{"version":"1.1.0","producer":"fm.getcarcurious","layer":"official","episode":{"title":"#436 - The Dealer who Delivers Cars in Pajamas: How Red White & Blue Went 97% Digital","url":"http://getcarcurious.com/episodes/436-the-dealer-who-delivers-cars-in-pajamas-how-red-white-blue-went-97-digital","audioUrl":"https://anchor.fm/s/8164a88/podcast/play/121560920/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2026-5-16%2F426251573-44100-2-708920b6c7a75.mp3","description":"In this episode of the Independent Dealer Podcast, Jeff Watson and Luke Godwin sit down with Melissa Rowan, co-founder of Red White and Blue Autos in Pennsylvania and Mid-Atlantic Quality Dealer of the Year — now headed to NIADA nationals. Melissa came from investment brokerage, not the car business, and built one of the most quietly efficient BHPH operations in the country: 90+ cars a month, 3.5% delinquency, out of a single sales location, with a model that's almost entirely remote delivery.What You'll Learn:How two investment brokers with zero car experience opened a BHPH dealership in 2014 — and why the numbers-first mindset turned out to be their biggest advantageHow COVID forced Red White and Blue to pivot to curbside and delivery — and why they never went back, with 60% curbside and 40% home delivery todayWhy their show rate is near 99% and how full online transparency, all-digital paperwork, and a reputation built over 10 years makes that possibleHow Melissa manages multiple locations remotely using Slack as the single communication layer — no email, no cameras, no micromanagingWhy tracking a daily report every single day — not end of month — lets her turn up ad spend mid-week and never miss a sales goalHow staying selective with 500+ monthly applications keeps their charge-off rate under control while still selling nearly 100 units a monthWhat being nominated for National Quality Dealer means to her — and why three of the eleven nominees being women mattersIf you're a buy here pay here or independent dealer trying to figure out how to run leaner, trust your numbers over your gut, and build a team that doesn't need you watching over their shoulder — this one is for you.Support the businesses that support the podcast:Buckeye Risk Services - Reinsurance and wealth strategies for independent dealers.https://theindependentdealer.com/buckeyeBlytz - BHPH payment processing with fast funding and text-to-pay.https://theindependentdealer.com/blytzpayIturan GPS - Asset protection and customer management for BHPH and retail dealers.https://theindependentdealer.com/ituranFollow & Connect:Website: www.theindependentdealer.comFacebook Group: @independentautogroupLuke Godwin: @lukegodwinJeff Watson: /sendtojeffwLike, subscribe, and share this with a dealer who needs to hear it.\n"},"annotations":[{"id":427992,"startTime":210.5,"endTime":299.0,"type":"concept","title":"buy here, pay here","url":"/glossary/buy-here-pay-here","quote":"then he looked into a buy here, pay here, because we don't have any buy to pay here is in our area at all. We will be of one, which is Wayne, but that was after red, white, and blue, a lot of the police who got out.","canonicalId":"concept:buy-here-pay-here","priority":0.55,"confidence":0.9,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"“Buy here, pay here” (often shortened to BHPH) is a used-car financing model where the dealer sells the car and also collects the customer’s payments directly. It’s commonly used for buyers who may not qualify for traditional bank auto loans, so the dealer functions as both seller and lender.","simplifiedExplanation":"“Buy here, pay here” means the car dealer sells you the car and also takes your payments. It’s often aimed at people who can’t easily get approved for a normal bank loan."}},{"id":427993,"startTime":320.3,"endTime":326.4,"type":"concept","title":"brokerage business","quote":"I mean, how would you, how would, I can't even imagine like a person who is in the brokerage\n[326.4s] business and has a firm even know about buy here, pay here. Do you remember how that came up?","canonicalId":"concept:brokerage-business","priority":0.55,"confidence":0.62,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"In this context, a “brokerage business” refers to an intermediary that helps arrange car sales/financing rather than owning inventory and selling cars directly. That distinction matters because it changes who controls the financing terms and who manages payment risk."}},{"id":427994,"startTime":343.4,"endTime":348.9,"type":"concept","title":"numbers and trends","quote":"And we just have to be able to collect on it and have the numbers and have\n[348.9s] the trends and have all that to the Wicklick.","canonicalId":"concept:numbers-and-trends","priority":0.25,"confidence":0.55,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"“Numbers and trends” here refers to using financial performance data over time—like approval rates, delinquency/collection outcomes, and other metrics—to manage a financing-heavy dealership model. It’s essentially data-driven underwriting and operations.","simplifiedExplanation":"They’re talking about tracking business metrics over time. The idea is to look at the data (like how often people pay on time) and adjust decisions based on what’s happening."