Metropolitan Lincoln in suburban Detroit is in a downward spiral
By Andrew, 05 Jul, 2011. 0 Comments
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The loss of Mercury sales has put Metropolitan Lincoln in suburban Detroit in a downward spiral, leading to its eventual closure after having been in business for over 50 years. The Garden City dealership is one of the oldest Lincoln-Mercury franchises in the country. It had once been a part of Stu Evans Automotive Group, which was founded in 1945 by former Detroit Red Wing Stu Evans. Ford Motor Co. had decided to discontinue the Mercury brand in 2010.
The original name of this dealership located in Garden City, Mich., was Stu Evans Lincoln Mercury. In October 2006, it changed its name to Metropolitan Lincoln Mercury. This dealership is less than 9 miles away from Ford’s Dearborn headquarters. Managing partner John Obeid released a statement on the dealership’s Web site, saying that about 70% of its sales were for Mercury units. The closure of some Lincoln dealerships was expected as the result of the discontinuation of Mercury in 2010.
Back then, Ford executives have said that cutting the Mercury brand was necessary so that the company could concentrate on fewer brands. Obeid said that they are “deeply saddened” to shut down the dealership. It has about 90 workers that will have to find new positions. In the statement, Obeid gave a list of the nearby Ford and Lincoln dealers where the customers could go to instead.
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