Car dealers are bracing for one of their major sales periods of the year this week as many consumers shift their attention from what's under the tree to what's in their garage.
Several dealers do up to 70% of their December business in the week after Christmas, says James O'Sullivan, CEO of Mazda North America. Some don't even bother to publicize much until right before Christmas, recognizing that it would be hard to get most consumers' attention, O'Sullivan says.
Several factors create the post-Christmas/pre-New Year's period a plentiful one for the car business. Some, with big stock market gains, make it probable this year will be busier than usual. Most significant, several people are off work and kids are home from college, so there's time for families to shop.
"In the car business, weekends are our huge volume days," says Shaun Del Grande, whose San Jose-based dealership chain sells brands as well as Honda, Toyota, Subaru and Mazda. This week, "Every day is similar to a weekend."