}},{"id":427995,"startTime":412.0,"endTime":417.4,"type":"term","title":"collections","url":"/glossary/collections","quote":"Now comes with that, comes recon, comes warranty work, comes collections, of course.\n[417.4s] And then, you know, the 20 hoops came in for that or mentors coming for that, like Mark Jones and","canonicalId":"term:collections","priority":0.4,"confidence":0.8,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"“Collections” in a buy-here-pay-here context means the dealer’s process for getting customers to make their scheduled payments. It’s a core part of cash flow and risk management because missed payments can lead to repossession and losses.","simplifiedExplanation":"“Collections” means chasing down overdue payments. In dealer financing, it’s how the dealer tries to make sure the money gets paid on time."}},{"id":427996,"startTime":412.0,"endTime":417.4,"type":"term","title":"recon","url":"/glossary/recon","quote":"Now comes with that, comes recon, comes warranty work, comes collections, of course.\n[417.4s] And then, you know, the 20 hoops came in for that or mentors coming for that, like Mark Jones and","canonicalId":"term:recon","priority":0.35,"confidence":0.78,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"“Recon” is dealer shorthand for reconditioning—work done to bring a used vehicle up to sale-ready condition. It can include cosmetic fixes, mechanical checks, and sometimes light repairs so the car meets the dealer’s standards.","simplifiedExplanation":"“Recon” means reconditioning a used car. It’s the work done to get it ready to sell—like fixing issues and making it look and run right."}},{"id":427997,"startTime":412.0,"endTime":417.4,"type":"term","title":"warranty work","url":"/glossary/warranty-work","quote":"Now comes with that, comes recon, comes warranty work, comes collections, of course.\n[417.4s] And then, you know, the 20 hoops came in for that or mentors coming for that, like Mark Jones and","canonicalId":"term:warranty-work","priority":0.3,"confidence":0.7,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"“Warranty work” refers to repairs performed under a vehicle warranty agreement—either the manufacturer’s warranty or a dealer-provided warranty. For dealers, it’s a cost and operations category because it affects margins and customer satisfaction.","simplifiedExplanation":"“Warranty work” is when a car gets fixed under a warranty. The dealer or warranty provider pays for covered repairs, depending on the terms."}},{"id":427998,"startTime":589.6,"endTime":595.9,"type":"car","title":"Honda Accord","url":"/cars/honda/accord","image":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e4/1981_Honda_Accord_%2829891730173%29.jpg","quote":"touching, feeling, driving a Honda Accord with 120,000 miles on it? Like, how do you, how do you\ndo that?","canonicalId":"car:honda:accord","priority":0.35,"confidence":0.92,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"The Honda Accord is a mainstream midsize sedan known for being practical and easy to live with. In this segment, it’s used as an example of a common used car that a buyer might purchase sight-unseen because the dealer provides lots of information online.","simplifiedExplanation":"A Honda Accord is a very common, everyday car. Here it’s mentioned as an example of a used car people can buy without physically inspecting it first because the dealer shares lots of details online.","imageAttribution":"Riley from Christchurch, New Zealand (CC BY 2.0)","imageLicense":"CC BY 2.0","imageSourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1981_Honda_Accord_(29891730173).jpg"}},{"id":427999,"startTime":622.4,"endTime":639.5,"type":"concept","title":"full transparency","url":"/glossary/full-transparency","quote":"So our website is arm\noff pretty much. And so we put all these inside, outside, top, bottom, all these pictures, we put,\nyou know, what we've done to the car, like they're, it's full transparency.","canonicalId":"concept:full-transparency","priority":0.55,"confidence":0.78,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"“Full transparency” here means the dealer proactively shows the car’s condition in detail—inside, outside, and top-to-bottom—so buyers can evaluate it remotely. It’s a sales approach aimed at reducing uncertainty when customers don’t physically inspect the car before purchase.","simplifiedExplanation":"“Full transparency” means the dealer shows you lots of clear photos and details about the car. The goal is to help you feel confident buying it even if you can’t inspect it in person right away."