Whether on their own or working together, dealers are helping to change lives for the better
Nav Bhatia and his staff have been huge supporters of programs such as Hyundai Hockey Helpers
Nav Bhatia’s positive approach to building business and his multicultural, no-barriers philosophy was in the spotlight recently during TEDxToronto. TEDx talks are independently organized events for thought leaders around the world. Sharing the stage with scientists, athletes and technology leaders, Bhatia, who owns and operates Mississauga Hyundai and Hyundai of Rexdale, talked about his own experiences — how he overcame barriers and stereotypes to run Canada’s highest volume Hyundai dealership.
The audience was shocked to hear that when he was hired to turn around Mississauga Hyundai in 1987, eight people quit. In spite of this, Bhatia stayed true to his positive outlook and inclusive vision. Sales consultant Steve Wilson, one of those who stayed, says that Bhatia is “Committed to getting things done by bringing people together.”
As a Superfan and South Asian Ambassador for the Toronto Raptors, Bhatia takes his passion for Basketball and shares it with people from all races, religions and communities. It has evolved as a way to promote understanding and breakdown stereotypes about Sikhs — something he was actively doing long before the Toronto Raptors came on the scene.
CHANGING PERCEPTIONS
Bhatia’s no stranger to speaking in front of an audience — he was in front of 80,000 people at Times Square in New York this year — but at TEDx he received a standing ovation. Although Bhatia has been the subject of plenty of media attention, he felt the situation at TEDx was different. TEDx audience members have to apply just to be able to purchase a ticket to the sought-after event and many come from outside the automotive retailing industry.
By helping underprivileged kids go to Raptors’ games, Bhatia hopes that their experience of integration and inclusiveness there will make a difference in their perceptions so that they build his vision of a “harmonious society.”
Some of the other charities Bhatia and his staff support are KidSport Canada, raising $23,000 this year. They also donate and participate in Hyundai Hockey Helpers.
“It’s not important how much money you make,” says Bhatia. “What’s important is that you have an impact in one kid’s life.” This is his core message on how he gives back. “To impact children’s lives also changes attitudes about colour, religion, gender — where no one is judged.” Bhatia gives away Toronto Raptors’ tickets so children can enjoy a Basketball game and share a positive experience with other kids from different backgrounds. He says it’s important so that “kids can connect to the mainstream community.”
NATIONAL INITIATIVES
Numerous Nissan employees across Canada gearing up to take part in Adopt-a-Day events helping to give local families a safe, affordable home.
Sometimes it can be hard to gauge just how much of an impact dealers have when it comes to giving back. The Nissan Canada Foundation’s support for Habitat for Humanity is a good example. Starting out as a U.S. initiative in 2007, Habitat for Humanity expanded into Canada the following year and has now gone global. Nissan, through the Nissan Canada foundation now works with Habitat for Humanity projects from coast-to-coast. The automaker does this in two ways. In Toronto, where Nissan has its national headquarters, it provides an entire home for a family through its role as a title sponsor or donor. In other cities, such as St. John’s, Charlottetown, Calgary and Edmonton where there aren’t corporate offices, Nissan relies on support from dealers to provide “Adopt a day” programs that help contribute to local Habitat for Humanity projects.
Nissan Canada Foundation’s Louise Pan
Louise Pan, spokesperson for the Nissan Canada Foundation, says Nissan’s objective is to help improve the quality of those in the communities in which it and its dealers operate. “That’s why Habitat for Humanity seemed such a good fit.” She says that it’s important to note that the Habitat programs are designed to give families a hand up and not a hand out. “It’s about helping people get out of the cycle of poverty and it’s proved to be a very solid model.” Pan notes that by having Nissan Canada and dealer staff take an active role in these projects the result is far more rewarding than just providing funds or sending emails. “Those who are present, who are actually there helping, say the result is very rewarding. It’s a great feeling to know that you’re actually contributing to help change people’s lives and make a difference.”
JOINING FORCES FOR LOCAL PROGRAMS
It’s not often that you hear of dealers who compete with the same brands in essentially the same marketplace teaming up for a group initiative. That’s exactly what has happened with to the Nissan Canada Foundation and the Mississauga Food Bank. Nissan’s headquarters, in conjunction with Mississauga-based dealerships Woodchester Nissan, Direct Nissan and 401 Dixie Nissan, have teamed up to help the Mississauga Food Bank. Statistics show that more and more people are having to rely on food banks (more than 2.8 million meals were distributed from the Mississauga Food Bank alone last year), so every little bit helps.
As a result, the Nissan Canada foundation and the three dealerships have stepped up their commitment to the program — the foundation has become a “Champion Sponsor” and will increase the number of initiatives to help combat hunger in Mississauga.
Didier Marsaud, Senior Manager, Corporate Communications at Nissan Canada Inc., says that having three Nissan dealers in the same community working together with the foundation might not seem an obvious strategy, but so far, the formula has proved very successful. “When we had an initial meeting, they were very excited and motivated to do this.” He says it’s important to really develop that collective spirit in achieving the same objective, and the results so far reflect that. “It’s far easier and more effective for multiple parties to work together for the same cause than it is for each of them to do it individually.”
For this article, Canadian auto dealer would like to mention the valued contribution from Susan Varty. Varty is managing partner of HeadStart Social Inc., a digital marketing and personal branding agency that specializes in automotive lead generation and reputation management for dealerships. She can be reached at sue.varty@headstartsocial.com
