and go further, and we can do that. And today they have their computers, but today we've switched everything where it's an iPad, sure, and everything with their iPad. They're talking to a customer on their iPad, they sit down for lunch at the cafe with their iPad, they sit in service and I think that works really well for us.

Jim:

Sure, sure. Before we got into COVID in 2019 and early 2020, we saw about a three month supply of vehicles on the lots on average around the country and of course it was kind of a race to the bottom among dealers fighting against each other for the deal. And who can get to the lowest?

Jim:

people would start with invoice and work down, you know and go from there, right and then, of course, through covid, we found that guess what customers are willing to pay sticker price if they can get a good experience and a good car and they feel good about it. Um, it looks as though the old way is creeping back in because of the inventory levels and the desire for people to want to just sell more vehicles and such. What's your take on that? Should we be cautionary?

Mario Murgado:

I think it'll always. It does come back to a certain extent. But I also believe that there was a new bar set and a new barrier and that new bar I think people will try to maintain. I think people will not want to regress that much. I think they had certain success they experienced and I say you know, when you first started driving, you didn't have power windows or you didn't have air conditioning. Today you won't drive a car that doesn't have air conditioning. You wouldn't have that.

Mario Murgado:

So I hope the dealers have learned that also and, more importantly, that manufacturers have also learned of having just one car enough. In some cases it's going to build a little more. We have to work on it. But at the end of the day, what a dealer has to remember is what is the experience he's offering, what is the value he's offering, and value is the proposition, why people will pay. People pay for value. People pay if they believe that it's good to do business with you and you're the right person and you're the right organization and the way you take care of and handle things. It's important. I had a friend this morning. She's a doctor, reached out to me my car is stuck. It's there, not a problem. I called our service director. Our service director sent a tow truck to go pick it up, and those are things that are important to people. Yeah, that's right.

Jim:

That you have.

Mario Murgado:

You own that customer forever and our goal is to have a lot of relationships with our people. So I really don't want a customer. I really want a client buys multiple times.

Jim:

That's right, that's right, you're an automobile dealer. You've got 24, not 22, 24 dealerships, which is just incredible. There's many out there that are concerned that their next generation in their family you've got kids in the family in the business now that the franchise system might not be the same for that generation as it is for you. They feel as maybe it's under attack because of the Tesla business model the direct to consumer. Seeing some other car companies going in that direction, we're seeing a kind of a European model that maybe Mercedes Benz or some of the others may try here in the States. What's your take on that?

Mario Murgado:

Listen. Of course it's frightening to everything and it's always for human beings. The unknown brings a fear. I would say don't run from the fear, run towards that fear that you have and overcome it, and you will show the value in what we do. You will show the reason why they need us.

Mario Murgado:

I think the industry has always been and has changed, sometimes a little more, sometimes a little less. Is there an agency approach that people are looking at today? Is there a direct model that people are looking at today? Of course there is, and understand that every company has a board of directors and every company's board of directors has a fiduciary responsibility. That responsibility is to study and see what's the best way for them to be successful. But I believe that America is the premier place to do business. I believe that if a manufacturer can't make it in America, they can't make it anywhere. Really, this is the place where you have to have, because it's a place of law and order, it's a place that rules are followed, it's a place that really has a structure and you have the investments that people have made. The investments I've made is millions and millions of dollars in these franchises. I'm willing to go work seven days a week. I don't think somebody else is willing to work Good point.

Jim:

good point You're not going to find an OEM executive willing to do it.

Mario Murgado:

I think they're interested in their PTO time. I didn't know what that meant and I believe that, more importantly, the truth is we're pillars of our community. Yeah, we are part of the fabric of our community. Right, we are the ones that do things with the Little League team. We're the ones that do things with the police department, the fire department, the schools, the church, the syndagogues. We're part of that, yeah, and as part of that, that's an awful strong feeling and connection we have. Will they look at things? Will they change some things? Of course, accept that Right, run towards it. We're in a you know state where they're looking at electrification and anytime you want to make a change as big as that, that's a huge change. But that change should be more market driven, not government driven. No one has the answers for it. So how do you make yourself more sustainable, more valuable? Better is an important part. That dealers should be thinking about that, versus the opposite. I can't control what I can influence every single day.

