Pub. 2 2014 Issue 3

12 San Diego Dealer What’s the most rewarding part of your career? The time that I get to spend with people. Whether it’s time spent with employees that I mentor (or that mentor me!), or customers that I can help drive away in their dream car, or the community that I reach out to on behalf of our dealership – I love that I can be a part of so many people’s lives and they can be a part of mine. Tell us how you got into the business. Did you always aspire to be part of the automotive industry? As the son of a successful auto dealer, I literally grew up in the busi- ness. It’s no exaggeration to say I have worked in every aspect of deal- ership operations. You can also say that this business is in my blood. I take great pride in embracing my parents’ ideals that have always set the tone for our dealership: family values, integrity, honor and an honest respect for guest satisfaction. In addition, I proudly honor my family’s commitment to civic responsibility and have taken an active role in supporting community organizations and charities. Tell us about your family members who are involved in the auto- motive industry. I work with my brother, Gary, and we share duties within the deal- ership. My mother and father, Bob and Kim Kaminsky, are enjoying retirement but still act as advisors and mentors. What do you see as the dominant trends for the industry in the next 5-10 years? What we’ll be seeing are trends driven by technology. Innovations in communications technology will impact how we interact with our cars and each other. Improvements in material technology – the creation of lighter, stronger components – will result in fuel efficiencies. Contin- ued experimentation with fuel alternatives will also generate changes in the industry. After experiencing and surviving the industry’s most challenging economic period in its history a few years ago, what lessons did you learn? We learned to do more with less. As you grow, you can lose efficien- cies. When you are forced to cut back expenses to weather a storm, you quickly find where the waste is, how to make do without, and you develop more streamlined processes. Our core team really came together, and we’ve vowed to maintain the discipline we developed and continue to be mindful as we move forward. What do you think makes the San Diego County automotive mar- ket different than other markets around the state? As a Toyota dealer, it’s a great market for us because import sales are very strong here and Toyota has over 20% market share. While we have a large population, San Diego can feel like a small town. Per- haps because we have the ocean on one side, the mountains on the other, Mexico to the south and Camp Pendleton as our “border” to the north – for whatever reason, we are a very tight community and all the dealers know each other and work well together. Tell us about the civic or charitable organizations you are involved in. One of Toyota of El Cajon’s strategic values is to be conscientious of its community and environment. The dealership has been very active in supporting community organizations and charities, from hosting blood drives to sponsoring concerts. In keeping with its low carbon footprint, for every car sold, Toyota of El Cajon plants a tree through An Interview with TIME Dealer of the Year Finalist, Greg Kaminsky G reg Kaminsky joins an elite club this year as being named the U.S Western Region Finalist of the prestigious TIME Dealer of the Year Award. Only three other San Diego dealers have achieved that honor in the 35 years the New Car Dealers Association has been nominating dealers for the award.