Nov. 17, 2021

This paid piece is sponsored by GreatLIFE Golf & Fitness.

From the moment you approach the Schulte Subaru dealership, it’s clear this is not an ordinary place to buy a vehicle.

Instead of putting the newest, shiniest car front and center, the first thing customers see is a wrecked Subaru Outback.

It belonged to a Sioux Falls couple hit by a semi that ran a stop sign. They survived with no major injuries.

Dealership owner Mike Schulte tracked down the vehicle, bought it from the insurance company and put it on display in front of his dealership at 85th Street and Minnesota Avenue to show how safe he believes all Subaru vehicles are built.

Inside the dealership, the business is built on a vision that goes far beyond selling vehicles – a “Love Promise.”

“We’re devoted to the idea that every interaction is the chance to make the world a little better,” Schulte said. “Not only because that’s good for business, but because it’s the right thing to do. That’s Subaru’s model, and we embrace it with them.”

It’s an approach that has led Schulte Subaru to become the 2020 Love Promise Retailer of the Year out of 623 Subaru dealers nationwide, the 2021 franchise of the year from the South Dakota Auto Dealers Association and a finalist for the Time Dealer of the Year Award out of more than 16,000 nationwide.

“Before the pandemic at our height in 2019, which is the last time we had some normalcy in our industry, this dealership was outselling many of the largest names in this market, and we have no trucks or vans,” Schulte said. “People just want to be involved in what we’re creating and what the factory is creating.”

The Subaru surge

Schulte’s father, Terry, never set out to become the Subaru dealer for Sioux Falls. But in 1970, when he traveled to Minnesota to physically stand in line to buy the Honda franchise, Vern Eide “was literally two people in front of him the same day and bought the Honda franchise,” Schulte said.

When it was Terry Schulte’s turn, he learned the distributorship of a Japanese company called Subaru had just become available. He paid $4,000 for the rights to bring it to Sioux Falls.

Throughout Terry Schulte’s subsequent career, he had dealerships for many other vehicles – among them Chevy, Kia and Jeep – but in 2000, he sold off all but Subaru.

Still, Subaru never sold more than 180,000 vehicles nationwide until 2008. Customers considered it safe and reliable but not particularly stylish, Schulte said.

“Then in 2009 and 2010, they redid the Forester and the Outback and brought them into this age, aesthetically and size-wise, and they brought the Legacy into a better size and style, and all of this happened to coincide with the government’s Cash for Clunkers program, and things just exploded,” he said.

“In three or four years, sales doubled, and by before the pandemic, they were up to more than 700,000 a year. So this last decade, they went from 20 years of nothing to it just exploding.”

At the same time, the company and Schulte Subaru made a commitment to start approaching the car business differently. They went away from traditional marketing, deciding instead “to just focus on the community and be a positive impact to the best of our ability,” Schulte said.

“Of course, we do hope in the long run people give us an opportunity to earn their business, but it’s awesome, and it’s been effective because that’s not the main reason we take the approach that we do.”

The dealership also made the decision to transition all employees to salaried status, eliminating individual commissions and incentivizing the team based on the overall dealership’s performance. And they broke down barriers among sales, new and pre-owned and service departments. A decade ago, the finance department was eliminated to streamline the customer experience, allowing the sales team to handle the buying process from start to finish.

“Our employees are super important,” Schulte said. “I can’t do what I want to do for the customer without them. So we’re there to support our employees just as much as the customer.”

Natural partnership

That focus on both employees and community naturally led Schulte Subaru to become a corporate partner of GreatLIFE Golf & Fitness.

The relationship is entering its fourth year and is a multifaceted one, from employees’ wellness to philanthropy.

“We love our partnership with GreatLIFE,” Schulte said. “They’re very philanthropic and supportive of all our efforts and vice versa. There’s a lot that we do together because it’s such a natural way to partner.”

For instance, all 110 Schulte Subaru employees are offered a GreatLIFE membership covered by the dealership – including golf if they choose. About two-thirds use their membership regularly.

“They’re surprised when they learn that’s something we want to offer them,” said Sarah Schulte, who has helped lead the company’s focus on overall health and wellness.

“If you’re healthy physically, mentally and emotionally, you’re going to be a better employee.”

Mike, Sarah and their adult children are all active GreatLIFE members.

“We enjoy using it to golf during the summer especially,” Sarah Schulte said. “And our adult children enjoy using it, whether it’s going to the gym when they’re home from college or getting out on the golf course. We want to encourage our team to get out and do things and become connected to the community, so all the benefits of their GreatLIFE membership allow them to do that.”

Schulte Subaru is the perfect example of a business using GreatLIFE as a way to further support employees, said Jacki Pranger, director of corporate partners.

“Employers increasingly are realizing that offering ways to help employees stay healthy supports retention along with the overall operation of the business,” she said. “So whether you’re an employer looking to cover an employee’s entire membership, as they do at Schulte, or offer a discount, we can work with you to customize a program that fits your need.”

The GreatLIFE team also will come into a business to help members sign up, educate them about their benefits and even run health-related challenges.

“We have many employers who will put information about their GreatLIFE benefits in new-hire packets, and we try to come in and connect with them as well because Sioux Falls is growing, so there are going to be a lot of people who aren’t as familiar with what their GreatLIFE membership involves.”

In the case of Schulte Subaru, the partnership takes additional forms. Many of the vehicles in GreatLIFE’s fleet are Subarus. The dealership plans to hold its annual holiday party at GreatLIFE Suburban Lanes. And the two come together to support nonprofits such as Feeding South Dakota.

“Schulte is just an awesome company and aligns so well with us,” Pranger said. “Their community outreach is just phenomenal, and that is something we take pride in at GreatLIFE as well.”

Other companies wanting to connect with GreatLIFE also will find customized approaches for them, she added.

“As a corporate partner, we’re here to create a win-win,” she said. “So whether that’s supporting employee memberships, helping you gain visibility for your brand within our facilities, supporting employee appreciation with free massages or golf certificates, bringing in a nutrition talk or hosting a bowling party, we are very catered to each individual partner.”

Subaru likely will be adding both team members and GreatLIFE members.

The dealership has done two expansions since opening in its current location in 2016 and still has room to grow. But ask Mike Schulte what’s ahead as the year wraps up, and he doesn’t talk about vehicle incentives or inventory estimates. He talks about giving back.

“The last third of November and all December we always pick a hometown charity – for the last few years it’s been the Humane Society – and allow customers to pick from our local charity or four national charities, and we give $300 from every car deal and $5 from every service deal. The last couple years, we’ve given more than $100,000, so we’re proud of that. It shows what we’re all about.”

Want to connect with GreatLIFE about your own corporate partnership? Contact Jacki Pranger at [email protected].