Jim:

Right, right. Well, since you went there with electrification, you took my next question. So there's a lot of dealers that are, oh, let's go, gun ho, the manufacturers are going, we better get our charging stations and retrofit our stores and be thinking in terms of an all EV future, While some other dealers that I've spoken to very large companies such as yours and the size of yours that have said, nah, not so fast, let's walk before we run on this topic.

Mario Murgado:

Where do you fall in that. I certainly tell them to try to take a slower approach. Why do I say a slower approach? I said infrastructure isn't there, country and infrastructure isn't there.

Mario Murgado:

And the anxiety it's not so much the anxiety today of how much mileage I have also, it's really the anxiety of that if I need to go and I need to make a trip, not only do I want to plan that. I got to park 30 minutes to get charged. No one wants to do that. So the evolution of the battery is changing. So they plan to be able to a quick charge. That today takes 30 minutes to get 80%, tomorrow will take 15 minutes and hopefully they want to get it down to 10 minutes. So it's more like going to a gas station. Sure, in that whole entire process, well, there's an evolution process of what you have there. So why make me invest in all this that you want? So let's take an approach of what we need today, anticipate what we need tomorrow, but let's take it in steps because, as we do, that, it'll allow us to have the best equipment, because it does me no good if I have all the equipment today and it's not the right equipment for five years from now.

Jim:

That's true. That's true. Do you find yourself sitting in dealer meetings with each one of the OEMs and they all have a different take on electrification?

Mario Murgado:

Yes, very much. Look, I tell dealers, look. If there's anything that I can give you as advice today is this is the time to shore up your relations with your customers. This is a sure time to make sure you control your data. This is a sure time that you have to become a better relationship developer with your associates and then, more importantly, look to double your fixed operation business. Why? Because by 25, there's expectations that you have 20 to 30% are being sold electric. In that process, allow yourself to have a buffer of the ICE engines that you've had for the next three or four years to give you that time before you get to 2030, that manufacturers have figured out different ways, that we both can make money and that we both can be successful. I also think that manufacturers are smart. I think they may be pushing electrification, but they're also in a wait and see also as well, because, at the end of the day, they understand that it's the consumer. They understand that you can't go to Arkansas, you can't go to Nebraska, you can't go to South Dakota, you can't go to North Dakota and force certain things here.

Mario Murgado:

I think some manufacturers have pulled out of sedans. Let's say Well, it was a self-fulfilling prophecy. It said, sedans don't sell well. If you quit making them, of course they're not going to sell Right. And you get excited about a C-class SUV because you sell one or two percent. Well, sedans today still sell 20% of the market. So take a look at what we've done with Honda, take a look at what Toyota's done, take a look at what others have done. So I think everything is evolving.

Jim:

I also think I also Talia, I'm sorry.

Mario Murgado:

I also believe that it's very exciting time for the showroom. Very rarely you have to go back to 1920 to go back and say you could have been on Park Avenue in New York where you had a horse, a buggy, a car and a trolley. Now you'll have in your showroom today you'll have a ICE engine. You have the same car, very similar car. You'll have also a BEV. So now you're going to have an opportunity really to your customer to give them the best of whatever choice they have. That's a good point, which I think is phenomenal. And I tell the sales force you are in one of the most exciting times to do very, very well because you have all the answers yeah, that's right, you have everything they want that tomorrow.

Mario Murgado:

Some manufacturers have said we're completely Bev, so the ice is gone. That's right, you've eliminated some of it. And some manufacturers say we're all ice, nothing Bev. Yeah, so that's it. And then you got to watch what manufacturers today have the whereabouts and the ability to make that investment they're making because it's huge and understand that they need to maximize also as well, sure, sure.

Jim:

The topic of M&A. We cover it extensively on CBT News because there's been so much of it these last couple of years. We've seen so many dealer groups change hands, get zapped up by these, whether it be private cap companies or public traded groups or what have you for just huge numbers that we've seen and I think that's been enticing to a lot of people. There must be not a week that goes by that somebody doesn't call you and say Mario, you ready, you're going to call me first.

