Pella Motors provides community with opportunity to buy locally

By KATHY BELL
The Chronicle

On August 27, Craig Ford purchased Jensen Auto Center located at 604 E.
Oskaloosa (across from the old Wal-Mart). With the purchase he changed the
name of the business to Pella Motors. Craig and his family, wife Scarlett
and four children, Dawson, Mira, Julia and Esther Grace who range in age
from 7 years to 8 months old, are in the process of relocating from Ankeny.
Craig brings 8 1/2 years of experience in the automobile industry with him
to Pella. Although this is his first time as an entrepreneur, he is
confident that his strong background in sales, computer/internet and
finance will assist him in the rebuilding of the dealership. Craig hopes to
have a new, upscale Pella Motors website finished within the next few
weeks. He said starting a new business has been an ³eye-opening
experience.²
At this time Pella Motors has 20 employees and are expecting to add more.
Craig wanted their loyal customers to know the business has no plans of
moving from their present site nor do they plan to change model lines,
offering the same seven lines from Chevrolet, Buick, Pontiac, GMC,
Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge.
Craig is familiar with the Pella area as he grew up in Grinnell and
graduated from Wartburg College where he played football against the
Central Flying Dutch. He said he learned a lot about discipline and
business while spending three years in the Army and six in the National
Guard. In his spare time, Craig plays his favorite sport, rugby.
³I am very excited about purchasing this dealership,² he said. ³I have
heard good things about our sales people and I have two veteran salesmen,
Marvin DeBoef and Bob Verschure, who are well known in this community and
who have a high moral and ethical reputation in Pella.²
Craig also said his service department is also well known for the high
quality of service they provide.
³We have two world-class technicians who have earned the highest honors in
the industry, master certified through General Motors and another master
certified through Chrysler and one who is a recent graduate with a degree
in auto mechanics from Bob Jones University,² he said. ³Their ability and
skills are second to none. Pound for pound we have the most highly trained
technicians in a 50 mile radius or more,² he stated. When you bring your
car to us you will have the satisfaction of knowing that our highly trained
technicians receive continuous education in the ever-changing world of
motor vehicles and that the equipment they use on your vehicle is cutting
edge. We invest a lot in customer satisfaction. We don¹t just want to make
you happy the day you purchase your vehicle. We want to have a long-lasting
relationship with our customers as we continue to provide them with ongoing
high quality service for the entire time they own their vehicle,²
One of Craig¹s first goals is to continually add to the vehicle inventory
on the lot. He said he is very happy with the seven lines of vehicles he
has to offer customers and he feels Pella Motors will be able to offer
their customers a couple of additional perks.
³We don¹t have a fancy showroom,² he commented. ³Our low overhead gives us
the ability to sell for less. We are also a part of the Deery group which
gives us a lot of influence in the market which we can use to our advantage
to bring very low interest rates on vehicles to Pella.²
Craig comes from a long line of family in the automotive industry.
His grandfather is a retired Chrysler mechanic and his father, who is the
first person he hired at Pella Motors, is a former mechanic with years of
experience in the parts business.