Fred Timbrook is the 2024 TIME Dealer of the Year nominee for West Virginia. On Feb. 3, 2024, he, along with 49 other dealer nominees from across the country, will be honored at the 107th annual National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Show in Las Vegas, Nevada. The TIME Dealer of the Year award is one of the automobile industry’s most prestigious and highly coveted honors. The award recognizes the nation’s most successful auto dealers who also demonstrate a long-standing commitment to community service.
“My retail automotive career has given me the opportunity to help others achieve their goals and dreams,” Fred said. “As a result of my success in this business, I have also been able to financially support many causes that improve people’s lives.”
Fred graduated from Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, in 1992 with a B.S. in finance. Even though his father, Fredrick, ran a Pontiac and Cadillac dealership in Cumberland, Maryland, where Fred worked as a teenager, he never planned on a career in the auto industry — nor staying in the town where he grew up. “Of course, life can change in a moment, and my dad ended up purchasing the Cumberland store due to the sudden death of the owner when I was a junior in college,” he said. “I joined him after graduating, and my first ‘real job’ was Body Shop Estimator.”
He worked his way through every department, developing an in-depth knowledge of dealership operations and gaining the experience necessary to take on a leadership role. In 2001, when he was 31 years old, he bought the business. “My father sold the dealership and the real estate to me — for full price — because he wanted me to experience the responsibility that goes with owning a store,” Fred said. At that time, there were 50 employees.
His father was a great mentor who taught by example. “He was very demanding but very rewarding at the same time,” recalled Fred. When asked what lessons his father taught him, he shared: “Never do anything illegal or immoral to make money; you’ve got to make money to be able to give money and work for the job that you want, not the one you have. My father was a great mentor and continued to help me build the company until his retirement in 2017. His sacrifices in the past paved the way for our future.”
Fred took his father’s advice to heart, and today, Timbrook Automotive has 14 locations in West Virginia, Maryland, Virginia and Pennsylvania and has 450 employees. “All of our team members, some of whom have been with the company longer than I have, are truly outstanding,” Fred said. “Most of our locations have general managers who are also partners in the store, which has provided me the opportunity to focus on growing the company overall.”
Being a member of WVADA is important to Fred. In 2007, he opened two dealerships in West Virginia and immediately after joined the association. “With so many issues facing the industry, the united voice that the association provides is imperative,” Fred stated. He went on to say, “They represent us with legislators. They’re pro-business, pro-dealer and making sure that our franchise laws are protected.”
Giving back and lifting others are two things that come naturally to Fred. One of the contributions to his community is helping to launch CityReach Church in Cumberland, Maryland, along with his wife, Kristin, in 2015. He is currently the Lead Pastor. “As the name implies, CityReach is focused on reaching our community with the life-changing message of Jesus through various types of community outreach events,” he said.
To that end, the church prepares and distributes holiday dinner food boxes containing a complete holiday dinner for those in need at Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas. In addition, they host backpack giveaways, clothing drives and playground cleanups. The One Fest, a recent CityReach event in downtown Cumberland, featured music, children’s activities and an “Everything With Wheels” giveaway of Trek mountain bikes, Honda motorcycles and a Kia Soul.
Both Fred and his wife work with the residents at The CityReach Hope Homes. The CityReach Hope Homes consist of two recovery homes, one for men and one for women, and provide nine- to 12-month faith-based resident programs for men and women struggling with addiction. These free programs are designed to help individuals break free from drugs and get back on their feet.
“I preach and teach almost every week, and I personally interact with residents of the Hope Homes several times per week,” says Fred. “I have seen men and women go from living on the street — completely addicted to heroin, crack or meth — to becoming productive members of society who know their value and worth. Some have even started a career in the automotive industry and are working for our company.”
Fred and his wife have three children. His two daughters, Caroline Rogers and Lauren Timbrook, are the next generation to join the family enterprise. His son, also named Fredrick, is an OBGYN in his third year of residency.
WVADA had a chance to talk with Fred about his TIME Dealer of the Year nomination. Here are some insights that he shared:
What is the biggest issue facing dealers right now?
Interest rates are the biggest issue. They have adversely affected the cost of doing business, from floor planning cars for the dealer to customers dealing with higher payments. I believe we’ve peaked out of where rates are going to go. I believe that there’s not going to be much movement until the third or fourth quarter of next year. It might be 2025 before we really see rates come back to a reasonable level.
I’m sure if you asked any car dealer, they would say that EV is an issue, good or bad, regardless of how you feel about it. It’s changed the landscape of the car business. Most manufacturers rushed in and now we’re sitting on an abundance of electric vehicles. On the ground, we have too many days’ supply of them because manufacturers overbuilt them, but it’s a growing segment.
There are also issues with customer loyalty to both the dealer and brand. As we’ve come out of the pandemic, inventories have come up some. But at the same time, customers can go online, find the car they want and purchase it. The way we’ve tackled that is that we focus on tying customers to the salesperson to keep them engaged.
Do you find it more difficult to conduct business today than when you first became a dealer?
I’d say it is 100% more difficult, but I don’t know that it’s worse. It’s a different environment today with a faster pace. Technology allows you to do more in a day than you could 30 years ago. I find I’m more productive on a given day, but at the same time, I find it hard to disconnect from staying up to date.
What has been the most rewarding part of your career?
I like creating opportunities for people to grow. It’s one thing to grow the company, but for me, it’s so rewarding to bring people along with the company. Not everybody wants to grow; some people have had the same job for 30 years and I love that. But there are people who have career goals; they’re gifted and they have certain abilities. The rewarding part for me is to be able to give them opportunities to make more money, develop better skills and make their family life better.
What pieces of advice would you give someone if you were mentoring them?
- Have priorities. We’re only here for a short period of time. We should do the best we can with the things we’ve been entrusted with and prove to be a good steward of what God has put in our care. I make sure that my employees know their families are important. I encourage them to put family first and to never put a job ahead the most important thing in life. When you have your priorities in line, it makes life better.
- Be productive. If you get up 30 minutes early every day, it adds three weeks of productivity to your life every year. When people say, “I don’t have enough time in the day,” I say, get up five minutes early, then 10 minutes early, and next thing you know, you have more time than you realize. Maximizing your day is a big thing.
- I always try to encourage people. You literally can do more than you think you can. It’s important to think big and not limit yourself. I try to stretch people to move to the next level.
- Giving back is a big deal, whether it’s financially or with your time or whatever. Maybe it’s taking time for yourself to work out, to slow down and think or to rest. All those things are important. I encourage others to focus on doing the basics well and the big things will take care of themselves.
