20 years and counting
This year marks Canadian auto dealer’s 20th anniversary — a milestone that’s hard to believe when I look back at how far we’ve come, and how much the industry has changed in that time. When we started, the goal was …
Author: Todd Phillips
20 years of constant change
Buckle your seatbelts. It’s still going to be a bumpy ride. As Canadian auto dealer marks its 20th anniversary in December, Canada’s auto retail landscape bears little resemblance to the environment in which the magazine launched. The era of walk-in …
Second CCAM Summit scores with dealers
The second annual CCAM Summit returned to Montreal this week with an all-star speaker lineup that included Hockey Hall of Famer and hometown favourite Guy Carbonneau, who helped lead the Montreal Canadiens to two Stanley Cups. Dealers heard Carbonneau talk …
Dealers warned of perils of looming tech shortages
The conversation around fixed operations at the Western Canadian Dealer Summit (WCDS) in Lake Louise took on a sharper tone this year. Rather than focusing primarily on efficiency tools or process improvements, Friday’s panel of fixed operations leaders warned that …
Dealers share how they’re navigating uncertainty
At the Western Canadian Dealer Summit in Lake Louise, four dealers detailed how they are adapting to rising workplace expectations, rapid AI adoption, uneven EV demand and shifting OEM relationships. Dealer moderator Ann Marie Clark, Executive Vice Chair of the …
Western dealers tackle AI, fraud and fixed ops at summit
The Western Canadian Dealer Summit (WCDS) returned to the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise this past weekend with record numbers, a sold-out tradeshow and two days of programming that kept dealers focused on the road ahead for automotive retail in Canada. …
Dealers press tech providers after CARTS results unveiled
Dealers received a detailed picture of how Canadian retailers are using, and often struggling with, their technology tools during a Saturday presentation of the first-of-its-kind Canadian Automotive Retail Technology Study (CARTS) at the Western Canadian Dealer Summit (WCDS) in Lake …
Getting your tech stack right
There are a lot of things dealers don’t have control over. Their OEMs decide on the models and types of vehicles they will produce, set the MSRP, determine the inventory mix they will provide to the dealership, and even dictate …
First-ever CADA study looks at dealership technology use
The first Canadian Automotive Retail Technology Study (CARTS) delivers a clear, data-driven look at how dealerships use technology and where they continue to struggle. Commissioned by the Canadian Automobile Dealers Association (CADA), conducted by Clarify Group, and sponsored by RBC …
Trump calls off trade talks with Canada over TV ad
All bets are now off in terms of where things stand on Canada-U.S. trade talks, and in particular what impact this might have on Canada’s auto industry and auto retailers. There were recent rumblings out of Ottawa and Washington that …
The 2025 Laureate Finalists
AMBASSADORSHIP For extraordinary service to the community and the industry Danny Brackett, Brackett Auto Group, Orangeville, ON Most important success factor: The most important factors that led to my success in the automotive retail business are my discipline and drive — …
CADA leaders visit Washington
The Canadian Automobile Dealers Association (CADA) took its advocacy efforts to Washington, D.C. in July, launching its first-ever trade mission aimed at highlighting the risks of ongoing tariff disputes to the North American auto sector. Over three days, CADA’s executive …