Mario Murgado:

Right, yeah, there's always calls, but you know what? I've laid it pretty clearly that we're not selling, we're not for sale. Yeah, if anything, approvesia, where we're more in the acquisition state. Look, I'm very grateful for everything I have and every opportunity that I've had. I have great partners in the business. I have great general managers in the business. I have great general managers on it, our partners also in the business, and I want to grow this and I want to grow it for them, and you and I were discussing earlier.

Mario Murgado:

We're in an age that it's really important for us. It's the next generation. Earlier, you know, we're an age that it's really important for us. It's the next generation. Yeah, and for us, we try to be good stewards. Yeah, we want to give them the room for them to expand their horizons much better. We want to give them the tribal knowledge that we have. Yeah, and for me, it's really important that the next relationships that they're fostering so they can have and they can grow and and see the dynamics and understand that business will always change yeah, businesses and the flux of change on a consistent basis. But we live in the greatest country still, we live with the greatest business. This business is an incredible business. This is a business that we talked about. You got to bring a pen or a pencil and in reality, you said you don't even need that.

Jim:

We'll give it to you. We'll give you that.

Mario Murgado:

That's great. Come make a great living. You can be very successful. You can build your family. You buy a home. You get to live the American dream here.

Jim:

That's right. That's right. So you sound like a politician and you look like a politician and you're very polished and you're very well-spoken and you're a very successful businessman here in Miami and now in Chicago and New Jersey. Has that been something that you've said? Let me take a look at this.

Mario Murgado:

I mean your story is incredible. Thank you, thank you. So I've always been involved in helping with politicians. I've always been involved there because I think it's our duty and responsibility to be organized and involved, to see how we can shape and assist, but I've never decided or wanted to run on it. I think it's important, for I respect those that run. I try to help those that I think are best to assist us and grow and to care, and I think it's our responsibility, of all of us. When someone's unhappy, I always tell them what things are there. So what are you doing to change it Right and get involved? Yeah, and be involved? Sure, not just complain about it, right? Yeah, you can complain, but I just saw recently an election in Chicago and less than 23%, I think, was the voter turnout. That's a shame.

Jim:

Especially in that town.

Mario Murgado:

We get what we do, but if everyone gets involved, great things. There's something about community, and community is an essential part of our country. It's an essential part of us, and I always believe that people need to be thoughtful and listen to their folks. You and I can agree to disagree and we can move forward.

Jim:

And that's what this country needs right now.

Mario Murgado:

And I think it's not about this side or it's not about that side. It's about we all want clean water. We all want good education.

Jim:

We're all Americans. We all want America. Yeah, and it's important. Yeah, no question about it. So your dad played a big role in your life. Obviously, it takes a lot to send a child over to another country hoping it's going to better their life.

Mario Murgado:

What would he say about all of this? Still to this day. I remember all his words, so I never miss the day of school between kindergarten 11th grade.

Jim:

Wow, it's pretty strong it was he goes.

Mario Murgado:

Are you dying? Yeah, okay, I said it's still a great work at work ethic always yes, sit in the at the front of the class for a row. Yeah, why I said you don't need to look back and you look forward. Whatever relationship with you. That's also. Those are all great lessons. Yeah, we were poor, but he said read. Yeah, I still read a book a week, sometimes two books, and through books you can learn anything you want. And you can escape anywhere you're at. That's right.

Mario Murgado:

There's no question about it and those are great lessons that he gave me to honor this country, to respect this country, and he always told me I'm a guest, Even though I was a citizen. When I became a citizen, he goes you're a guest here, so you have to do more, be more work, harder. That has always been part of my life. That's there and I'm always grateful for that, for him and my mom.

Jim:

That is fantastic, Mario Amargado. Thank you so much.

Mario Murgado:

This has meant a lot Wow that's been great.

Jim:

Congratulations on all your success, thank you. Thank you very much. Thanks for watching the Executive Profile exclusively on CBT News. Today's Executive Profile was sponsored by Cox Automotive.