Real Exotics News: Smart real estate professionals know their local exotic car dealerships in SRQ

July 7, 6:49 PMExotic Car ExaminerKae Davis

Previous Next

2 comments Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the Exotic Car Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

Sarasota, Florida is one of the newest homes for a Lamborghini Dealership

---

Related Articles and Links to Info

• Official Lamborghini Website
• 10 things you should say when buying exotics: Exotic Car Examiner auto shopping advice (part 1)

Smart real estate professionals get to know their local car dealerships -- especially luxury and exotic auto stores. Sarasota, Florida has a new Lamborghini dealership. Living and working in a resort area, local real estate sales and listing professionals like Donna Stewart of Michael Saunders & Company are heading in to check the facilities out for themselves, ready to help new clients looking at buying estate properties in the area. By learning more about those luxury lifestyle service businesses operating in the local area -- including car dealerships catering to high end clientèle -- Realtors can help up sell a listing or more easily make any client who is comfortable financially and looking to buy a new house in the area feel like the community is their home.

SELLING LUXURY AND EXOTIC CAR LIFESTYLES

Realtors at the top of their game know that part of marketing any estate home or property means marketing the lifestyle of the area in which the buyer is looking to live. "Part of making a sale on any high end property is knowing what type of lifestyle people want to be living actually will be, and helping them to see themselves making their lives at home not only in a house but as part of a community..." says Donna Stewart, a Sarasota, Florida real estate agent who works with the elite property sales and management firm Michael Saunders and Company.

Click HERE to learn more About Donna Stewart,

Licensed Florida Realtor with Michael Saunders & CO.

"In our particular area, many people are seeking to relocate to waterfront homes along the Gulf Coast area. Sarasota and it's barrier islands like Longboat Key, Siesta Key, and Casey key boast amazing white sand beaches and an upscale boaters paradise lifestyle..." It's part of why celebrities like Lucille Ball, Dr. Ruth Westheimer, Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman, and Burt Reynolds invested in the area over the years. "Jerry Springer and the drummer for ACDC have homes on Bird Key..." according to Stewart. Why? "Because it is a quiet place to live while still being close the heart of everything. The Sarasota International Airport [SRQ] helps everybody quickly and easily get to where they are going, while the Intercoastal waterways help people escape by boat regularly."

She goes on to advise other agents, "Just like yacht brokers in our area help provide my clients with the best sailboats and power boats to park behind their homes, the high line auto dealers in our area help make sure residents of the area have the finest cars parked in the garages of our multi-million dollar mansions and estates."

Knowing a good marine diesel engine mechanic, boat detailer, sail maker, and auto mechanic is all relative to the real estate industry if you are an agent working in a coastal resort town. "Simply hiring an agent when buying a big house or (later) owning luxury toy bought in the area is not the final deal. With ownership comes great responsibility for the care and maintenance of the property too -- whether landlocked, on the water, or on wheels." To that end, having a Realtor who not only knows the real estate values in the area but is well connected in the local community, too, can really help you. 

"Part of what I do when I sell the Sarasota "SRQ" lifestyle is to help my clients continue to connect with the businesses, restaurants, and services that help them meet their needs. Whether they need to know the most trustworthy dry cleaner, the best tech to work on their car, the right place to have do boat or auto detailing done, or which restaurant has the best food and the right parking showcase areas for their cars, I am always available for them to call and ask for advice, both when they are new in the area and as the years go by with them as residents..." says this savvy agent.

How does she decide who are the best businesses to recommend and to work with in Sarasota and Manatee County? She asks. And she visits. And she talks to everyone she knows. "Word travels fast in Sarasota (and the Venice and Bradenton communities, too). Even though it seems like a big place, the whole region really still maintains the heart of a friendly, sleepy and relaxing small town. When I go to anyplace new, I pay attention to how they treat me, especially if they don't know who I am. If they treat me nicely, then chances are they will take care of my customers, too. No matter how trendy and chic a place Sarasota has become to live, it's keeping newcomers by consistently working to improve the personality and quality of all the homes and commercial businesses around."

