babypuppi: [7] Tom Bush Bmw Orange Park Making This Month News

Special for Drive

Tom Bush Jr. recognized the importance of people in business and believed in a broader definition of the term "family business." As a result, throughout the company's more than 40-year history, employees and customers have been treated as family, along with actual family members. And, the children, relatives and now grandchildren of the brand's founder are included on the employee roster.

Tom Bush Jr. and his wife, Laura, worked together opening their first dealerships in New Mexico. Tom Bush Jr. became the second generation of the Bush family in the automobile business following his father, Tom Bush Sr., who opened a Ford dealership in Gretna, La., in 1918.

"My grandfather [Tom Bush Jr.] grew up in the automobile business as did my father, John Bush," said Megan Bush, business development manager for the Tom Bush Family of Dealerships.

Megan and her brother, Brian, are the fourth generation of the Bush family to embrace the family business.

"As a young man, Tom Bush Jr. had no intention of following in his father's footsteps," Megan Bush said. "He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II and attended Georgia Institute of Technology, where he studied aeronautical engineering.

"After the war, he married my grandmother, Laura Russ, and then opened a Nash dealership in Carlsbad, N.M., in direct competition with his father's Chrysler/GMC dealership."

He soon expanded to nearby Hobbs, N.M., with a Ford dealership, but was eager to return to the Southeast.

Having developed an interest in the import auto market, Tom Bush Jr. purchased the Volkswagen dealership on Atlantic Boulevard and moved the family to Jacksonville in 1969. He opened Tom Bush Volkswagen in 1970.

Tom Bush Jr.'s sons, Thomas and John, joined the company soon after. Thomas began working with his parents in 1972. Father and son added a Mazda dealership in 1974, a second Mazda location - Mazda City on Blanding Boulevard in 1977 - and a BMW dealership next to the Mazda store in 1980.

John Bush detailed cars, ran errands, and worked in the parts department from an early age. And, when he went to college, he was looking for a different profession. He earned a degree in computer science and accounting and pursued a career in software development for 15 years before joining the family business in 1986 at his father's request.

"My father was a man of great foresight. He could think outside of the box like very few people I have known," John Bush said. "When he suggested I computerize the stores and take a second look at the car business, I agreed. It was one of the best decisions I ever made."

Computerizing the dealerships allowed him to learn, in detail, every phase of the business and gave him an opportunity to contribute that was unique and gratifying.

Father and sons worked together for six more years before Thomas left to pursue a teaching career in 1992.

John's considerable skills and knowledge contributed significantly to the thriving dealerships. He continued to work with his father, and over the next 13 years, the business expanded with the Auto-Plex in 2000, a MINI dealership in 2002, and a brand-new second BMW location on Blanding Boulevard that opened in 2006 as Tom Bush BMW Orange Park.

"My grandfather passed away in 2005," Megan Bush said. "My father supervised construction of the new BMW dealership they designed together, and it opened in 2006. It was especially meaningful to my father who was, by then, the company president and CEO."

John Bush has carried on his father's traditions by continuing to regard the people with whom he works as family. He has guided the company through the challenges of today's competitive business environment and successfully expanded the company and its customer base in a less-than-favorable economy.

Case in point: In August of 2011, ground was broken for a state-of-the-art MINI dealership next door to the Auto-Plex, where it had been housed since 2002. The new store opened in June 2012.

And then last fall, the Tom Bush Auto-Plex was selected to participate in a pre-owned vehicle certification program as a Motor Trend-certified dealership, one of the first in the United States. Motor Trend Certified Advantage hand-picks each dealership based on its performance in key categories like customer satisfaction and dedication to premium quality services. A one-year anniversary reception was recently held at the Auto-Plex.

"My grandfather's philosophy was to treat everyone with respect, and his primary goal was to be a man of his word," said Brian Bush, E-Commerce manager for the Tom Bush Family of Dealerships. "He instilled those principles in his children, including my father, and they helped Megan and me understand their importance in life and in business.

"They taught us to treat everyone with respect, stand by our word, ensure each business transaction is fair to everyone involved and nurture long-term relationships," Brian said. "Those are traditions well worth preserving personally and professionally."

Encouraged by their father to pursue their educations and careers outside the family business, Megan and Brian graduated from the University of Florida and both pursued other careers for years.

Megan used her marketing degree in various capacities at companies such as Cox Radio, The Money Pages and The Florida Times-Union before going back to school and earning her master's degree in business administration.

After college, Brian went to New York City for two years where he was involved in the development of the social transit app, Roadify.

"I planned to be there for two weeks, helping a few friends develop the app," Brian Bush said. "It turned into two years of hard work and a great deal of effort to develop and market the app from the ground up. It was an amazing experience."

Brian joined the family business in February 2012, while Megan did so this past August.

Their father acknowledged that the dynamics of working with family can be difficult, but it also is quite rewarding.

"My father was a great mentor. He taught me the importance of people," John Bush said. "He would say, 'The automobile business is a people business. Find good people, treat them right and they will treat the customer right.' He and my mother taught me the importance of hard work and unquestionable honesty."

Telis Assimenios knows first-hand of the Bush family's philosophy.

Assimenios, the company's general manager and chief operating officer, grew up in the automobile business and has worked in it for 30 years, nearly 28 of those years for the Tom Bush dealerships.

"I started in sales and was promoted to management within a year," Assimenios said. "I worked in various management positions before becoming general manager and chief operating officer in 2001. I knew from the beginning this was an environment in which I would want to work for the rest of my life. For me, it is a joy to come to work every single day."

The younger generation of the Bush family is well equipped to meet the challenges of today's market while holding firm to the traditions and philosophy established with the first Bush dealership.

"Megan and Brian possess a vision and hunger to succeed and carry on the family business," Assimenios said. "It is inspiring to us all. Our team is stronger than ever, and we have so much to offer our employees and the community by doing what we do best, treat everyone like family."

Brian wears multiple hats in the company but is particularly involved in e-commerce endeavors. Megan's experience and education in marketing and finance are put to good use daily.

"The public is rapidly moving toward online research which makes a business' online presence of great importance," Brian Bush said. "Before the Internet, the average car buyer visited six to eight stores before making a purchase. Today, the average is 1.2 stores."

Most research prior to buying a car is done online.

"Customers no longer are tied to stationary computers," Megan Bush said. "They use mobile devices to access the latest information and inventory updates. It's incredibly important to focus on the online forum and ensure we meet our customers' needs and exceed expectations."

Megan and Brian are discovering what it's like to be constantly challenged with improving the business and are reaping the rewards of seeing their impact on the company and its people.

"There was so much to learn," Megan Bush said. "And, we continue to learn every day. Brian is attending the National Automobile Dealers Association Dealer Academy, and we both are interested in many different aspects of the business. Through it all, we never lose sight of the most important part of this business - the people we work with and our customers.

Both Megan and Brian Bush are happy to be working with each other and with their father.

"I feel fortunate both my children have chosen to join me in the business," John Bush said. "I always told them they had the opportunity to work in the car business, but it was not required or expected. You have to enjoy what you do and this is a tough but rewarding business. I am blessed to have a fourth generation in the business. It has revitalized me."

For more information on the Tom Bush Family of Dealerships, visit Media Boyce is a Jacksonville-based freelance writer and regular contributor to Drive.