GM Recognizes Green Dealers

Certain Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac dealerships across the U.S. are showing customers their environmental credentials. It’s all part of GM’s new “Green Dealer Recognition” program.

GM is recognizing dealers with proven track records in areas such as energy reduction, renewable energy use, water conservation, recycling, onsite nature habitats and community outreach – all areas we’re committed to across our global operations.

Many of them already do these activities because of the solid business case. In fact, we frequently hear from our dealerships that sustainability efforts deliver value via a motivated workforce, operational efficiencies, and outreach opportunities. And, it can communicate a strong message to customers who care about buying from environmentally responsible companies.

Gan Nunnally, general manager of George Nunnally Chevrolet in Bentonville, Ark., said it’s led to both topline growth and bottom-line savings for his operations.

“Although financial savings is what started our environmental upgrades, we’ve found we have like-minded people in our community that really appreciate the effort we made,” he said. “We’re seeing that through our service lane and our sales. These are people who have not previously driven a Chevrolet.”

Nunnally is just one of many dealers interested in operating more sustainably and finding meaningful opportunities to connect with the community. Within just 24 hours of communicating this program to our retail network, we had 66 dealerships evaluating their performance against our criteria. To date, 180 dealers have requested access to complete the assessment.

We think customers should know all the behind-the-scenes efforts dealerships make to leave a smaller footprint. We designed the program to encourage dealers to continue these voluntary efforts and build a network for sharing best practices to help others begin or advance their sustainability journey.

And that was one area that really impressed us—just how willing dealers were to be a resource for their peers and share what they learned in terms of green building upgrades.

“I don’t often share specific business strategies, but in this case, we truly want to share with other dealers so they can learn from our experiences,” said Karl Zimmermann of George Matick Chevrolet in Redford Township, Mich. “I guess if we didn’t, then how can we say we believe in following a ‘green’ path?”

Zimmermann was one of several dealers we talked to during the pilot to help us shape the initiative in a way that would add value to their operations.

He said that being able to talk in detail with another dealer prior to launching a big project about what it takes to succeed – cost effectively and with appropriate ROI – would be extremely valuable.

To date eight dealerships have received certification for superior sustainability performance. Matick Chevrolet and George Nunnally Chevrolet are among that group.

“We’re extremely proud to earn recognition for all of our investments in, and our ongoing commitments to, following a ‘green’ path, conserving our precious resources and acting as a good corporate citizen,” said Zimmermann.

He added: “It’s just another way that Matick Chevy can serve our customers and our community better.”

We couldn’t agree more. Plus, those cars really shine under high-efficiency compact fluorescent bulbs and LEDs.