The Car Dealer's Worst Nightmare
Tomi Mikula has built a business charging a flat fee to negotiate the purchase of a car.
Good morning!
Here are today’s highlights:
Black women are starting businesses at a faster rate than any other demographic group.
Oil executives are warning that oil prices are going to get worse.
Gene Marks suggests protecting your business with “penetration testing.”
President Trump may be changing his mind on migrant workers.
NEGOTIATING
For a flat fee, Tomi Mikula will negotiate the purchase of your next car: “February was looking like a slow month for car sales, and Tomi Mikula smelled opportunity. Sitting in his Harry Potter-themed office near Charlotte, N.C., he picked up the phone and dialed the first of a long string of calls to car dealers. ‘Hi, I just want to see if you have a car available,’ he said. ‘I have the stock number if it’s helpful.’ On this last business day of the month, he set a goal of closing 30 car purchases for the clients who had hired his firm as their professional negotiator.”
“Negotiating a car price has become something of a lost art, but it is one Mikula has become practiced at in the three years since he started his business. For a flat fee of $1,000, he negotiates on a buyer’s behalf. He also livestreams some of his conversations to 600,000 subscribers across TikTok and YouTube.”
“Mikula runs most of his negotiations from his home, and that is a matter of strategy. He prefers working the phone rather than the showroom floor. Buyers who spend hours at a showroom start to feel like they have invested too much time to walk away. Staying focused on numbers is half the battle, Mikula said. When salespeople push him to come in, he has a ready response. ‘I’ve already driven one. I really want it. Gotta have it. I’m just trying to get a good deal today,’ he said.”
“Mikula started his business, called Delivrd, by negotiating deals free for strangers he met on Reddit. He closed about 50 deals before putting a price tag on his services. Now the company has a team of five professional negotiators and makes about $200,000 in revenue a month. He makes a little extra from social media.” READ MORE
