Best holiday wishes to you and yours...

Customer Service vs. Hospitality

First I would be remiss if I didn’t congratulate the people of Jaguar that were responsible for moving Jaguar 20 spots from 21st in JD Power’s Initial Quality to number 2 tied with Porsche (which is not bad company) and probably also a historic move-up for JD Power.

Jaguars are beautiful fast cars, always in style and more reliable than a Mercedes, BMW, Audi, and so very close to Lexus. How many of the competition do you see on the highway vs. Jaguars?

Recently I was watching a business news program on PBS and a segment came up from a professor (from Harvard I think) who was commenting on the difference between customer service and hospitality. It started me thinking about efficient service vs. personal service. I’ve been very lucky in my life and over the past 30 years I’ve been able to spend my summers in the Hamptons, mostly East Hampton, and for 25 years I was going to a very famous steak restaurant, maybe a couple of times a month for over 25 years.

I’m not famous but I’ve been known to be a generous kind of guy and you would think I would at least get acknowledged when I arrived. Now I’m not saying I ever had a bad steak, or in the middle of a snow storm in December didn’t get served the best beef steak tomatoes either.

The waiters were always efficient and sometimes even engaging. In fact, one now works at The American Hotel in Sag Harbor (best onion soup I ever had). But, I always felt like a customer; in, out, on to the next (I think they call it table turn).

Now look, for a good steak it was okay. One evening the place was crowded and they weren’t take reservations (it was early but not too early for the single working moms with the kids). The restaurant’s host, we’ll call him Mr. T, actually saw me, but then turned his back on me, making believe he hadn’t noticed me. I really didn’t expect him to stop the operation and get me a table at that exact moment, but I thought I deserved some kind of acknowledgement. Long story a little shorter, I never went back. Believe it or not, by me not eating there they are still in business.

So fast-forward a few years and friends from Florida are out and although they were in NYC for a couple of days (they eat mostly Italian) they get in the mood for a steak. Where you gonna’ go in the Hamptons for steak? So in spite of hearing “we only have reservations for 5pm or 10 pm and “my history” there I make a reservation for four of us at 5pm.

I don’t want to say that I opened the restaurant but most of the folks there were from “Bella Vista Phase II” (retired older folks). Who do I see at the desk, but none other than Mr. T. who says, “Mr. Squitieri we haven’t seen you in such a long time… we missed you… blah blah blah…”

After we’re seated he comes by the table, my wife comments how he hasn’t changed a bit, he asks, “where have you been?” So I tell him how last time I was here he offended me… he apologizes, talks about his retired partner, Spain and his place in Florida.

We had a wonderful dinner, a great bottle of wine and will go back and give it another try…so I’m thinking, “is this the difference between efficient customer service and hospitality?

So maybe we should revise Madison Jaguar’s mission statement to “We will seek to anticipate your needs, earn your trust and treat you like a guest, not just a customer.”

Pair of Italian Gloves: $4,957 with Free Jaguar XKE

A long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away… (in Boston, Massachusetts.) Back when The Beatles were still a group, I was a wannabe advertising guy stuck as a communications major in a town that invented the “wind chill factor.” 

I was given an assignment to develop an advertising program for an existing company. Now it’s fair to say that I was more of a muscle car guy (having a GTO) than a foreign car guy, but for some mysterious reason unknown to me now, I chose Jaguar as my assignment. 

I had long hair, was cocky, and been known to take mind-altering concoctions. I always thought my advertising ideas were going to change America, no “plop, plop, fizz fizz,” or “that’s one-a spicey meat-a ball.” 

I was going to change things and have a social agenda to boot, probably a Frey boot, anyway now with the current bruhaha because of Mad Men, imagine, my first assignment I chose was Jaguar. Not a real macho second-generation Italian kinda car. 

This all came back to me like a “flash back“ because of the recent press on the XKE. My first attempt was a picture of a pair of Italian gloves…. only $4,957 and they come with a 1967 XKE… lame… maybe. 

But remember, it was the 60’s and Nixon was President. My next attempt was received with, “Mr. Squitieri very interesting…” Another magazine ad with the following letters taking up most of the page… A B C D F G H I J L M N O P Q R S T U V W   XKE… ”We not only invented the English language we reinvented the alphabet…” 

I would like to say thank God I never made it into advertising, maybe Jaguar wouldn’t be around today, or I’d be hanging from the back of my office door, or both. 