THINK GLOBAL, ACT LOCAL

In addition to local dealers offering sales and service of global luxury brands like Mercedes, Lexus, and BMW, there are growing trends to employ mechanics qualified to do maintenance of exotic and high line imports such as Ferrari, Maserati, Bentley, Lamborghini, and Aston Martin.

Donna Stewart has to consider her clients overall lifestyle needs whenever she acts as an agent to sell a home. "Supercars need service as much as a daily driver. I make it a point to visit my local auto delaerships and to get to know the staff and available facilities so that when I have a client who drives lovely or extreme cars, I know where to send them and also have a contact point ready for them to talk to..."

Stewart's hometown area of Sarasota is typical for a high line resort area where sand and sea are part of the everyday lifestyle of it's residents. Nearly equidistant between the St. Petersburg/Tampa auto markets and the growing Forth Myers/Naples area, it's only a two hour drive from Orlando and a four hour jog by car (or less than 1 hour by private plane) to the West Palm Beach/South Beach/Miami/Ft. Lauderdale areas.

"My clients who are car enthusiasts love to take the convertible top down on the car and head out fro local drives. They cruise the beaches like they are teenagers, enjoy taking their cars downtown our out to the islands to many of our fine dining casual eatery restaurants Sarasota is growing famous for..." Stewart goes on to say, "It's not unusual for the homes my company and I sell to have 2, 3, 4, 5, or 6 car garages. Our clients tend to be investors, and investing in automobiles, like boats, antiques, or art, and creating world class collections is something they like to do".

LAMBORGHINI COMES TO SARASOTA, FLORIDA

Recently, the Sarasota area, though a small town in full time residents number, wast granted it's first Lamborghini dealership. Situated with BMW of Sarasota, according to client adviser and sales manager Greg Sullivan the company is not aggressively marketing or participating in community outreach events, as, "1 out of every 4 people in Sarasota is supposed to be a millionaire..." If they already own a Lamborghini (or Ferrari), Sullivan says, "they will eventually make their way here".

Click HERE for map directions to Lamborghini Sarasota

A reportedly well dressed and "movie star handsome" Sullivan told visiting Realtor Donna Stewart,  "... there are 36 Lamborghinis already in the Sarasota area", but humbly admitted that he personally has only sold 1 or 2 on behalf of the new dealership to date. Various visitor reports say he  lets visitors know that the company's main interest is in speaking with current owners or same day buyers, as the facility is not yet set up to accommodate car enthusiast visitors. The company is not carrying any Lamborghini boutique merchandise at this time, as, according to Sullivan, their main focus is BMW sales to those who are not qualified to purchase a Lamborghini.

"We maintain a low profile here... If we get to talk to a real client about selling a car and it happens, it happens. That's pretty much the marketing strategy." He also says that they are discouraging clients from calling cars by their assigned name (like Gallardo and Murcielago), and that the dealership is trying to get people to refer to the cars only as numbers (like LP560 and 640) so ordering cars becomes easier. [Is this a new trend, perhaps, that the Lamborghini company from Italy would like to see happen for the 21st century?]

By visiting the dealership, Stewart now knows not to encourage clients with visiting children and grandchildren to make an afternoon visit to the dealership as an activity for a rainy or hot Florida afternoon -- or for folks to stop in to browse unless they are actively seeking to buy, sell, or service a car. However, she does know she can send existing clients to the dealership to have their cars services and knows what to tell them to expect when they go -- and that's important information for any Real Estate agent to know if they are working with clients who love exotic autos.

Lamborghini Sarasota is located at 5145 Clark Road, Sarasota, Florida, 34233. Victor Young, co-owner and general manager of the company, 941-556-2980, and Sullivan reports he is on site often and accessible to clients if they are planning to order a car. A second owner investor, according to Sullivan, is a billionaire who resides in Saint Petersburg, Florida, and reportedly owns at least 6-7 other car dealerships; however, he is not active with day to day operations of the new company, so his name has not been regularly disclosed. However, further investigation suggest the investor's name is Larry Morgan should anyone ask or like to know.

