Jackson Interview

Synopsis

Each time a dealer makes a sale and a car drives off the lot, along with it goes a few thousand pounds. And depending on the number of sales, those pounds can add up. But imagine losing one and a half billion pounds. Crazy? Well, that's just what America's largest automotive retailer AutoNation does every year. The company with nearly 250 dealerships across the country sells more than 500,000 units each year, which means more than 1.5 billion pounds of vehicles drive off its lots every twelve months. When it comes to the automotive retail world, all three of those numbers are staggering.

On this week's Autoline, AutoNation Chairman and CEO Mike Jackson joins John McElroy to talk about the industry, sales and how they're both reeling amid the economic disaster that is 2008. After that, they'll turn their attention to product. As a retailer who deals with nearly every OEM selling almost every kind of car and truck, he has unique insight into each manufacturer, its performance and its products. Plus, with dealerships throughout the United States, there isn't a demographic or geographic group he doesn't know or sell to. Joining Mr. Jackson and John McElroy on the panel are Bill Vlasic from The New York Times and Steve Finlay from Ward's Dealer Business.

So if you really want to know what's going on behind the curtain at your local dealer, check out this week's Autoline for the inside scoop.