}},{"id":428000,"startTime":634.5,"endTime":639.5,"type":"term","title":"electronically signed","url":"/glossary/electronically-signed","quote":"they throw out all the paperwork online. It's all done. It's electronically signed. It's ready to\nrun when we got the car.","canonicalId":"term:electronically-signed","priority":0.4,"confidence":0.86,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"Electronically signed paperwork means the buyer completes the purchase documents digitally rather than printing, signing by hand, and mailing or returning forms. In dealer workflows, this speeds up processing so the car can be delivered and ready to go quickly."}},{"id":428001,"startTime":674.3,"endTime":681.2,"type":"concept","title":"70 mile radius","url":"/glossary/70-mile-radius","quote":"And yeah, so the delivery drivers, they go every day. Sometimes they take two, sometimes they sweep around picking up replants\nto pick up. They'll sweep around a repo a lot and pick up a repo or two. So we don't get those\nto come back. I mean, it's a, it's a pretty slick system. And the drivers, we use Slack,","canonicalId":"concept:70-mile-radius","priority":0.6,"confidence":0.72,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"A “70 mile radius” describes the geographic delivery boundary the dealer uses to plan routes and staffing. It’s part of how they make a delivery model work operationally—balancing distance, time, and the number of delivery drivers.","simplifiedExplanation":"A “70 mile radius” is just the area around the dealership where they’ll deliver cars. It helps them plan routes so drivers can handle deliveries efficiently."}},{"id":428002,"startTime":688.4,"endTime":697.9,"type":"term","title":"repo","url":"/glossary/repo","quote":"Sometimes they take two, sometimes they sweep around picking up replants\nto pick up. They'll sweep around a repo a lot and pick up a repo or two.","canonicalId":"term:repo","priority":0.45,"confidence":0.8,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"In auto finance, a “repo” is short for repossession—when a vehicle is taken back because the borrower defaulted on payments. The dealer describes using delivery drivers to efficiently pick up repos and deliver cars within the same route planning.","simplifiedExplanation":"A “repo” is a car that gets taken back by the lender because the owner stopped making payments. Here, the dealer says their drivers sometimes pick up repos on the same trips as deliveries."}},{"id":428003,"startTime":697.9,"endTime":707.7,"type":"brand","title":"Slack","url":"/glossary/slack","quote":"I mean, it's a, it's a pretty slick system. And the drivers, we use Slack,\nI was talking about that earlier, but we just, we have a Slack channel that it's just the\nliveries that we've all picked up saying we just schedule it.","canonicalId":"brand:slack","priority":0.2,"confidence":0.9,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"Slack is a team messaging platform used for internal communication. In this segment, the dealer uses a Slack channel to coordinate deliveries and share updates (specifically mentioning “liveries” as the shared items).","simplifiedExplanation":"Slack is an app teams use to chat and share updates quickly. The dealer uses it to coordinate deliveries and keep everyone on the same page."}},{"id":428004,"startTime":2343.72,"endTime":2349.72,"type":"car","title":"Volkswagen Golf","url":"/cars/volkswagen/golf","image":"https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8a/2020_Volkswagen_Golf_Style_1.5_Front.jpg","quote":"...th baseball, you know, whatever. We just did this golf classic. We did a make-a-wish this year. So we ki...","canonicalId":"car:volkswagen:golf","priority":0.7,"source":"hybrid-fuzzy+gpt-5.4-nano","data":{"explanation":"The Volkswagen Golf is a compact hatchback that’s been a popular, long-running model known for being practical for everyday driving. It often comes up in dealer and community stories because it’s a common, easy-to-understand car that many people shop for as a first or everyday vehicle. In a podcast context, it may be mentioned as part of what dealers see frequently in their inventory or customer interest.","simplifiedExplanation":"The Volkswagen Golf is a small car made for everyday use, usually in a hatchback body style. It’s designed to be practical for commuting and errands, which is why a lot of people consider it when shopping for a reliable daily driver.","imageAttribution":"Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0","imageLicense":"CC BY-SA 4.0","imageSourceUrl":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2020_Volkswagen_Golf_Style_1.5_Front.jpg"}}],"speakers":[{"id":"s1","name":"Jeff Watson","role":"host"}],"transcripts":[{"url":"http://getcarcurious.com/episodes/436-the-dealer-who-delivers-cars-in-pajamas-how-red-white-blue-went-97-digital/transcript.vtt","type":"text/vtt"}]}