I would like to commend Jaguar and how they handled the recent press. We’ve always had reliability as an issue. We are the first to admit we had and are able to have some fun with it. I guess the real theme is, can you imagine the most beautiful car ever made was only $4,957?

All Things Must Pass

It’s been two months since the sale of Bergen Jaguar and things are moving along quickly at our Madison store… Renovations are scheduled to be completed by the end of the summer, which will include some additional improvements in our “state of the art” service center.

One store and one brand has already improved our customer relationships, which is our number one goal. We are also working on all points of customer communications with our staff so that our clients are communicated with in a timely, courteous and caring manner. Our strategy is to anticipate our customers’ needs and to earn their trust.

We have some of the most qualified, experienced, and nicest staff in the Jaguar business and they provide not only efficient, courteous service, but a personal experience you can only find at a Jaguar only store. We are not part of a large automotive group, we are a single point Jaguar dealer that wants to give you the “Jaguar Experience” you’ll only be able to find with us… Madison Jaguar, exceptional service, exclusively Jaguar.

Another Year Come & Gone at Bergen Jaguar

Well another year has come and gone... 2012 starts our 19th year as Bergen Jaguar. Sometimes it seems longer and other times it feels just like yesterday.

Nineteen years ago you had to choose either a glove box or an airbag in our 1993 XJ sedan… a lot has changed since then. People have changed, at our dealership and at corporate, staff has gotten married and had children, some kids even sent off to college… some have also gone.

We should always remember that if not for our customers we would not have been able to accomplish these milestones… but one thing has remained constant throughout our history, people passionate about the brand as though it was living thing.

I tell people this is the best job I have ever had and it is… I have met all kinds of people from all over the world, but the folks that have worked at our stores, Bergen, Englewood, and Madison are the ones I will remember always. They have a special place in my heart—so thank you for making my life special… Happy New Year!

Jaguar at Play

Jaguar’s new ad is proof that sometimes things are worth the wait. Our new television spot hits the brand right on. This is what Jaguar is now… beautiful fast cars that are almost alive.

We are the only luxury brand that is named after a living thing. Jaguars (the animal) are solo creatures, that you very rarely see in the wild (I guess the same can be said of the car)… but it looks like with Jaguar’s new management and direction, that may not be the case anymore.

So fasten your seatbelts… looks like Jaguar isn't playing around anymore.

The Liberace Museum

Way before in another life, I was in the shopping center business. Every year there would be a convention, the ICSC (the International Council of Shopping Centers) was held in May in Las Vegas. At one time it was Las Vegas’ largest convention.

Since we were a small developer (much like the our car company of today) we used to try to make the most unusual displays. We actually hired Vanna White one year and literally emptied out the other displays when she appeared at our booth.

Needless to say, location was a priority, and we always had a great location because we knew a very nice man who was head of the union at the convention center. So I used to travel months before the convention to have dinner with “this nice man” and discuss our location.

Now if you know me, you might say I dress rather differently to other folks. So I’m on this flight to Vegas, in first class, when a rather attractive woman spots me an says, “it’s really quite a shame that we lost him, isn’t it”? I say, “yes it is.”

Now I have no clue what’s she’s taking about but I go along. It’s only about half way through the trip so what else can I do? ”Are you going to the ceremony,” she asks. I say, “Yes”…I still have no idea what she’s taking about but she was rather familiar looking.

After a while, the flight attendant comes over and remarks, “So you’re in show business, do you know Linda Dano well? I love her.” Now it’s starting to come together, she’s not some leasing agent I know, but a soap star and that was the week Liberace had died.

Not a great story, but like most of my stories, yep, there’s more… So I get into the limo and pick up “the nice guy” and proceeded to tell him the story about what happened on my flight.

He says, “you know, there’s a Liberace Museum here. So we go and enter a strip mall center with a nail salon, waterbed store, etc and there it was… sort of sad.

Some folks think of our dealership as a museum... maybe even a little like that Liberace Museum, which of course would make me somewhat like the "Curator of the Liberace Museum."