Today we’d like to introduce you to Nick Anderson.
Hi Nick, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
My grandfather, Chuck Anderson, was the General Manager of a large General Motors store in Kansas City at the time, and was approached by a Ford dealer, Tom Dickson, out of Excelsior Springs in 1973 to purchase the location. My grandfather’s ambition had always been to be a Dealer. He purchased the store and opened on March 1st of 1974. Shortly after he moved his wife, Betty, and three children (Kim, Mike and Brenda) to Excelsior Springs. Chuck ran the store full time through the 1980s, All three of his children began work at the dealership in different capacities, and still continue to do so. Mike became the Dealer Principal in the early 2000’s and took a majority ownership position at the same time.
I started washing cars, cleaning out shop grates, sweeping the floors during my pre-teen years. I started selling cars part time during the summer and winter vacations through college, and started full time the Monday after college graduation in 2013. I was promoted to Pre-Owned Vehicle Manager in January of the following year. After a year or so, I was moved to the New Vehicle Manager role. In 2016 I was promoted to the role of General Manager and was able to make a larger impact, not just on the sales area but all facets of the company.
We’ve grown dramatically since our inception in 1974 with 7 major expansions: increasing our physical footprint to better service our customer’s needs, while maintaining our family-owned atmosphere. Our employees, and our customers are more than just cogs in the wheel to us. We value each and every one of them, treat them with respect, and fully understand that without our customers and employees we’re just an empty building.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
No, it’s not always been a smooth road. Any time you’re in business for over 50 years, you see all kinds of economic downturns, uncertainty, etc. Something as small as fuel prices can dramatically affect the industry sales. For example, when fuel prices jumped up in the mid 2000s, large SUV and truck inventory sat in favor of smaller vehicles. Then it swung back the other direction after the economy normalized the higher prices and people opted to drive what they were more comfortable in. In 2008 during the economic crash we were fortunate not to have any debt, but we were proactive in searching out financing options to cover our payroll and expenses if the economy wasn’t going to correct itself for an extended amount of time. Banks of course at that time had tightened up lending to pennies on the dollar. We were offered a $250k line of credit, while using about $10mil in assets as leverage.
Post 2010 when the economy started recovering, the industry was fairly standardized for years, until COVID 19. COVID 19 disrupted the entire industry. Production, logistics, pricing, etc…were all thrown out the window and ran through multiple issues. Prices soared. Inventories depleted. Factories couldn’t produce fast enough. Then when they could produce, there were no truck drivers to transport them. Plants had temporary closures due to the spread of COVID 19. Manufacturers had a hard time getting different components into the country. At one point during 2021, we had 12 vehicles on the lot (new and used), where normally we stock 200+.
The sales side wasn’t the only department affected, it spread like wildfire. The service and parts department were handicapped based on parts availability, timeliness to receive parts and trying to maintain our customer’s satisfaction.
The auto industry is ever changing, we love the challenge!
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Being the General Manager of Chuck Anderson Ford I do a little bit in each department. I like to focus on pieces of our business in order to fine tune and plan for the future. We have a really strong foundation, which makes me feel really blessed, allowing me to worry more about the little things.
In 2021 I was honored with receiving the Automotive New’s 40 Under 40 award due to performance and adaptability. I was recently honored with the 2025 CBT News 40 Under 40 award for similar reasons.
On December 8th I receive the gavel to be the Missouri Automobile Dealer’s Association Chairman for 2026. I will be the youngest Chairman in the history of the association at 35 years old.
Alright so before we go can you talk to us a bit about how people can work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
Our goal is to be able to serve as many people in the Kansas City and surrounding area as possible. I know that we can offer a purchasing and servicing experience that is unlike anyone else’s in the area. We have built our business model around being efficient, transparent and easy to work with. Whether it’s for private use vehicles or for a business fleet needs, we can bring our expertise and market dominating energy to the table.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.chuckandersonford.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chuckanderson.ford/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChuckAndersonFordExcelsiorSprings/
- Twitter: https://x.com/shopford
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@ChuckAndersonFordKC
- Other: https://www.dealerrater.com/dealer/Chuck-Anderson-Ford-review-29455/
