Description
What if your dealership could sell another 50 cars a month using customers you're already paying to attract?
Every franchise dealer knows the frustration. A customer finds the right vehicle, wants to buy, but your team can't get them financed. The deal falls apart, the customer walks away, and another opportunity is lost.
But what if those customers could become an entirely new revenue stream for your dealership?
**Luke Godwin**, a third-generation car dealer, founder of Godwin Consulting Group, and co-host of the Independent Dealer Podcast, believes franchise dealers are overlooking a significant opportunity in buy here, pay here (BHPH).
Having built an operation with over 900 customer accounts, Luke knows what it takes to make this business model work, and how quickly things can go wrong.
In this conversation with Michael Cirillo on The Dealer Playbook, Luke explains why franchise dealers should seriously consider adding a separate buy here, pay here operation, potentially turning rejected finance applications and overlooked trade-ins into additional sales.
And when Luke suggests some dealers could potentially sell **50 more cars a month**, it's worth understanding the thinking behind that number.
**Here's what you'll learn:**
- **Capture sales you're currently losing:** How a BHPH operation could help franchise dealers serve customers who can't secure traditional financing.
- **Turn overlooked inventory into opportunity:** Why some trade-ins sent straight to auction could make financial sense under a different reconditioning model.
- **Avoid costly mistakes when getting started:** Why your existing GM or F&I team may lack the experience needed to run a profitable BHPH operation.
- **Protect profitability after the sale:** Why collections, customer communication, and payment management matter just as much as selling vehicles.
- **Build a business customers return to:** How Luke approached customer retention, repeat purchases, and ancillary products to improve long-term profitability.
Luke also shares lessons from decades in the automotive business, including mistakes he wishes he'd corrected much earlier and why dealership growth deserves a different approach when margins tighten.
For franchise dealers evaluating subprime financing, buy here, pay here, or additional opportunities within their existing customer base, this conversation raises some important questions about where dealership profits might be hiding.
**Subscribe to The Dealer Playbook for more real conversations with automotive operators who've built, tested, and learned what works.**