BERKSHIRE AUTO DEALERSHIPS ARE EXPANDING, THRIVING, AND STAYING TRUE TO THEIR ROOTS
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B y S c o t t E d w a r d A n d e r s o n // P h o t o s b y L e e E v e r e t t
Driving Community
BERKSHIRE AUTO DEALERSHIPS ARE EXPANDING, THRIVING, AND STAYING TRUE TO THEIR ROOTS
On a stretch of Pittsfield Road in Lenox that is becoming known as the town’ s“ Auto Quarter Mile,” the future of Berkshire County’ s auto sales industry is quite literally taking shape. A gleaming new facility worth over $ 5 million now houses Berkshire Mazda, which relocated from its longtime Pittsfield home in 2024. Across the highway, owner Jim Salvie has developed additional lots where the Yankee Candle shop once stood, clear signs of an industry roaring back to life after years of pandemic-era disruption. For Salvie, the expansion reflects both business strategy and personal commitment.“ Business for us has been great,” he says, noting a 30 percent uptick since the move and a one-to-one ratio of new to used car sales. More than just a new building, this growth highlights something increasingly rare in American retail: the endurance of locally owned businesses. While corporate consolidation has swept through the auto industry nationwide, Berkshire County’ s dealer landscape remains personal, run by people who live and work in the area and reinvest in the community. Salvie’ s journey exemplifies that ethos. He started at Haddad Auto Group at age 19, rose to general sales manager, and opened his own dealership in 2006.“ We started in a small blue house on East Street,” he recalls, a humble beginning that led to the current expansion.
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Post-Pandemic Comeback— and Challenges
At McGee Auto Group’ s Berkshire BMW, Audi, and Volkswagen dealership, business is up roughly 25 percent from the previous year, with used car sales growing even faster. Mark Hoch, who runs the dealership, attributes this to the return of inventory and stabilizing supply chains. In 2024, more than 30,000 new vehicles were sold in the Berkshires and the south-central part of the state( an area that encompasses the 1st Congressional district), according to the Alliance for Automotive Innovation( AAI). That translates into 11,000 jobs in the regional car industry and nearly $ 766 million in labor income.
Still, there are headwinds.“ The car business is starting to slow down,” Salvie says. That’ s due to economic uncertainty and tariffs, which have these seasoned dealers watching the market closely. Nationally, according to a recent Kelly Blue Book report, broader economic concerns and tariffs already have pushed the average new car price above $ 50,000 for the first time. After months of absorbing tariff costs, automakers may now be passing those expenses to consumers, contributing to the natural cooling that follows any period of explosive growth. For the dealerships, the increasing price of new cars accelerates their move into previously owned vehicles, reflecting broader
market dynamics. Manufacturers are now more disciplined, avoiding bloated inventories that once led to aggressive discounting, says Steve Bedard of Bedard Brothers Auto Group.“ It keeps prices stable.” He adds that used cars continue to yield healthy margins for dealers, notwithstanding historically high prices. Salvie agrees.“ Covid created a shortage of used cars,” he says. While prices haven’ t fully corrected, demand continues from buyers priced out of new models or seeking better value.
Generations of Service
Walk into a Berkshire dealership, and you ' re likely to meet someone who’ s been there for decades. George Haddad, representing the third generation of the Haddad Auto Group, operates Toyota, Subaru, Hyundai, and GMC stores across the region. His philosophy?“ Sales sells the first car; service sells the second,” he says. It’ s a relationship-driven approach that builds long-term loyalty. Today’ s first-time buyer might become tomorrow’ s loyal customer who returns for decades. Haddad, who was named 2025 TIME Dealer of the Year for Massachusetts, has always worked in the family business started in 1932 by his grandfather, also named George.“ We have people that are brand loyal, then we have people that are dealership loyal,” Haddad says. Familiar faces matter,