Resilience and rebuilding at Banner Chevrolet
Here's how VinView helped Banner Chevrolet thrive after surviving Katrina.
As one of the oldest dealerships in New Orleans, Banner Chevrolet has had to weather many a storm, including Katrina, the devastating Category 5 hurricane that touched ground in August 2005.
When Ray Manley started working there, twenty-one years ago, it was the largest dealership in the state.
“We had over 700 vehicles on the ground and were getting new ones in on a rapid basis,” he said. “Of course, then we had the tragedy that was Katrina, which ended up being the biggest insurance claim in history, for this one dealership, because we had so many vehicles that went underwater."
Banner Chevrolet remained resilient despite the immeasurable loss. And even though the dealership had begun to rebound in the years after Katrina, the COVID-19 outbreak only hampered its progress.
VINView has been instrumental in the rebuilding process over the last few years, as the dealership continues to rebound from Katrina and now also the COVID pandemic. The platform is key to Ray’s daily routine.
With any dealership as large as Banner Chevrolet, VINView’s interactive map proves to be invaluable. Ray’s colleague and Sales Manager, Johnny Brumfield Jr., explained just how useful the interactive map is:
"If (Get Ready Manager) Ray contacts us and says, ‘Hey, these vehicles are in transit,’ then we can work these deals with the customers. We can take deposits on them. We can [also] market it to watch the VIN in VINView, and Ray lets us know exactly when the vehicle is coming in. He’s able to [know] in advance and he can create the backup packs that we have with the keys, and have it all lined up for when the vehicles come in, to make everybody’s job easier."