Currently, no events are listed on the Lamborghini Sarasota website. However, with a placeholder category, exotic car enthusiasts from the area hope that the dealership will soon offer better social networking and car club establishment news. The company website spells out the company's business philosophy, saying:

Lamborghini Sarasota's automotive expertise is a product of our sustained interest in industry trends and characteristics. We are privileged to share the latest news, promotions and events with you and hope the information will enhance your shopping experience. As you know, there are many new cars from which to choose, and we believe an informed client is the best client.

To that end, we thank Mr. Sullivan for taking the time to chat with Italianizzato Club members today and giving us the inside scoop on the latest Sarasota dealership information and Lamborghini Auto news. The dealerships hours are 8am - 7pm Monday through Friday, closed Saturday and Sunday.

EXOTIC CAR CLUB ACTIVITY IN SARASOTA, FLORIDA

Sarasota, Florida auto lovers actively participate in many Florida West Coast car shows and car club functions, too. Donna Stewart, who is an active full time real estate agent working for Michael Saunders & Co., always shares reports about car club activity with her clients. She says,

"At my office on St. Armands Circle [just steps away from Lido Beach], one of our favorite events we look froward to is the annual car show on the circle. Carman's Shoes, one of our local boutique treasure shops here, helped get the tradition started... there is nothing more fun than seeing the Ferraris, classic collector cars, and Lamborghinis up close and personal on display. Now that our kids are growing up and getting into cars, they are bringing their children (our grandchildren) into the loop, too."

The only lament about the annual function? That it is not help quarterly. "I'd love to see them showcase exotic cars during the week of the St. Armand's Circle Christmas Walk, too..." says Stewart. Having them there might inspire Santa Claus to bring a few more new and pre-owned Lambos to live in the area for the lucky residents to regularly view.

As a further professional service courtesy to clients, Stewart even keeps a list of local independent shops who perform non-warranty service work on European Imports (for lesser maintenance costs) handy. "Just because a client has money does not mean it's okay to overcharge them for good work and friendly customer service. People who have more money than sense might be willing to pay anything demanded, but I have more respect for my clients than that. They've worked hard for their money -- and if I can refer them to a dealership or mechanic who is going to treat them well and treat them fairly and with the utmost of professional courtesy when they visit, then I refer their business there."

Stewart, an active member of the Italianizzato Club, travels regularly to car shows across the country. As the exotic car numbers begin to multiply in the SRQ area, she expects car club activity will begin to flourish. "Whether exotic car owners bring their cars out for car shows or begin to bring cars out to display individually at various charity functions around our area, there is a definite fondness for being able to see them up close... and, of course there is the whole competitive element of what you drive starting to happen in Sarasota. Everywhere you go, you see incredibly expensive and gorgeous cars now everywhere you go..."

What has made Sarasota such a great place to own or run a new exotic car dealership with such a prestigious merit badge as the county having it's own Lamborghini dealership? "I think the influx of exotics is happening because of the baby boomer age doctors and lawyers in our area. Sarasota has one of the top heart surgery and heart treatment centers in the country, and a huge retirement age population. The doctors and attorney's who are serving these clients are young enough to enjoy owning and driving these kinds of cars on a regular basis, while being old enough to have earned just enough money to make ownership a real possibility."

• Visiting Lamborghini Houston
• Lamborghini at Black Horse in Monterey, California
• Learning to Draw a Lamborghini
• Join the Italianizzato Club on Facebook for VIP special event invitations and status updates on exotic car news (including the latest on Lamborghini, Ferrari, Maserati, Alfa Romeo, Fiat Group, Moto Guzzi, Vespa, Ducati, Lancia, Italian culture, Italian-owned businesses, and Italian food).