If you are a classic and exotic vehicle enthusiast, then you probably already know about Gateway Classic Cars who have been in the classic and exotic vehicle sales business for over 20 years now. The have come a long way since Sal’s humble beginnings in the company’s original garage and showroom in St. Louis back in 1999. Gateway Classic Cars now has 18 locations across the United States with an inventory of over 3,500 Classic and Exotic vehicles. Spotlight on Business sat down with Sal Akbani, President and CEO, and Ken Dusman, Marketing Manager, of Gateway Classic Cars to chat about the past 20 years, how they have become the World’s largest Classic and Exotic Car Sales Company and their plans to continue to be the sales leader in the classic and exotic cars sales industry as we move into the next decade.
If you have been a reader of Spotlight on Business Magazine for some time then you will remember from David MacDonald’s feature on Gateway Classic Cars back in June of 2016, that Akbani is undoubtedly a man who sees a story in each and every vehicle that comes into his team’s care. “The historical cars we’ve had come in and out of our showrooms are the most memorable for me,” Akbani recalls when Gateway Classic Cars received and sold a 1932 Marmon saying, “The Marmon Motor Car Company built the car that won the first Indy 500 in 1911, that car was sold to a gentleman that is on Forbes’ Top 40.” We did not ask Akbani how much the car sold for but in the time that we spent with him for our recent interview, we can tell you that we are confident that he would know the number along with any others related to the business.
When we asked why people buy these types of vehicles, Akbani was quick to respond, “People who are buying a $50,000 Rolex are not buying them because they are concerned with keeping time, they are buying them because they can.” The same can be said about classic and exotic cars.
“We started this business on February 8, 1999. Products and services were just beginning to come to market on the internet. We took the idea of selling classic cars, which was traditionally done through local connections and small sales circles, and we made it into a worldwide phenomenon. If it wasn’t for the internet, I don’t know that we’d be this successful,” said Akbani.
Akbani believes that it is no coincidence that with the “dawn of the internet age came the golden age of the classic car industry,” and one look at their website and you will realize that Akbani and his team have embraced the internet and all the benefits that come with it.
Growing an international reputation for sales has reaped many benefits for Gateway Classic Cars. “Our following on the worldwide market means we’re always attracting new sellers as well as new buyers,” Akbani says. “Buyers and sellers know we’re the best. The United States is still the leader even though we’re not producing the most exotic cars. It’s our atmosphere. We’re the heart of the industry and the culture.”
Each month Gateway Classic Cars adds 400 – 500 new vehicles and on any given day they can showcase and spotlight over 3500 vehicles that are for sale in their physical and online showrooms, which extends their ability to connect with buyers and sellers far beyond the borders of the United States.
In fact, over 11 percent of Gateway Classic Cars’ business is export. “There are cars that bring in the worldwide clientele every time,” Akbani explains. “From time to time, a 1967 Shelby GT500 Eleanor will roll in and people as far away as Japan are buying those from us.” The 1967 Shelby GT500 is an awesome car however, the Eleanor model which Akbani mentions was used in the 2000 re-make of Gone in 60 Seconds starring Nicholas Cage, make the car even more popular.
“The internet and social media have been a huge contributor and extremely important in promoting brand awareness.” Akbani. He goes on to say that it does not generate as much in form of sales, but it does generate brand awareness, that eventually leads to sales, making it an extremely important part of the business. “At any time of the day or night, we have at least 200 people on our site viewing products and interacting with our inventory and 74-76% of those viewers are first time viewers to the site,” Dusman goes on to say, “We are very successful in reaching new customers and expanding the Gateway Classic Cars brand, reputation and inventory to new potential buyers.”
Gateway Classic Cars’ website has more than 3.5 million page views per month which is amazing and 10% of those hits are coming from their social media channels which tell us that Dusman and his team know what they are doing when it comes to connecting and staying engaged with both buyers and sellers of classic and exotic vehicles.
The folks at Gateway Classic Cars are no strangers to requests from those in the spotlight. Among the A-list who calls themselves Gateway Classic Cars customers are two-time Cy Young Award winner, MLB pitcher, Johan Santana, singer-songwriter, Jimmy Buffett, NBA legend, Kobe Bryant and award-winning singer-songwriter and actor Lady Gaga, just to name a few.
