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Building on their name adopted The Forbes‘, who run a GM and Toyota dealership in Waterloo, have taken over ownership of Parkway Mazda on Northfield Drive just beside the onâ€"ramp to the Conâ€" estoga Parkway. "It‘s a diversification and a chance to offer the community another choice," said Russell Forbes, the owner of the dealerships. Consumers can branch into a new brand knowing they‘ll still have the Forbes name backing the product, he added. "The name adds immediate recognition. I think it will help produce stability at the dealership," he said. l > â€" "I think the Forbes name will add crediâ€" bility to the product. People know who they‘re dealing with," he said. _ ¢ B ‘?""\jf“l. 3 \-, '.*75:- > > & * Biy 3 S e & sX â€" a \| a > NOdS + m 4 ze Li n atbeiess : MENS CLOTHIERS | wE s T M O U oN d P L A Cd4 H o uar s : J That‘s why they‘re changing the name of the dealership from Parkway Mazda to Forbes Waterloo Mazda. "Customers know we‘re strong in all positions, that‘s part of the reason we attached our name to Parkway," Forbes The Forbes family has taken on another dealership Forbes is one of the oldest names in automobiles in the area, opening their first dealership in the region in Kitchener during the 1940s. They began selling Dodges, but since then the family has expanded into new brands and locations. And despite facing economic recessions and downturns, the Forbes‘ have been able to stay afloat in the rough times and thrive in the good ones. The secret to their success is the people, the owner said. "I credit (our success) to the quality of employees," Forbes said. "We‘ve had wonâ€" derful longâ€"term people with us." The various Forbes dealerships have had 28 employees with more than 25 years expeâ€" rience and even one with more than 50 years. "We haven‘t had a huge turnover of peoâ€" ple, and that‘s an advantage," Forbes said. "The customer can come and not have to see a new face. There‘s a continuity and a consistency." That continuity goes back a long way â€" all the way to Henry Ford, in fact. The first Forbes in the auto industry was Russell Arthur Forbes, who served as Ford‘s personâ€" al secretary in Detroit in 1925. When R.A. Forbes moved to Ontario a few years later, he opened the family‘s first car dealership in Brantford, which exists to this day. ith more than half a century in the car business, the Forbes family has a new addition â€" and this time it‘s By GrEG MacDonaLD Chronicle Staff _ And in 1999, they purchased a Toyota dealâ€" ership onâ€"Northfield Drive. Their new Mazda dealership is less than a minute down the road, although it‘s a little tougher to find. Jason Stainton is the general manager of Forbes Waterioo Mazda, which the Forbes family, who owns local GM and Toyota dealerships, recentâ€" ly took over. The first Waterloo dealership opened in 1965, when brothers Jack and Ralph Forbes moved their Victoria Street dealership to Weber Street North. The dealership is tucked in beside the onâ€"ramp to the parkway and not clearly visâ€" ible from the road. "Our location is a bit of a problem," said Jason Stainton, the general manager of Forbes Waterloo Mazda, but he‘s hoping the rebranding effort and some signs closer to Northfield Drive will help fix that. The Forbes® haven‘t left that location. And if that doesn‘t work, he‘s sure the BUSINESS "The Forbes‘ have had great success with Toyota so we want to take the learnings from that and grab another import franâ€" chise," Stainton said. Forbes name will drive customers to seek out the dealership. s And while the car manufacturing indusâ€" try in Ontario is on the decline, Stainton isn‘t worried about expanding in the curâ€" rent market conditions. "Waterloo is the Alberta of Ontario," he said. "The car business is strong here. _ "It‘s funny, people are looking to buy cars, it‘s something people need, so we‘ve got a pretty good outlook." _ ____________ _ Stainton believes that while the Forbes‘ will bring customers to Mazda, Mazda will also bring some customers to Forbes. _ "It‘s a great product with a youthful perâ€" WATERKOO CHRONICLE + Wednesday, January 16, 2008 * 15 ception," he said, adding that they will draw a younger consumer base than brands like And if they can‘t please at Forbes Mazda, they‘ll certainly direct consumers to other Forbes dealerships. _ "First and foremost we want to sell a Mazda," he said. "Our secondary goal, however, is fer cusâ€" tomers to buy from a Forbes name." _ This is Stainton‘s first time running a dealership, but he‘s already taken a page from Forbes‘ book. "Management really comes down to peoâ€" ple. Business is people," Stainton said. _ "The challenges you think you‘re going to see when you come in â€"â€" meeting sales abjectives, mainly â€" become secondary to having the right team." GREG MACDONALD PHOTO