Car Dealer Carries on Family Legacy
(Daytona Daily News) — One morning last week, Jenell Ross, president of the Bob Ross Buick/GMC and Mercedes-Benz dealerships, conferred with employees on how to best protect vehicles on her lots from an approaching thunderstorm. As the daughter of company founder Robert Ross Sr., Jenell Ross may have the corner office, but she also involves herself in important details of running the business. Those who know her aren’t surprised. Maybe it’s that approach that helped the company win Black Enterprise magazine’s Auto Dealer of the Year honor twice, most recently in this month’s issue. The elder Ross started working for Shannon (today, Reichard) Buick in the early 1960s. He took on his own dealership in Richmond, Ind., in 1974 after participating in the first General Motors Minority Dealers Academy.
