Dave Knapp Ford celebrates 20 years By Linda Moody GREENVILLE - Dave Knapp Ford Lincoln is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year and what an impact it has made on the Darke County community those past two decades! For the milestone celebration, Knapp’s has everything marked “very low,” with all vehicles clearly marked with the special anniversary logo. “We’re absolutely glad to be in this location,” said Knapp, who is located on Wagner Avenue. “It’s not necessary for you to go out of the county to get a good deal on a car or truck. Your purchase of a vehicle will support you.” By that, he means that he has contributed to a lot of organizations and causes over the years. Yes, Knapp opened his doors to the dealership in March 1994. “When this land became available from Ford, they happened to call me on this particular market area, because there was no Ford dealership here when I came,” said Knapp, who had already had a lot of friends in the area. “They used to have a Darke County Auto Dealers Association when I first came.” He said Knapp used to sells Mercurys, but noted they have been gone about three years. “We formed the corporation in November 1993, and remodeled until we opened the following March,” he said. “We then started out with 40 new vehicles…cars and trucks. Now, we probably have 120 vehicles and a large selection of used cars and trucks.” He opened the doors to his dealership with nine employees and now has 40. Five of the nine are still with him. They are Ron Bradley, Daryl Baker and family members, Bryan, Brad and Karen Knapp. “We have a lot of employees here with 15 years tenure and probably 12 with over 10 years,” he said. “We don’t have a turnover. We take care of our employees. When the employees are happy, the customers are happy.” Service adviser Kasi (Hunt) Gregson has been with Knapp for 18 1/2 years. “It’s been very good working here,” she said. “It’s just like my family.” She has worked in the office, sales and is now in service. “I liked it all,” she said. “This is where I belong.” Brandon Smiley, who is in training as one of the new service advisers, said the job is “very interesting and challenging.” He likes being able to be around customers. His wife, Angela, also works there. Smiley said he had worked in the casket industry for 10 years and for a foundry 10 years before that and wanted to make a change. Jim “Buff” Francis, a salesman, has been working at the dealership for nearly 18 years. “It’s been fun, interesting and neat to see all the changes that happened at this place…technology-wise with products, and the relationships with the people who have come and gone, customers and co-workers. I enjoy people. Every day is a different day.” Today, Kristina Knapp also works for her father in marketing. She remembers coming in as a child with her dog. “In 1994, I was a dealer, lot boy, car washer, sales manager and janitor,” said Dave who was general manager at Eastgate Ford before coming to Greenville. “We did it all to get the business built.” Dave, who is known as Mr. Knapp by his employees, said his dealership is a full-service one. “We work on all makes and models, not just Ford,” he said. “We have the technical equipment to do so. We have a collision center to work on all models of events…even in the body shop. We do more than body work. We paint and repair hail damage.” Eight years ago, Knapp’s started selling tires. “Ford has the lowest price guarantee on all brands of tires,” he said. “We are available to all major brands in all sizes.” The tires are tied in with the parts department, daughter Kristine said. Dave’s interest in vehicles came as a teenager. “I started off as a Volkswagen mechanic,” he said. “I look back on 20 years and cherish the relationships we’ve built with many wonderful people who have supported us for so many years. This is a family-owned and operated. dailyadvocate/news/news/3822297/Dave-Knapp-Ford-celebrates-20-years
Posted on: Fri, 07 Mar 2014 17:26:35 +0000
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