Spruce Pine Chevy General Manager Denver Maltba, left, and sales manager R.L. Hoilman in the showroom at the dealership in Spruce Pine. (MNJ/Brandon Roberts)
SPRUCE PINE – Three Avery County business people now own the Chevrolet Dealership located at 36 Chevrolet Boulevard in the Grassy Creek Community of Spruce Pine.
Robert Vance Houston, his wife, Debra, and their grandson, Denver Maltba, purchased the dealership this fall.
The Spruce Pine Chevrolet dealership sells new Chevrolet, Buick and GMC cars and trucks and pre-owned, top-of-the-line vehicles of all makes and models. Spruce Pine Chevrolet offers a service repair center as well as a parts department that has all the vehicle accessories any vehicle owner could need.
Maltba, who serves as the dealership’s general manager, explained how his family purchasing it materialized.
“My family and I have long had a passion for vehicles, and we had heard that the Spruce Pine dealership would be going out of business,” he said. “We knew that would be bad economically for the area, as many people have purchased vehicles here and we didn’t want to see it leave the area and probably never return. So, my maternal grandparents and I talked about it, and we decided to buy the dealership and keep it in Spruce Pine. I’m also an avid racing enthusiast. I have raced on various competitive levels, which along with working in the daily business operations of a dealership, have given me special insight of an intangible nature into what will make it a successful one.”
Maltba admitted operating a dealership is hard work but can be a lot of fun, too.
“We’ve had a lot of encouragement and support from many people, and I appreciate the patronage of so many clients who have purchased a vehicle, had car repairs done, ordered parts, or in whatever manner they have used Spruce Pine Chevrolet,” he said. “And I invite anyone looking to buy a vehicle or who need vehicle repairs or parts to check us out.”
Maltba added Spruce Pine Chevrolet would have a grand opening this coming spring and details about that will be announced in early 2020.
R.L. Hoilman, a longtime regional car salesman and former dealership manager, has taken over as sales manager for Spruce Pine Chevrolet. He has more than 30 years’ experience working for vehicle dealerships and was a former general and sales manager at Spruce Pine’s Chevrolet dealership when it was located on Oak Avenue.
Hoilman said the fire in his belly for working in a vehicle dealership is still burning strong.
“It’s something I’ve been wanting to do a long time – get back into working at a vehicle dealership,” he said. “After I retired several years ago, I tended to cattle I own and did other things. But, I missed working at a dealership –particularly in sales. Vance, Debra and Denver approached me about working as Spruce Pine Chevrolet’s sales manager. I had been friends with them for a long time. I prayed about it and asked God if he wanted me to get back into working for a vehicle dealership. I got the peace that it is God’s will for me to do so, and I’m as excited as ever about working in a dealership again. I have the same zest and enthusiasm for it as I did when I first started in the business.”
Hoilman echoed what Maltba said about inquiring about vehicles and the other services provided at Spruce Pine Chevrolet.
Maltba shared in detail the various services Spruce Pine Chevrolet offers. “Our vehicle dealership is a business that sells new cars at the retail level, based on a dealership contract with an automaker such as General Motors or Toyota,” he said. “We employ automobile salespeople to do the selling and highly skilled and well-trained automotive technicians who provide maintenance services. We also stock and sell spare automobile parts, process warranty claims and provide financial services. We also sell used cars, and take in trade-ins or purchase used vehicles at auctions.”
Spruce Pine Chevrolet’s employees make up a skilled team that is professional and efficient at their chosen work craft. Besides the Houston’s, Maltba and Hoilman, those employees are controller Lori Hall; office manager Vivian Pitman; sales consultant Daniel McKinney; sales consultant Joey Greene; service manager Kevin Townsend; parts manager Mack Chapman; service technician Chuck Bright; service technician Steven Hughes; detailer Mark Hicks; and detailer Kendall Townsend.
“Simple, honest and straightforward relations is our goal for our conduct with our customers and the standard for our dealership,” Maltba said.
Spruce Pine Chevrolet is open for sales and general business operations from 8 a.m.-6:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays; the service department is open from 7:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday and 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays; and the parts department is open from 7:45 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
The dealership can be reached at its general phone number of 828-765-4234. Its sales phone number is 828-592-2557, and its service repairs phone number is 828-592-2636.
Get more information and view the dealership’s inventory at sprucepinechevy.com.