DRIVING INTO THE SUNSET...
Wednesday, January 27th, 2010 -- 11:48 AM
A familiar face at a local car dealership is ready to drive off into the sunset.Jim Schultz has been selling cars at Gross Motors for nearly three decades. He made his last delivery?a squad car for the Neillsville Police Department?this morning.
"It was a struggle, personally, to decide to retire. When you like where you're working and the people you work with and the customers, it's hard to walk away from that," Schultz says.
Jim remembers the first car he sold ? a Nash Rambler. He wishes he would have kept track of every vehicle sale.
"I wish I would have kept track. If there are people listening that are going into something, it's nice to document (accomplishments), because there will be a day when it would be really fun to pull that out," he says.
"2001 was one of my bigger years, and that was 230, and I remember there was a 260 year. That's about one per day."
And, that?s very good. Schultz has been recognized as one of the top salespeople in the nation.
As you might imagine, there have been some major changes in the business. The most notable are electronics?both in the cars and on the salesperson?s desk, registration fees and the emergence of foreign competition.
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