Staff are the moral fibre of any dealership

Speaking to Dealerfloor after taking the Suzuki Dealer of the Year trophy for the second consecutive year, Dealer Principal, Toufique Carelse, or TC as he is also known, says he is very proud of his staff at Kenilworth Suzuki, part of the Mekor Group.

"We have created a winning culture at Kenilworth Suzuki. For that, one needs a winning team. I believe in training people well, treating people well and rewarding people well. With those fundamentals in place, both customers and the business win," he tells us.

We asked him how they went about winning a second time in a row, a feat not easily achieved with any brand's Dealer of the Year competition. "It was my vision after last year's victory to achieve the very difficult task of winning it back-to-back.

"We sat down with all the staff, sales people, technicians, cleaners, everyone who plays any part in our day-to-day operations, celebrating the achievement," TC says.

"I know there isn’t a single recipe for a winning formula. With the fundamentals in place, we could build on our first achievement, taking variables in business conditions into account. The market is constantly evolving. New competitors arrive regularly, and you must keep your fellow Suzuki dealerships and their strategies in mind as they are just as hungry as you are for the top accolade.

"With that in mind, we reassessed our strategy and tweaked it, where necessary, after our first victory," TC reflects.

"Receiving Elite status from Suzuki quarterly is also a good indicator if you are on the right track. This evaluation by Suzuki during the year looks at all aspects of the business, and achieving the final Elite status is testimony of a healthy business," he tells us.

He says you never know until the announcement is made and you are constantly competing with the 10 to 15 top-performing dealerships for the overall title. Suzuki Kenilworth also took first place in the category as Best Medium Dealership and then, of course, the big trophy as the overall Suzuki Dealer of the Year.

TC says it took time to put the Kenilworth dealership on the winning path. "I arrived here in 2019, amid the COVID pandemic, and Suzuki was still on its way to becoming the powerhouse in the local industry that it is today.

"Slowly but surely, you know the potential of the brand, of the dealership as it is well located, and of the staff. Getting everyone on board with your vision takes time, but we turned the ship around and winning titles is a result of that," TC adds.

Asking TC about their location and its role for their customer base, he says they are located between some upper- and middle-class neighbourhoods. "We attract customers in a 20 to 25km radius, mostly from this area. Kenilworth and it’s surrounding areas have a huge Muslim community, which also bodes well for us as I am also Muslim, as well as a number of our employees, and we understand each other.

"Treating our customers through first-class service is our priority as it creates repeat business. We also focus on younger buyers to create a future customer base. Our product range caters for everyone, and Suzuki's national monthly sales figures attest to this," TC says.

In conclusion, TC tells Dealerfloor that they want to build on the past two years' success, but also that their success started before that, building up to being the best Suzuki dealership in the country.