Colorado Independent Automobile Dealers Association

This year's quality dealer of the year found their way to the car business because two brothers in a rural community were tired of selling hay and grain for twenty-five years. Ron and Bob Ertle opened Ertle Bros. Discount Auto nine years ago when they decided to build four hundred rentable storage units and wondered, since someone had to be there to operate the storage property, why not try to sell a few cars and trucks there in the process? Both born and raised in Sterling, Colorado, Ron and Bob knew everybody in town and figured they would just be able to take down orders in this seemingly easy business. Wrong.
 
Ron's wife Alexes said they were so green that when they attended their first class that when asked who was a buy-here-pay-here dealer, they raised their hand because they figured they qualified because their customers bought and paid for their vehicles at their lot. After talking to the instructor, they realized this wasn't exactly what buy-here-pay-here meant. And so started the journey to learn and find help to become the most respected dealer in their community.
 
While doing so, they figured it would be nice to make a profit as well. So, Ron and Alexes and Bob and his wife Sandy joined a twenty group and together as a family were determined to make their business succeed in a very tough economy. And boy, have they ever.
 
During the past two years they have doubled their sales and created new profit centers while maintaining a passion for their business and its success. At one of the many classes they attended, they were told that if you don't make a profit, you can't take care of your customers. Alexes entered the $100,000 Challenge and were awarded the opportunity to work together with Leedom and Associates to meet the challenge goal of increasing their net profits by one hundred thousand dollars. Alexes sent in their application because they had worked hard the seven years previous and were not taking much home. It took them only eight months to meet and surpass the goal.
 
Ertle Bros. Discount Auto embodies the spirit of the automotive industry by taking on the challenges of owning a business and realizing that they need to be educated. Congratulations to Ron, Alexes, Bob and Sandy on being named the 2008-2009 Colorado Independent Automobile Dealers Association Quality Dealer of the Year.