TD’s Gino Cozza retires, offers thoughts on industry

Gino Cozza, VP of Sales and Distribution for TD Auto Finance

After more than 43 years in the industry, Gino Cozza, VP of Sales and Distribution for TD Auto Finance, officially retired at the end of January.

A familiar figure with many dealers, many will recognize Cozza from one of the countless automotive industry events and conferences he attended over the years, many which he helped sponsor.

Cozza spoke with Canadian auto dealer about his decision to retire, while offering a few thoughts about industry trends and issues on his way out.


Q: So how do you feel about retiring? What made you come to this decision? Was it the pandemic?

A: It’s never a good time to resign I guess, but for me it felt like the right time. It’s been a wonderful journey. I’ve loved every minute of it and I could probably keep going forever. It was just time for me to do some other things that I’ve been putting off for many years. I just turned 65 at the end of October. I mean, some people want to keep working forever. Part of me does as well, but part of me wants to give other people an opportunity, and go do other things.


Q: Well now that you are nearly retired, can you share some insights, or advice you have for dealers about our industry? One area I know you’ve spoken about at dealer events is borrowing trends and long-term loans, and the impact this will have on the industry.

A: Unfortunately, I do think that with what we’ve seen over the last little while, and prices of automobiles going up, I think extended financing terms are here to stay. I don’t necessarily think that’s a great thing for the industry, but unfortunately I think it’s going to be a necessity to survive so that people can continue to get into cars and afford them. And the good news is that I think interest rates are going to be low for a long time. I think from a consumer perspective, that’s going to be beneficial. And with technology and the advancements being made today — I think the only problem that I see is that people are going to want those new technological advances in automobiles. Hopefully they don’t stretch themselves where they won’t be able to get out of their existing cars because of their extended terms to get into new ones.


Q: Now let’s talk about dealerships and their real estate investments. Concerning the buy-sell activity last year, many dealers must be thinking, “Okay, I’m out of the game, we’re done. I’m going to retire.” But then you have big dealer groups investing in big new facilities. What is your take on that?

A: I guess what I would draw attention to is, if you look at the current scenario where inventories are extremely low and many dealers are selling less cars than they sold before, they’re holding good grosses and profit. It’s been a good profitability year. I don’t know if the future is going to go back to huge inventories — that’s going to be interesting. I’ve never been a big believer that you need huge facilities. The trend here has been bigger facilities and more lavish facilities, but I think if you have a nice facility that’s not oversized — I think that’s going to be the future. I mean, particularly as we move to electrification, I think everyone knows that eventually that’s coming.


Q: So modest is the way to go?

A: I think having a nice facility that is not overbuilt would probably serve dealers better in the foreseeable future. And I mean, I only see that being more of the case going forward. I think the days of overbuilding are over, but time will tell. I mean, as long as you have an adequate service department that can service your clientele, I’m not so sure that you need those huge showrooms.


Q: We have seen a lot of dealerships changing hands and some dealers getting out of the business. What are your observations there?

A: There has been a lot of consolidation. Most dealers that had one store, a lot of them have sold or they’ve decided to grow. So there’s been a number of dealers that I know that are operating one dealership and they realized that if they were going to stay in the game, it probably made some sense for them to look at growing. And so they acquired some additional stores, whether it was one or two. But again, I think you’re going to see that continued consolidation moving forward.


Q: Are there any other issues you see that dealers really need to work on, or be mindful of in 2021?

A: Well, I think going forward there’s a couple things that come to mind. Most people today are probably doing a lot of their research online. And then there is a percentage of them that prefer to buy online. I’m one of those that have been buying my cars online for years and not going to the dealership — basically having them deliver the car and signing a lease on my kitchen table. There are more customers that are choosing to do that, and I think dealers need to be prepared and be able to sell online and have some really robust websites. But the other thing I found in talking to dealers is that there is still a group of customers that want to go to the dealership, and I think dealers need to be prepared to address both types of customers.


Q: Any other things that come to mind?

A: Prior to the pandemic, there was a large, pent-up demand or large number of customers that I would say were near-prime or subprime. That part of the market was doing really well. Unfortunately with the pandemic, that segment of the market was the hardest hit. And it’s understandable because a lot of these folks work in the service industry, and so they were the first ones that were impacted. As a result and during this pandemic, that segment of the market has dropped considerably and has suffered.


Q: What do you see happening with this segment?

A: I believe that when things come back to whatever the new normal is, I think people are going to travel. In fact, there’s going to be a pent-up demand for all these things. And once those people get back to work, a lot of them are going to need cars, want cars, and there’s going to be a big growth in that segment of the market. So this is a way of saying: dealers need to be prepared for all customers that walk through their door. Be able to sell to all customers coming through your door, and also be able to sell to them the way they want to.


Q: Good advice. I guess then my last question for you is about your replacement at TD. Is there anything you would like to say about him as we conclude this interview?

A: I take comfort in knowing that Howard is replacing me, because he’s very customer-service and dealer-oriented. I know he’s going to bring the same philosophy of trying to help dealers sell cars, and then for us so that we can finance and help them deliver cars. He’s going to continue to provide great service and take care of all our dealers.

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