BATAVIA, Ohio — Jeff Wyler says he wondered what his business would become on the first day he opened Jeff Wyler Chevrolet in Batavia on Nov. 1, 1973.
"I actually said that to myself standing on a ladder," remembers Wyler. "Where will I be in 50 years? I knew that I wasn't gonna be happy running a little Chevrolet dealership in Batavia all my life. I thought it might grow and I might own maybe two or three Chevrolet dealerships."
It grew. And he owns far more than that. The Wyler Automotive Family has grown to 23 locations, 40 franchises and close to 1,800 employees. According to industry magazine AutoNews, it's the 24th largest dealership group in the entire country.
Wyler said he remembers selling a few dozen cars a month when he first started. Then, he was approached to advertise on television, something that was relatively unheard of at the time.
"We do this TV spot," Wyler said. "I've been selling 43, 44 cars a month. I sold 85 cars the first month I did TV. I figured, 'Hmm, I'm not the smartest guy, but there was something different'. It helped and we've been doing it ever since."
In fact, his tagline, "Where cars, like eggs, are cheaper in the country," became synonymous with Wyler. He admits he stole that line from a dealership in Columbus, which had stolen it from another dealer. Still, it worked.
Today, Wyler said his group sells as many as 4,200 cars a month.
So what would he do differently? Nothing, says Wyler.
"If you second-guess your decision every time you have a decision to make, you'll be a very unhappy person," Wyler said. "So the mistakes I've made I recognize them, but I don't look back and dwell."
One decision he says he's thrilled with? Letting his son, David Wyler and son-in-law Scott Bristow, run the business day-to-day.
It has become a family business — something he says he didn't set out to do. But while staying in business for 50 years is nothing to sneeze at, family is his greatest success.
"The four kids are my best success, the people that they are," Wyler said. "The fact that we've grown the business from 22 cars a month to 4,000 cars a month or 5,000 cars a month, that's significant in my business life. But it's insignificant compared to my family."
In fact, his grandson Cole Bristow recently joined the company and he thinks more grandchildren plan to at some point.
"There seems to be interest in generation three coming into the business," Wyler said. "And I would not be surprised in 15 years that this company was two or three times the size it is now."
Now, at 82 years old, Wyler says he isn't ready to retire. He says no one can make him leave or show up to work, so why not stick around?
He joked that he would like to be at the business's 100th birthday, but might be too old by then.
"It's been a great, great experience and I've loved every minute of it," said Wyler.
