CBT automotive newscast: November 5, 2021

Inside Automotive:

Alex Goldfayn on overcoming fear and doubt to become a world class leader
When you become the leader of an organization, start a business, or take on any kind of entrepreneurial path, oftentimes you are also met with fear and doubt along the way. On today’s show we’re pleased to welcome Alex Goldfayn, keynote sales speaker, CEO of The Revenue Growth Consultancy, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author, to explain entrepreneurial mindset issues facing many today and what you can do to overcome them. Watch the complete segment here.

Headlines:

Ford plans to repurchase up to $5 billion of its high-cost debt, to reduce liabilities and focus on more sustainable business operations. A “vast majority” of the debt will be from $8 billion in bonds the company issued last year at the start of the pandemic. Ford expects to fund the buyback with cash on hand, totaling almost $31 billion to end Q3. The repurchase is part of Ford’s new “sustainable financing framework”, a first of its kind. Ford is also the first major U.S. automaker to require its roughly 32,000 U.S. salaried employees to be vaccinated. Employees will have until December 8 or face unpaid leave.

Democratic lawmakers released a revised social spending and climate measure that expands a proposed $12,500 EV tax credit for more expensive cars while lowering income limits for eligible buyers. The updated bill, which could be voted on by the house in the coming days, makes vans, sport utility vehicles, and trucks priced up to $80,000, eligible for the full tax credit. The prior EV tax credit plan was estimated to cost around $15.6 billion over the next decade.

DuPont plans to purchase Rogers Corporation for almost $5.2 billion with aims to get into EVs and advanced auto electronics. The deal also would enhance DuPont’s position in advanced materials for other key growth markets such as clean energy and 5G cell phone service. DuPont plans to sell the majority of its mobility and materials unit, which makes polymers and resins for vehicles. DuPont predicts the unit will generate $4.2 billion in sales this year.

In the last quarter booking, Toyota had a 48% increase in operating profit. Toyota also grew its full-year profit predictions to near-record levels. Toyota’s operating profit climbed to $6.72 billion in Q2 ending September 30, from $4.53 billion in 2020. Net income rose 33% to $5.61 billion in the July-September quarter. That marked a record high for the company’s fiscal Q2. Revenue climbed 11.4% to $67.62 billion, even as global retail sales dipped 0.5% to 2.51 million units.

Hudson Automotive Group acquired Dick Dyer Toyota from retiring dealer Bruce Dyer. The dealership located in Columbia, South Carolina was renamed Midlands Toyota. Hudson Automotive now has six dealerships in South Carolina and six Toyota stores.

News & Opinion:

Winter is approaching. What should your dealer communications look like?
Every year around the fall and winter months, the seasons change, and cooler weather works its way in. In a non-COVID year, sales tend to slow down and advertising budgets are pushed to the brink to capture the largest portion of active buyers possible. But with a very non-typical year continuing deep into the fourth quarter and dealership inventories perhaps as low as they’ve ever been, what message should your dealership be sending out? Read more

Digital retailing is STILL not plug-and-play
The adoption of digital retailing tools by dealerships during the pandemic was something to see. We were forced to disrupt our normal business model, and technology gave us the tools to keep pace with that disruption. But that’s only part of the equation. Sorry, but digital retailing tools are still not plug-and-play. Success comes from implementing new technology and new business practices – specifically sales tactics. Without a change in mindset and processes, the tools are just tools. On their own, they won’t increase sales or CSI, or gross profit. In fact, having the tools without a solid back-end process can do more harm than good. Read more