While these celebrities certainly bring-in business for Gateway Classic Cars that exceeds the spending limits of their average clientele of $150,000 – $400,000, Akbani and his team understand that growing the business is not just about selling to celebrities and A-Listers. It is about the relationship that they build with each and everyone of their customers. Whether you are white collar, blue collar, a doctor, a lawyer, a CEO or a celebrity you are treated the same and with respect.
The internet also plays an important role in connecting buyers with their vehicles, since 90% of Gateway Classic Cars are sold sight unseen. Thanks to the internet, the sales team can show vehicles to anyone in the world by offering a Live Video Presentation of a vehicle. Akbani told Spotlight on Business about a gentleman from Australia that was talking to a salesperson and was interested in one of theirs trucks but wanted to get the truck inspected before finalizing the purchase. The salesperson offered the customer a Live Video Presentation or video tour of the truck on “WhatsApp.” The salesperson walked around the truck, with the customer online looking the truck over bumper to bumper and everything in between including under the hood and under carriage of the truck. The gentleman decided that he would forgo the inspection, after having a 20 minute live overview of the vehicle, and he purchased the truck, saving the customer over $2,400.00 in additional cost.
Some say that it is a small savings when it comes to the average $150,000 – $400,000 vehicle sold by Gateway Classic Cars, but it still adds up especially for the sellers. That is where you see the differences between Gateway’s platform and that of traditional auctions by Barrett-Jackson, Mecum and RM Sotheby’s.
At a traditional classic and exotic car auction the seller has an initial cost of $1500 – $2500 per vehicle to have their vehicle in the auction line up, but that is just the tip of the auction iceberg. The owner must also accompany their cars at auction which could be from 1 to 6 days depending on the auction. However, if for some reason the vehicle does not sell after its run through, the vehicle must be removed immediately, increasing the seller’s inconvenience and costs.
Direct costs are one thing, but indirect costs from limited visibility are another. This is where you see the true difference between Gateway Classic Cars and traditional auctions. Most auctions attract a limited number of local buyers, which means that the sellers are limited to who is making offers on the vehicles. Additionally, each vehicle only received an average of its 3 minutes of fame on the auction runway, limiting the time that any prospective buyer or buyers can view the vehicle.
If you were selling your home, would you want to auction it off to only those that live in your own neighborhood for three minutes before closing the deal? Or would you like to have a relator put your home on the market to get global visibility and exposure to as many buyers as possible to ensure that you got the best price? That is what we thought! Akbani and his team feel the same way and they have built a business of doing just that for 20 plus years.
That is why private owners, sellers and estates use Gateway Classic Cars to get their vehicle in one of their 18 indoor showrooms and online so Dusman and his team can be proactive about getting their vehicles in front of buyers and capitalize on their reputation in the industry for selling the best.
Akbani explained the process to Spotlight on Business which is very simple, you leave your vehicle in one of their 18 locations and they sell it for you. Each contract is for three months and they will actively promote the vehicle with potential buyers from day one plus handle all of the negotiation to close the sale for a fraction of the cost of a traditional auction while you go on with your daily lives. It is easy to see why the concept continues to grow in popularity with buyers and sellers alike.
Akbani is still focused on growing and opening more locations, saying that the only thing that has slowed the expansion process down in the last 8 to 10 months has been the cost of doing business which has skyrocketed especially on the real estate side. So, they have had to slow their pace down to allow for some adjustments in the market. Now in saying that, Akbani also told Spotlight on Business that there are plans in place for two new locations, one in San Marcos, Texas (#19) and another location in Norman, Oklahoma (#20), in the new year with additional plans for more westward expansion into California.
“You should always sell high quality products and back it up with excellent service.” Akbani goes on to say, “If you do that customers become repeat customers.” Akbani told us about an email that he saw a few months ago, from a gentleman in Australia who was purchasing his thirteenth vehicle from Gateway Classic Cars, “I am proud of that fact and we earned his business, by taking care of the customer whether it is the buyer or the seller.”
by Lee Ann Atwater