At the Howard Cooper Import Center in Ann Arbor, Mich. all 89 employees received cash handouts this month as a thank you from retiring dealer principal Howard Cooper. The 83 three-year old, sold his dealership to Germain Motor Company, an Ohio-based concerned, but stipulated that employee retention be part of the deal.
Cooper, who received a standing ovation when the cheques were distributed to his employees, said “I wanted to thank my employees and that was a way I could do it. I hope it makes a difference in their lives like they have made in mine.”
Each employee received $1,000 per year of service to the dealership, which has been in operation since 1965. When it first opened, Cooper began selling Volkswagens – Audis, Porsches and Hondas were later added.
Cooper said that the business “had been his whole life for 47 years. “I love what I’ve done and I have enjoyed going to work in the morning.”
