EVERETT— Rock Peterson, owner of Brien Motors in Everett, was honored by his peers with the Robert P. Mallon Dealer of the Year award May 19 at the Washington State Auto Dealers Association’s annual convention.
The award came as a complete surprise, Peterson said. In his acceptance speech, he teased his wife Maggie, who had known about the honor for a month prior to the event, for keeping the secret so well.
“I was just really flabbergasted,” he said. “There are so many deserving dealers. I just think I kind of got lucky.”
The Dealer of the Year award is named for former Tacoma dealer Robert Mallon, who is a past president of WSADA and the National Automobile Dealers Association. He is also founder and chairman of the National Automobile Dealers Charitable Foundation.
In presenting the award, the dealer committee acknowledged Peterson’s contributions to Washington’s auto industry and his quality dealership operations. The committee also noted his continued community involvement and contributions to organizations such as the Edmonds Arts Center, Housing Hope, United Way and others.
Peterson also has been a board member of the Boys & Girls Club of Snohomish County for more than 20 years. As an additional honor, WSADA made a contribution to the club in his name.
Even with his accomplishments so clearly acknowledged by his peers, Peterson continued to downplay the community activities that helped him achieve the honor.
“I’m sure every other dealer in that room does that, too,” he said. “It’s typical for dealers to be very involved with their community.”
But Peterson has a special bond with the community and with the city of Everett in particular. He was born and raised in Everett. While a student at Everett High School, he worked for his father in a butcher shop. That’s where he learned about hard work and customer service.
Although Peterson always had an avid interest in cars and eagerly watched for the new models to debut in local showrooms, he never imagined that they would become an important part of his life.
After high school graduation in 1965, Peterson attended Everett Community College, then went on to Eastern Washington University back when it was called Eastern Washington State College.
The era in which Peterson left the university was a bad one for Washington state. The aerospace industry was in a recession. The so-called Boeing bust of 1969 resulted in more than 60,000 employees being let go. Unemployment was high and it was not a great time to begin a career.
Peterson started by selling real estate. Next he tried business machines. It was the mid-1970s when he met an old acquaintance who had opened a Datsun dealership in Bellevue. It was a fateful meeting.
Peterson joined the Bellevue Datsun-Mazda sales staff and soon discovered that he had found his life’s career. He began to gain valuable knowledge and experience that would benefit him in the future.
As the 1970s drew to a close, Peterson found he was no longer satisfied simply selling cars. He wanted to own a dealership. Ideally, he would like it in his old hometown.
In 1980, Peterson met with Brien Medler, owner of Brien Ford-Lincoln-Mercury in Everett. Medler, who had owned the dealership since 1970, wasn’t ready to sell out entirely. He was hoping to find someone to buy him out over time. This suited Peterson perfectly.
“It made it possible to get in at a percentage,” Peterson said.
By the mid-1980s, the ownership transition was complete and Peterson was firmly established as the head of Brien Motors.
Peterson did make several changes to the business. The Lincoln-Mercury side of the business was sold. Peterson then founded and sold Brien Hyundai. He also added a Mitsubishi dealership to the Brien Motors family.
Less visible but equally significant, Peterson made changes elsewhere in the organization. He introduced a finance department so customers could finance their purchase onsite. He also made an addition to the sales staff that he believes was significant to his own success.
Peterson brought in Casey Salz, who is now general manager and part-owner of Brien Motors. He’s a second-generation dealer with a vast amount of industry knowledge.
“He was actually running dealerships at the age of 21 for American Motors, back when they were still around,” Peterson said.
Peterson credits Salz and his other staff with helping him win Dealer of the Year. Peterson explained that the quality of the owner’s personnel and his relationship with them can make or break a business, so it’s important to surround yourself with people who are not only talented but who possess great attitudes.
If someone has a good outlook and a good attitude, you can teach them the numbers, but you can’t teach personality, Peterson said. In return, you must respect your staff. He pointed to the recession as an example.
“If there’s a downturn or a loss of business and you have to ask (the staff) to work extra hours or maybe not as many hours, I think they’re more willing to if they know you have their interest at heart,” Peterson said.
Peterson also believes that the brand of vehicles he sells has helped him succeed. He’s proud of the way that Ford survived the recession, not only committed to paying off its debts without the federal bailout money General Motors and Chrysler needed, but also with vehicles that have some of the highest quality and greatest fuel efficiency in the company’s history.
Ford Chief Executive Alan Mulally’s leadership has been inspirational for Ford dealers and is helping them look forward, Peterson said. He pointed to a wave of coming new electric Ford models, including the popular Focus compact.
“We’re going to see a lot more changes,” Peterson said. “Even now we’re installing electric charging stations on the premises.”
He hopes the charging stations will be used by electric vehicle customers interested in seeing new things that Brien Motors may have to offer or who may want to take advantage of some of the dealership’s other services such as Quick Lane maintenance service or auto detailing.
In the meantime, Peterson will continue to serve on the WSADA board of directors in order to advocate for auto dealers and to represent their interests to the Washington Legislature.
WSADA has 300 dealer members who serve 75 communities in Washington. The organization’s members are responsible for annual sales volume of nearly $9 billion.
Peterson also plans to continue to support the Boys & Girls Club of Snohomish County and do what he can for other local organizations as he is able.
Brien Motors has been the recipient of Ford’s prestigious President’s Award multiple times. In 2009, Peterson also won the Corporate Executive of the Year from The Everett Area Chamber of Commerce.
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