CarMax plans location in BR
$4.5 million project could take 1-2 years
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Richmond, Va.-based CarMax, the nation’s largest specialty used-car retailer, will open a location in Baton Rouge at 6750 Siegen Lane.
The company is still working on some planning and zoning issues but could begin construction in a few months with build-out on the $4.5 million project taking between 12 and 24 months, spokeswoman Trina Lee said.
Lee said that while the Baton Rouge location will be a little smaller than CarMax’s larger locations, the Baton Rouge CarMax will do vehicle reconditioning. She said it would have somewhere between 50 and 100 employees.
CarMax was founded 14 years ago based on consumer surveys of used-car buyers, Lee said.
“Our process really is focused on transparency,” she said.
Taking what customers said they don’t like about buying used cars, CarMax created a model in which prices are set and buyers do not haggle for better deals; each component of the sale — trade in, buying and financing — is handled separately and not bundled together; and sales people get a flat commission, rather than one based on sale price.
“They really are excited to find you the car you need,” she said.
Lee said the Baton Rouge location will have between 200 and 350 vehicles, though CarMax keeps its entire 25,000-car inventory available for a transportation fee. Customers aren’t obligated to buy cars that are brought in from other locations.
Lee said 80 percent of the stock is less than 6 years old or under 60,000 miles, and the company offers a 125-point inspection, sells no frame- or flood-damaged cars, offers a five-day money-back guarantee, a 30-day warranty and extended service agreements.
According to Hoovers, CarMax had annual sales in 2007 of $7.47 billion, up from $6.36 billion in 2006, and earnings of $198.6 million, up from $148.1 million in 2006.
Lee said the company has been expanding at a rate of 15 percent per year, with Jackson, Miss., the closest location to Baton Rouge, only opened in December.
The company is still working on some planning and zoning issues but could begin construction in a few months with build-out on the $4.5 million project taking between 12 and 24 months, spokeswoman Trina Lee said.
Lee said that while the Baton Rouge location will be a little smaller than CarMax’s larger locations, the Baton Rouge CarMax will do vehicle reconditioning. She said it would have somewhere between 50 and 100 employees.
CarMax was founded 14 years ago based on consumer surveys of used-car buyers, Lee said.
“Our process really is focused on transparency,” she said.
Taking what customers said they don’t like about buying used cars, CarMax created a model in which prices are set and buyers do not haggle for better deals; each component of the sale — trade in, buying and financing — is handled separately and not bundled together; and sales people get a flat commission, rather than one based on sale price.
“They really are excited to find you the car you need,” she said.
Lee said the Baton Rouge location will have between 200 and 350 vehicles, though CarMax keeps its entire 25,000-car inventory available for a transportation fee. Customers aren’t obligated to buy cars that are brought in from other locations.
Lee said 80 percent of the stock is less than 6 years old or under 60,000 miles, and the company offers a 125-point inspection, sells no frame- or flood-damaged cars, offers a five-day money-back guarantee, a 30-day warranty and extended service agreements.
According to Hoovers, CarMax had annual sales in 2007 of $7.47 billion, up from $6.36 billion in 2006, and earnings of $198.6 million, up from $148.1 million in 2006.
Lee said the company has been expanding at a rate of 15 percent per year, with Jackson, Miss., the closest location to Baton Rouge, only opened in December.
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