Franchise Roots
Shortly after Sam Karaman* graduated from college in 2003, he started working for a franchise dealership. “I worked my way up the ranks at franchise dealerships that specialized in selling luxury inventory for several years including during the great recession, which was a challenging time but turned out to be a good warmup for the pandemic. I really enjoyed what I was doing but you have limitations when you work for a franchise store. You must abide by the policies they have in place, and I wanted more flexibility to interact with customers the way I wanted, instead of having to follow a script. I also wanted to have better work-life balance so I
would be able to spend more time with my family. So, I decided to go out on my own and in 2010 started running a small automotive concierge service where I only purchased vehicles that my customers were looking for. Then a few years later, I purchased a small dealership next to the Manheim Nashville auction with about 10 vehicles in inventory. We were self-funded and there’s growth limitations to that, so in 2013 when I was approached by a representative from NextGear Capital who talked to me about floor planning, I decided it was time to take the plunge and that’s how Brentwood Auto Brokers got its start.”
Although he had some experience with floor plans from working at the franchise dealerships, he was impressed with what NextGear Capital had to offer. “Unlike other floor plan companies, I’ve worked with in the past, they don’t just provide you with your floor plan and say that’s it. Our portfolio manager was very informative and has been dedicated to ensuring that we’re successful. He let me know about the different options that were available to make sure I
was able to optimize my floor plan and be more successful. I started out with a line of credit of about $250,000 which immediately allowed me to start building up my inventory quicker. It didn’t take long before our line of credit slowly started to increase, and now we average about 150 vehicles month. It’s funny because I still carry a lot of the same inventory I sold at the franchise dealerships but I’m able to sell them at a lower price because I don’t have all the overhead costs they do.”